Compassion and Intelligence

An economic slowdown does not need to mean a shutdown. For the fortunate members out there with a CAPS designation, work can be plentiful if you know how to look for it. Shifting your marketing towards older, more savvy adults may just be what is needed to kick-start your business. The aging population that has lived through many of these cycles have real needs that can be met by your expertise.

Members who have obtained their designations prior to this downturn have shown some degree of compassion. By this I mean: where else can you – as a single person or company – have such a profound impact on someone’s life. Your work requires a special person to acknowledge and help another human. For this we all commend you.

By completing the CAPS designation program you have demonstrated intelligence. Use your intelligence to reach out to this segment of the population that continues to have remodeling needs.

NAHB has a PowerPoint template program for CAPS members to use in teaching consumers about aging-in-place remodeling. Copies of this Power Point  are available for $15. Contact Starsha Valentine at svalentine@nahb.org for more information.

Simply by cutting, copying and pasting your company’s information into these templates you can put together a professional looking presentation. Now that you have this program, reach out to senior communities and other associations. Groups like these are always looking for speakers at their meetings. You’ll be surprised at the response you can get by proving your professional expertise. The fact is that older adults are a more stable, loyal customer base overall. By playing it smart and with some general respect, you can tap into a market that continues to provide projects indefinitely.

Now for another segment, sometimes forgotten - members of our armed services returning from overseas. Government programs exist to help these brave men and women who have fought for our country. Invest some time researching these programs in your area to help these unfortunate heroes. The price in time that you spend pales in comparison to the price so many others have paid.

I hope this inspires all of you to bring other NAHB members into the designations family. There has always been strength in numbers and good competition always beats bad competition, once again proving that nice guys/gals don’t need to finish last.

I would like to thank the CAPS board for this opportunity to serve all of our members. [ return to top ]