Tag Archives: architect

Online Marketing Primer for Architects & Engineers (Tue Tip Guest Post)

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 Today’s Tip is a guest post by Andy Durban, who manages Inspired Builder Marketing Solutions in Greensboro, North Carolina.  Inspired has been providing marketing services to the building industry of North Carolina for nearly ten years.  Andy has been involved in marketing and media since the late 80s and currently specializes in online marketing strategies.  The back link referenced in this article belongs to Inspired client Cirrus Construction.

There are still a few industries that benefit from a yellow page ad, if you are reading this blog you’re probably not in one. The internet search has been in popular use for quite some time and that’s not going to change anytime soon. No doubt you have been exposed to the hype surrounding social media, but no one is ‘Facebooking’ Architect, they ‘Google’ Architect. You may have great website which in itself has value but if doesn’t rank well then it will only be available to those already aware of your business. There are businesses looking for you and they use Google (and sometimes Yahoo or even Bing). And as you know from searching yourself they rarely go beyond the first ten results.

open phone book

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Every business with a website at some point has asked the question “how do we increase our rankings?” Let’s start with a somewhat simplistic view of the process.  The search engine’s job is to find the most qualified results for your search and they normally do a pretty good job. The way the search engines (Google, Yahoo and Bing) do this is somewhat simple. Let’s use Widget manufacturers to demonstrate. Widget manufacturer ‘A’ has 100 employees; they have a full marketing staff including a copy writer, a technical writer, a PR writer, a webmaster and a team of engineers. Widget manufacturer ‘B’ works out of his garage and has himself a part time helper and sometimes his wife. Why does manufacturer A have an advantage?

Google (and the others) use two basic parameters to determine rankings, ‘content’ and ‘back linking’. A back link is a hyperlink on one site pointing to another. Metal Building Greensboro is a valuable back link to a local commercial builder. Google sees this as vote of confidence of that site and gives the builder ‘brownie points’. Content is simply the number of times key words are used legitimately on a website. Those key words will be found in the URL, the page file name, the page’s title tag, page copy, and alt attributes (used to identify images and graphics). Widget manufacturer A is adding keyphrase rich content to their site at very high rate, articles, case studies, news, instructions, FAQs, etc., even the engineers are helping by blogging technical information. Some of that content will warrant back links from other websites like the Widget Manufactures Association, Widget Digest and the Widget Buyers Guide. Widget manufacturer B is exhausted at the end of the day and barely has time respond to his email. His website is the same as it was five years ago.  Widget manufacturer A will likely rank top 5 in the top three search engines while Widget manufacturer B will not likely appear even on the first few pages and as stated searchers rarely check beyond the first page (ten results per page).

I have had clients express concerns about too much content on their websites– people don’t have time to read anymore! Well I agree to an extent: the website on its surface is a brochure. When we design a brochure for a client we do keep it brief and to the point. Your website is a brochure but potentially so much more; embedded links provide the opportunity for further investigation on a particular subject. So you are serving different personality types by providing more information. A marketing Director visiting the site may browse critical bullet points, while an engineer wants to gain as much information as possible before making a decision.

It’s that simple but of course not that easy; it takes effort. First, know what are your most valuable search terms. Then make a concerted effort to impact your website in a significant way on a daily basis with the intent of serving your client base. Eventually your site will rank top ten for your most valuable search terms. Once you get to this point, an analysis of your site’s stats will reveal opportunities that you never considered before. There’s gold in those ranking!

Comments or questions about your online marketing efforts? Share with Andy and me in the comments section, below.

Photo (c) How Can I Recycle This via CC.

Copyright Protection under ConsensusDOCS and AIA–which is better? (Law note)

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Large copyright sign made of jigsaw puzzle piecesWhich standard form contract provides “better” protection for copyright issues- ConsensusDOCS or AIA? The ever-so-hepful “it depends” is, as usual, the answer.

Are you the owner looking to use the plans you paid for even after you terminate an architect, or are you the architect looking to protect your work product?  If you are the owner, you will probably prefer ConsensusDOCS.  If you are the architect, your best bet is still the AIA documents.

Consider the following:

Under ConsensusDOCS 240,

  • the Owner receives ownership (except copyrights) of all documents, drawings, and data prepared by the architect or consultants for the Project, upon final payment for all sums due in the event of termination (Article 10.1).
  • the Owner has the option of being granted copyright ownership, contingent on making all payments required, including a stated copyright fee. (Article 10.1.1).
  • whether termination is for convenience or for cause by either party, the Owner can use the documents to complete the project, provided he pays all sums due (Article 10.1.2).
  • the Owner agrees to indemnify the architect for post-construction use of documents.  (Article 10.1.3).

Under AIA B101,

  • the architect and consultants are the owners of their respective instruments of service, retaining all rights, including copyrights (Article 7.2).
  • the Owner is granted a non-exclusive license in the instruments of service, soley for use in constructing, using, maintaining, altering and adding to the Project, provided the owner substantially performs, inclduing making prompt payments of all sums due (Article 7.3).
  • if the Owner does not pay all sums due, if the architect terminates the contract for cause, or if the Owner does not pay an extra fee after a termination for convenience, the Owner’s non-exclusive license terminates. (Article 7.3; Article 11.9).
  • the Owner must indemnify the architect against third party claims arising from the owner’s unauthorized use of documents. (Article 7.3.1).
  • if the Owner properly terminates the architect for cause, there is no indemnity against third party claims and no release of the architect from the owner’s claims arising from the use of the docuemnts (Article 7.3.1).

