Pump Up Profits With Smart Selections and Upselling
Customer selections needn’t screw up schedules and budgets. We’ve collected tips to help you stay in control and increase your margins.

Good customer service helps buyers maintain their kid-in-a-candy-store enthusiasm during selections and throughout the entire home building experience. However, you don’t want them to go into sugar shock, so to speak, stunned by product choices and then holding up the production schedule. And you don’t want them to go into sticker shock by yearning for expensive items they can’t afford.

“The most important thing for a builder to do during the selections process is to be in control,” says Ed Nikles, Sr., president of Ed Nikles Custom Builder in Milford, PA. Maintaining control of the process makes it go more smoothly for everyone on the builder’s team, as well as customers, trades, and suppliers. And it gives builders the opportunity to boost their bottom lines with smart upselling.

Innovative trends in selections management reflect an emphasis on phasing out allowances and surprises, and on making selections earlier in the home building cycle. Select this link to learn some techniques home builders and sales professionals use to manage the process and sell upgrades.

Wichita Builders Work Wonders With OSHA
When OSHA inspectors started popping up on Wichita, KS, home sites and issuing citations, the Wichita Area Builders Association formed a partnership alliance with OSHA and encouraged its members to get smart about jobsite safety. Now Wichita home builders have safer sites, they see eye to eye with OSHA inspectors, and their production schedules are back on track.

Select this link to read the full story in our Smart Solutions series. You’ll also get some pointers on working with OSHA and developing jobsite safety programs. [return to top]

Build Your Knowledge at the Custom Builder Symposium

Each year, custom home clients raise the bar on what they expect of your business and those one-of-a-kind homes you build. Likewise, you’ve got to keep expanding your knowledge base to deliver on their expectations and ensure your profitability. Get the skills you need at the 2004 Custom Builder Symposium, the only event offering world-class education, exceptional networking opportunities, and fun-filled activities for custom home builders.

“Beyond the Tool Belt” is the theme of this year’s Symposium, which will be held November 12^th – 14^th at the Renaissance Esmeralda Resort and Spa in Indian Wells, CA. Here’s what’s new for 2004:

• Keynote speaker Bryan Williams of The Ritz-Carlton will share the organization’s best practices and explain how to create a culture of service excellence.
  
• Certified Graduate Builder (CGB) Designation Courses will be offered during the Symposium at no additional charge. The courses also are approved for Certified Graduate Remodeler (CGR) credit.
  
• Daily roundtables will give you the opportunity to discuss hot topics and solutions to business challenges with other custom builders.
  
• The first ever Symposium Golf Tournament will be held at the challenging Ted Robinson designed course located right at the resort.

When you’re ready to take a break from learning and networking, you can unwind in the resort’s full-service spa and fitness center; explore Palm Springs via horseback riding tours of nearby Indian Canyons or by hot air balloon over the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains; and view the area’s most innovative custom homes along the Andersen Home Tour.

Put the 2004 Custom Builder Symposium on your calendar whether you’re thinking of getting into the custom home building business, or you’re already a seasoned builder, remodeler, general contractor, architect, sales professional, or marketing professional, or you want to sell products and services to these professionals.

Register today to guarantee your spot! Go to www.nahb.org/custom to register for the Symposium or receive more information. Questions? Need more information? Contact the NAHB University of Housing’s office of the registrar at 800-368-5242, x8338, or at mailto:registrar@nahb.com. [return to top]

Green-Collar Crime Burns Builders

A warning about "green-collar crime" went out to members of NAHB's PR Exchange following reports that the Earth Liberation Front (ELF) is claiming responsibility for arson and attempted arson at three residential construction sites in Snohomish County, WA. The eco-terrorist group has also been tied to June's $1.5 million arson fire at a Salt Lake City area lumber yard. According to the FBI, ELF attacks have caused more than $100 million in damages since 1996. The costliest incident to date involved destruction of a five-story apartment complex that was under construction in San Diego last year, and totalled $50 million.  

NAHB is meeting with the FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to discuss what additional efforts our members can take to better secure their job sites against potential attacks. A number of such strategies for keeping sites safe were presented by the firm of Laer Pearce & Associates at the Pacific Coast Builders Conference this June; see NBN Online for details.

In addition, learn how to avoid the high cost of jobsite crime by reading our article in Business Management Tools. For more information on NAHB's PR Exchange and NAHB's efforts to combat eco-terrorism, e-mail Kym Kilbourne or call her at 800-368-5242, x8447. [return to top]

Pass it On

You probably know someone who wants to read this valuable newsletter, too.  So go ahead and send this newsletter to any NAHB member you know who might benefit from it. They’ll be sure to thank you for it! [return to top]

Does Your Business Measure Up?

Get your copy of the 2004 Cost of Doing Business Study and you’ll instantly see how your financial performance stacks up against the rest of the industry. The publication gives home builders a rare glimpse at other builders’ books by providing data about profitability, cost of sales, and expenses from hundreds of home builders across the country.

