November 2009: New LowesForPros Articles & Features

Get your company, crews and facilities ready for winter!

The days are getting shorter and winter is on its way. For those of you working in the northern states, winter can be serious disruption to production and efficiency. It's also an invitation to an increased workload, thanks to rising demand for weatherization products and services. 

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News and Advice for All Building Professionals

• Prioritizing Innovation: Innovation doesn’t have to happen on a grand scale. Even the smallest innovations in the office and on the job site can help your business run more smoothly, quickly and efficiently.
• The Importance of Customer Service Training: Good customer service can be difficult to quantify as it is based primarily on an individual’s overall experience with and impression of your company and employees. One thing is clear, however: A job well done can be marred by the negative impression that a customer is often left with after receiving poor customer service. As such, many companies view customer service training as essential to growing and retaining their client base.
• Marketing to Women: Marketing to women is an under-utilized tactic for most businesses. But if you want to increase your clientele, it’s important to start paying more attention to the details and creating designs that address the female perspective.
• High School Students Win Sustainability Solutions Competition: Three high school students with a passion for going green promoted their school’s sustainable facility in a national competition. They not only placed first, but continue to educate others about the importance of renewable energy through their winning Web site.         

Advice for Builders and Remodelers

• Working through the Winter Part 2: Winter Challenges: Thanks to seasonal snow, frost and shorter days, builders often face many obstacles when the weather takes a toll on workers, job sites and schedules. In part two of a two-part series, consider these winter-weather tips to keep your people and your projects going all season long.
• Six Tips to Earn Your Customer’s Respect: Today’s market climate calls for contractors to be more mindful than ever before of their clients’ needs. Strengthen your professional relationships—and ultimately, your financial future—by earning clients’ trust and respect for the long haul.
• The Benefits of Wood Frame Construction: Despite a surge of innovative new building materials on the market, wood frame construction is still the most widely used building technique in residential construction. So before you trade wood for alternative materials, consider the benefits it offers to both homebuilders and homeowners.
• How Small Businesses Can Compete with Larger Ones: When compared to large corporate construction firms, it may seem like smaller companies don’t stand a chance. But when it comes to the residential construction industry, many homeowners are looking for a more personal experience.
• Green Flooring Trends: From basic bamboo and cork to long-lasting Lyptus and linoleum, contractors are fielding more green flooring requests than ever before. How can you help decide which materials best meet your clients’ needs?
• Home Automation Trends for Builders and Remodelers: With technology and efficiency at the forefront of most new homes and remodels, home automation offers builders and remodelers a means of standing out from the crowd.

Advice for Property Managers

• Cutting Costs By Greening Your Office: Making small changes to green your office through recycling, reducing energy use and making sustainable swaps does not merely have a positive ecological impact—it can also be a savvy business decision.
• Determining the Optimal Monthly Rent for Your Vacancies: Many property managers face challenges when it comes to setting rent for tenants. With research, market familiarity and a working formula, setting the right rental rate will pay off.
• Smart PM Strategies: Running Your Business More Efficiently: Many property managers struggle to make the best use of their time, given all the hats they wear. But taking these proactive steps will increase task efficiency and improve your business in the process.

Advice for Maintenance Professionals

• Preparing Your Facility for Winter: For a facility manager, getting a facility prepped for winter’s fury is a serious undertaking since precautions can prevent costly damages and potential lawsuits. With proper planning and a mapped out plan of action, FMs can ensure a safe winter season.
• Monitoring Building Operations and Maintenance Contracts: Since building operations and maintenance (O&M) is key to a facility’s survival, continually monitoring contracts with those who manage it is necessary to ensure quality service, low costs and an efficient building operation.
• Securing Your Facility: Ensuring Safety in Your Building: Maintaining safety requires a facility manager to ensure a security system is regularly maintained, that visitors are monitored and contingency plans are in place for any problems that may arise.
• Creative Use of Space: Facilities managers can increase their customer value and reduce carbon footprint by optimizing square footage in offices, universities and retail centers.

Advice for Landscapers

• Landscaping Ideas for the Winter Months: It might be the winter season, but that doesn’t mean your clients have to leave their landscapes out in the cold. While people might not be outside as much, there are plenty of ways to keep a landscape looking fresh.
• Tailoring Your Design for Every Home: Clients often come with a set notion of their dream yard and then turn to you to execute the fine details. From the flower beds in back to the hedges in front, highlighting the essence of the home should always remain a priority in landscape design.

Advice for Plumbers

• Commercial Plumbing Trends: From high efficiency toilets to tankless water heaters, green design is becoming a cost-effective staple of commercial bathrooms. What do clients demand—and how can you help identify the products that meet their needs?

Advice for Electricians

• Recharge Your Business in a Tough Economy: Electricians can fight the tough economy and keep their businesses afloat even after the housing crash. From service contracts and smart advertising to networking and customer relationships, business owners can find plenty of ways to recharge their businesses.