In the world of construction, what gets you in the door is not what keeps you in the door.

I run across two types of contractors that make me think about the idea that product is king.

1.  ”At least the end product was good!”  These are the guys you can’t get on the telephone, that won’t come in budget, that won’t move you in on time.  But they found the loophole that product is king.   Their drywall work is perfection, their restoration abilities untouchable.   The problem is that I hate this approach, I don’t think it promotes pride or trust in our industry. More than that it stresses people out.    If you are this person, bring a marketer alongside of you, allow a proper manager to run the scene.  The success will only be dwarfed by the praises spoken about your team.  To me, the product is harder to come by, I think deep down we all know that.

2. “They look good on paper!” Once in a while I will come across a great looking sub or contractor who seems to have it all together.  Clean vehicles, proper tools, they even show up on time.  The problem is their product took a back seat to their image.  Restaurants can be this way.  Books, vacations, well anything I suppose.  Don’t hire based on looks alone.  I’m glad my wife understood that principle.

So spend initial energy on the product.  Before the doors open, before a page is read, a bicycle rode, make sure the product will win.   If you follow Seth Godin at all, you are familiar with what marketing can do for any item or business.  Good marketing gets you in the door, but if the product bombs, or is incomplete, or lets you down, the negative chatter will soon expose the marketing mask.

So lets churn out high quality products.  Your product could be your voice, a service, a product, or ideas.  If the product comes first, you will be noticed.

I want to bring special attention to a Herculine effort on the part of our crew.   This inner circle of our team shows that they have much more than just knowledge, they have a passion for what we do.

If you live in Middle Tennessee, you know we have had major rain this week.  So much rain that it is easy to justify staying home.  We are currently running two projects, one a small basement bathroom install for a repeat client of ours (West), and kitchen remodel addition (Fields/Newton) . Friday night about 8:30 I received a call from Fields/Newton letting me know that the side door was not locking and that there was rain water accumulating in the unfinished basement.  Now to set the scene, Tuesday we excavated and placed footers, Wed and Thur we laid block.  All of this in between bouts of rain.  Our goal is to have them back in by Thanksgiving, so keeping time is of importance.

I myself am in Kentucky camping so the first thing I did was call Eric (project manager) and Jeff  (carpenter) to see where they were.   Unbelievably on Friday night at 8:30 they were just heading home after working through some kinks at the West project.  I got ahold of Jeff and he volunteered to turn around and head to Sylvan Park.  Eric called shortly after, he was having dinner with West, and said he was heading over there too.  I touched base about 10:30 and they had solved the problems and were chatting with our clients.

Jeff and Eric get it.  They had been working since 6:30 A.M. and still had the desire to make sure things were right.  What they get doesn’t have anything to do with working a 16hr day, it has everything to do with why we are here.  Not only is the quality of a project necessary, but the client experiences is of equal importance.

I have always dreamed of construction being an experience you can’t wait to be a part of.  Skilled artisans, well thought out plans, impeccable design (thanks to Mary)  and clients willing to enjoy the process.  I see that dream becoming a reality on weeks such as this.  When our inner team steps up and is willing to help build that goal.

For those of us in the building industry, don’t settle for what you can get away with.  Embrace quality construction and thoughtful planning.  Allow the client on your team. Most importantly tell the story of your entire team, from accounting (Thanks Kurt) to cabinetmaking. (Thanks Chris Barber).

For clients, you can be a part of this too.  Allow construction to be an art.  There are men and women working harder than they should be striving to make your home a better place.  Celebrate the wins, laugh at the kinks.  Most importantly join in the experience and become a part of something that matters.

Eric and Jeff, you rock.  Your work this week has been exemplary.

Questions:

Who do you need to acknowledge for their efforts? Be specific

What are you a part of that matters?

Ugly work truck

I have been known in the past to drive a clunker or two. For me there was always a vision of what it could be. Here are ten things I have learned about ugly work trucks.

1. They usually leak oil and break down on your job site!

2. They carry equally well dressed passengers!

3. There main strength is bringing a smile to your face!

4. They don’t realize that you would happily pay for a nicer image!

5. Even if the owner of the truck is a hard working, intelligent person, you can’t see that past the truck.

6. Writing in paintbrush on the side of your truck doesn’t mean good advertising.

7. Don’t expect detail in the work performed.

8. Your jobsite tools fit great in their trailer

9. They don’t follow good directions.

10. It weakens you because you don’t demand excellence.

Excellence doesn’t have to be expensive. Clean, not scrawled on trucks of any age can be appealing. I drove around a 79 Jeep J10 for a few years. The problem with that though is clients don’t appreciate how classic your vehicle is. My advice, to the best of your ability, find the most qualified work truck that fits into your budget as main stream as possible. Let your work and skill stick out, not your trucks image.

I drive a 2003 F-350 seen here. The beauty is, you get a nicer truck, and you get paid more to have it. Even if that amount is 2 – 3 more dollars an hour, that usually amounts to the cost of a payment. Be inventive, just don’t get hung up on a truck or car you can’t let go of. Humans tend to fall in love with objects. I cherish the memory of my 79 Jeep J-10, but it no longer parks in front of my image when I walk to a new clients door!