Do you have experience in managing copyright issues under either contract?  Which do you prefer?  Leave your thoughts in the comments section, below.

What if you have a non-standard contract?  Read about that at:  Copyright issues in non-standard construction contracts, including letter proposals.

 Photo (c) Horia Varlan via Creative Commons license.

Is your Contractor’s Surety Company financially strong? (Guest Post)

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Today we have a guest post from JW Surety on how to find bonding companies, check their solvency, and see how each surety company compares to one another.  As the design professional of record, the architect is often faced with reviewing the bid applications and paperwork, including bonding information.  With the increasing number of failing companies, including insurance companies, over the past few years, checking the bonding company’s financials makes good sense.

Much is unknown about surety bonds and, more importantly, what bond types are required in order to start your shop. The following three steps can help customers [Ed. note: or architects conducting due diligence] determine the best surety company for their bonding needs:

hand signing surety bond application

1)     Are they licensed?

As required by law, surety organizations must be licensed in order to operate as per their state guidelines. These licensing requirements are strict and involve background investigations into each company’s history. The benefit for customers is knowing that those surety companies which are licensed to operate are not only qualified, but they are ethically secure to practice. Those beginning the surety search can look through the U.S. Department of Treasury’s list of licensed companies to get a better understanding of which companies to reach out to.

2)     How are they classified?

Customers should get a firm understanding of how each surety company ranks in comparison to each other. To help make this process more manageable, consumer protection organizations do their own investigation and analysis and publicize their findings for others. Although there are several of these agencies, one of the most respected is Dun & Bradstreet, who offer their findings for a nominal fee. Customers can search through thousands of surety companies, gauge how long they’ve been operating, and assess which agencies they believe are most reputable for their bond needs.

3)     Is a surety broker a more viable option?

Brokers are similar to surety bond companies in that they are able to produce and distribute bonds. Typically, these individuals have established relationships with several high-level surety bond organizations, and can help advise customers on what types of bonds to secure, and how much it will cost them up front and annually. Often times individuals prefer the one-on-one relationship brokers offer. Customers interested in finding a reputable surety bond broker should look through the directory of the National Association of Surety Bond Producers.

Thanks JW Surety, for your guest post.  Welcome to my new subscribers this week!  Please contact me with any of your thoughts or concerns regarding construction law, and I’ll address them in upcoming posts.

Photo (c) JW Surety

Why words matter (aka Shakespeare for Architects & Engineers) (Law note)

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“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.”

Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)

Romeo & Juliet balcony

Words do matter.  In the context of construction law, there are some words that you should avoid at all costs.  Top of the list is the word inspect.  If your contract gives you the responsibility of inspecting the contractor’s work, stop.  Do not pass go.  Do not collect $200.  Inspection (at least to some owners and juries) connotes that a thorough review will be provided, and that every fault will be identified.  Instead of Inspection, a better word for your construction contract is Observe.  You should not be providing periodic inspection.  Instead, provide periodic observation.

Am I nit-picking? Perhaps.  But inspect implies a much stronger duty than observe.  (Just my personal observation!).  There are other words you should also avoid in construction contracts.

Instead of certify, try review

Instead of approving shop drawings, try No exceptions noted 

Instead of best (or highest) standards, try meet the professional standard of care

Instead of immediately, try without undue delay

This list is just a sample.  There are many other words to be leery of, including guarantee, warrant, insure, and ensure. 

In doubt about whether your contract contains dangerous words that may expose you to extra legal liability?  Write your contract as if your attorney is looking over your shoulder.  Keep in mind, both Romeo and Juliet learned the hard way that words do indeed matter.

Welcome to my new readers.  If you have not already done so, sign up for email delivery so you never miss a post from Construction Law in NC.  I welcome your comments & thoughts.

Photo:  (c) freefoto.com.

 

Free money for design professionals (and other lucky folks)? (Tue Tip)

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free money bridge sign

Okay, I’m technically cheating.  Today’s Tip is not specific to architects or engineers.  However, it is something that might put a little dough in your pocket that you didn’t even know you had coming to you.

Have you heard about the websites that can help you locate money due to you from a state government’s unclaimed property account?  This is money that is due to folks from old utility accounts, cell phone accounts, and the like.  If the company cannot locate the person they owe the refund to, they escheat it to the state.

Spend 5 minutes the next time you are internet surfing to see if you are owed any money.  Start with MissingMoney and plug in your name (and likely misspellings of your name).  You will note that many states (including North Carolina) are not yet listed with that national site; however, the MissingMoney site will give you the quick link to those states’ websites for “lost money”.  (North Carolina’s website for unclaimed money is here).

In playing around with these sites the other day, I found money owed to my Uncle, a cousin, and a college roommate.  While I didn’t find any money due to *me*, it was still a worthwhile exercise.  Everyone can use “free money” when they happen upon it, right?

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Photo (c) jazza2 via Creative Commons license.