We may live in the age of specialization but right now the best thing you can do is become more of a total solution provider. Many years ago my brothers and I decided that if we didn’t “own the basement” then we’d be inviting in our competition to supply the products and services we didn’t [...]
"Why do we still pay Al Levi for ongoing consulting three years after we first started working together? Because I know how easy it would be to fall back into our old bad habits."
Steve Lowry, OwnerLowry Electric, Inc.
Hatfield, PA
Monthly Archive for May, 2011
The Goal: The goal needs to be to find a show or show that you can take a dominant position in. You will need to confirm that the Trade Show or Trade Shows being considered have the demographics that most closely match the Target Audience you seek to reach. It’s not just important to know [...]
A danger area for all contractors especially in this recession with declining sales opportunities is eliminating or laying off outside techs and installers without addressing the need to do the same with people on the “inside”. Rule of Thumb: For every two techs or installers out there turning wrenches or doing the work, there should be [...]
Remember the Goal: Pull up to 80% of the homes you serve with a truck and truck stock that will give the Tech an 80% chance that they’ll have what they need to get the job done today. Here are the Rest of the Steps to Implementation: Keep the heaviest stuff closest to the floor. [...]
The last thing you need to be doing in this economy is to have a truck stocked too heavily and paying for excess inventory or stuff that gets damaged or goes out of warranty sitting on a shelf. What’s just is bad is having a truck stocked without enough to make it a good chance [...]
The problem with most contractors who call me is that it’s one of the rare calls they ever make is to me. Most of their day is spent fielding incoming calls and/or emails on their ever-ringing or vibrating smart phones. They don’t know how to get control of their business or their life because it’s [...]
These slow times are a perfect time to upgrade your staff! Face it! You’ve probably been behaving like a hostage whenever your employees during the good times would come knocking on your door at the end of the day to say, “Do you have a minute?” We both know what comes next. It’s only a [...]
It may seem counterintuitive but offering a better warranty than your competition actually makes you money. The reason is you overcome one of the best buying objections a customer has when making a purchasing decision and it separates you from being “just like the rest” to being “above the rest.” How you offer the warranty [...]
The big buzz word is, “Green.” Frankly, I’ve been in the business of saving the planet and I didn’t even know I was doing it. Way back in the 70s when the first oil shock wave hit, my company knew we better get into the energy saving business or someone else was going to lock [...]
