Category Archives: tips

Tues Tip: Construction Marketing ideas from a pro

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DeAnna Radaj

DeAnna Radaj

 

Last Tuesday I posted about the importance of properly handling the business of your construction business through having written contracts.

For today’s tip, I’ve opened up the floor to DeAnna Radaj, owner of Bante Design LLC. DeAnna has a division of workshops & programs that help design and construction professionals with their businesses.  She is the author of “Designing the Life of Your Dreams from the Outside In” and “Feng Shui for Teens.”

Here are DeAnna’s tips for clients and workshop participants to market themselves better:

  • Have an electronic signature that includes any awards, tag lines and website info that gets included on all emails. You can also have logo included as well to help brand your company.
  • You MUST have  a website, even if it’s only 1 page that has mission statement, logo, services/products offered, contact info, location/address and hours of operation. Keywords and meta tags need to be used so they appear at top of search engines (i.e. John’s Roofing would have “johns roofing, roofing, construction” and city/area serviced)
  • Great sites to promote self/company: LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, ConstructionDeals.com, any association groups. Join appropriate groups that are for your IDEAL CLIENT!
  • Go to where your IDEAL CLIENT frequents/posts/shops. If your market is luxury remodel, you wouldn’t advertise at the Dollar Store.
  • Start a blog. This is great to have on your website. Use this in email signature & any correspondence & marketing. Submit blog to eZine articles, ConstructionDeals.com and link to your profile on LinkedIn and Facebook so it’s always updating & keeping your prospective clients updated.
  • Speak at local business groups, trade associations,  community colleges, or even the local park & recs group. Who couldn’t use some “handy man tips”? Proper way to hold/use tools for women? Be creative. Establish yourself as THE EXPERT. Workshops are one of THE #1 ways to attract new clients!!
  • ASK for referrals from current/past clients. Offer a “commission” for referrals, or entry into a raffle for each referral…be creative!
  • Write an eZine/newsletter to keep clients and/or list current on trends, new products/services and appearances. Do NOT send out more than 1x a month! Offer incentives/coupons to increase sales.
  • Host an open house of other event at your office/store or in conjunction with similar businesses…kind of like a joint venture. Are you a plumber? Team up with a tile shop for a joint offering, workshop or open house.

 

Do you have a good idea for finding and keeping your construction clients in today’s economy?  If so, drop me a line or comment below and tell me about it!

 

Tues Tip: “Business” of architecture & engineering

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Love your work but hate the “job” portion of it? You know, quoting scope of work, dealing with fees, and getting paid?  If so, check out Milton Gregory Grew’s great article about setting fees that can realistically account for your overhead and other indirect costs, “The Business of Architecture (Oxymoron?)”.

Of  the tips Greg discusses, step #2, “Put it in writing” is key,  as I’ve discussed earlier here.

Moreover, for fee issues, a written agreement is the gold standard.  In a written agreement you can even account for collection costs, higher interest charges, and “reasonable” attorney fees if you later (heaven forbid) have to sue a (former) client for payment of services.  Without a written agreement, you are stuck with statutory limits on what you can recover.

As they say, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.Gold 1 oz

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Photo “Gold1oz” by Olegvolk via Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 license.  

Tuesday Tip| Construction Marketing Ideas website

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Arm and a Leg

 The construction industry, like most these days, is still very sluggish.  Is there a way to get your message out to customers without it costing the proverbial “arm and a leg” ?  A website in my blogroll, Construction Marketing Ideas,  is a good one that offers information for construction professionals– whether architects, engineers, contractors, or subs– to get their message heard.

Do you have a site you like for marketing ideas?  Let me know!  I’m always on the look out for well-written sites with valuable information.  You can email me at [email protected] or comment below.

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Photo “It’s not worth an arm and a leg” by Right About Me via Flickr and made available via an Attribution-Noncomercial-Share Alike 3.0 License.

 

Tuesday Tip | Construction Law Research Links

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fireworksIn celebration of Independence Day this past weekend, here are some references for those who want to independently research their construction law issues.  (Just remember to read with caution and consult with a lawyer for any questions and to see if applicable to your particular situation).

All of these links are now in the Resource section of the Blog.  Happy researching!

North Carolina Lien Law Statues  (N.C. Gen. Stat. sec. 44A)

Laws and Regulations Applicable to General Contracting (including NC licensure, lien info, and permit info)

NC State Construction projects (N.C. Admin. Code Title 1, chapter 30)

NC Building Code information (N.C. Department of Insurance OSFM)

 

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Photo Fireworks #1 by Camera Slayer via Flikr via Attribution-Noncommercial-ShareAlike License.

 

Tuesday Tip | Tax incentives for Green projects

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green escalatorInterested in green building but skeptical about how it will increase your costs?  Before ruling out the concept, don’t forget to consider the tax incentives for green building.  Between the Business Energy Investment Tax Credit, federal cash grants for energy projects, North Carolina incentives for renewable energy property, and NC’s Green Building Incentive, there are ample opportunities to make “going green” a more appealing choice on your next building project.

For a look at some of the tax incentives available, check out Getting Green for Going Green- Tax incentives for energy-efficient projects.   [Update- link no longer working as of 11/22/2010]

You can also explore the database of North Carolina incentives for renewables and efficiency.  For projects outside of North Carolina, search the national database for tax incentives for going green.

If you are a homeowner interested in energy efficiency, you too may be able to get in on the green movement.  The Home Star legislation being considered by Congress, if it passes, will provide tax credits for making energy improvements to your house.

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Photo “the green ascent” by vsz via Flickr via Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike License.