In this 2004 edition, you’ll learn how to develop cost control systems and get tips on cutting cycle time. Start working more profitably by ordering it today. [return to top]

Conquer Construction Defects

A new construction quality survey may help you avoid lawsuits over construction defects and improve customer satisfaction. Working with the American Society of Home Inspectors, NAHB sought to identify the "problem areas" within the design and construction process that most frequently arise in home inspections. This online publication is free to NAHB members, and hopefully will provide a tool to help you continue building the highest-quality homes possible. Download your copy from our Web site. For more information about the survey, e-mail David Jaffe or call him at 800-368-5242, x8317. [return to top]

Business Opportunities From NAHB Councils and Departments

Earn Money and Recognition for Community Service Work

Associations, Women’s Councils, and members donate thousands of volunteer hours to Home Builders Care projects each year. Make sure that your efforts are recognized by entering your project for the Home Builders Care/National Housing Endowment Project of the Year Award. To enter, submit an entry form accompanied by a two-page (maximum) detailed project description. You may include supporting material such as press clippings, programs, or other project documents with your entry form. Home builder associations and individual members are eligible to enter. Entries are due October 15.

The National Housing Endowment Board of Trustees will select a winner at its December 2004 meeting. The winner will be recognized at the 2005 International Builders’ Show, where the association or member will receive a $5,000 donation to a charity of choice. The winner will be featured in a story in NBN Online and in a press release announcement, and will receive a recognition plaque. Read an article about last year’s winner on NAHB’s Web site. For more information, e-mail Kym Kilbourne or call her at 800-368-5242, x8447.

2005 Best of Seniors Housing Design and Marketing Awards

The NAHB Seniors Housing Council has revamped its seniors housing awards program with 108 categories and an increased emphasis on marketing. The 2005 Best of Seniors Housing design and marketing awards program, “Celebrating Excellence … Visions of the Future,” rewards projects for their innovative designs and marketing approaches.

The contest is open to architects, builders, remodelers, engineers, and other professionals who produce or sell housing for the 50+ market. The entry deadline is October 22. Awards will be presented during the 2005 International Builders’ Show in Orlando, FL.

Select this link to download contest rules and the call for entries. Or contact Eucklan Matthews at 800-368-5242, x8220 to have a copy of the call for entries mailed to you.

Earn National Recognition for Workforce Housing Projects

Builders, architects, designers, developers and land planners nationwide are invited to submit entries for the Innovation in Workforce Housing Awards.

This new award will recognize outstanding communities across the nation that provide decent and affordable homes for nurses, police officers, schoolteachers and other service personnel, near areas in which they work.

Communities are eligible for the award if they were completed, the first model opened, or the first unit was occupied, between January 1, 2002 and October 29, 2004. Winning entries will be selected by a panel of builders, multifamily, and land development experts based on criteria including exterior and interior design, sales success, construction quality/cost efficiency, successful management of any impediments and the level of cooperation among various stakeholders. Award winners will be announced at the 2005 International Builders’ Show.

For more information, including eligibility requirements and an application form, visit www.nahb.org/workforcehousing. Entries should be postmarked by October 29.

2005 Pillars of the Industry Awards

Apartment owners and developers, property managers, architects, interior designers and others involved in the multifamily housing industry are invited to submit entries to this annual competition sponsored by NAHB’s Multifamily Council. The entry deadline is November 1.

Select this link for more information. Eligibility requirements and application forms are available at http://www.pillarsconference.com/.

Do Business in Mexico

The Mexican home building market is expected to grow to a value of $6.7 billion by 2005. Want a piece of it? Attend the 2nd International Housing Conference of the Americas, which takes place November 7-10 in Mexico City and is sponsored by NAHB International.  

Conference highlights include pre-arranged, one-on-one networking meetings between U.S. and Mexican company representatives, property tours of Mexico’s top builders, and interactive, highly informative panels. Simultaneous English/Spanish translation is included for all sessions.

The first 200 registrants to the 2nd International Housing Conference of the Americas will receive complimentary registration to the 2005 International Builders' Show in Orlando, FL.

Select this link to register online for the conference. For more information, contact Matt Monjan at 800-368-5242, x8419. [return to top]

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Select this link to get this valuable newsletter every month. [return to top]

Member Advantage: Save on Dell® With NAHB

Dell, the world's leading computer systems company, offers discounts to NAHB members on Dell Dimension™ Desktops,  Dell OptiPlex™ Desktops, Dell Precision™ Workstations, Dell Inspiron™ Notebooks, Dell Latitude™ Notebooks,  Dell PowerEdge™ SC Servers and PowerVault™ Storage, and Dell Printers™.

Go to http://premier.dell.com/ to order your Dell system. Enter access code “NAHB” and access key “NAHBDELL” (case sensitive). Your NAHB discount will be automatically applied.

Dedicated Dell Association Sales Representatives are available at 1-888-577-3355 Monday through Friday, 7 a.m.-8 p.m. (CT), and Saturday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (CT).

For the most up-to-date details on the Member Advantage discount program and all of the participating companies, go to http://memberadvantage.nahb.org. Or visit http://www.nahb.org/ to explore the full range of benefits associated with membership in your local, state, and national home builders associations. [return to top]