Winter is here

Winter is surely here.  The daytime temperature is averaging below recommended painting temperatures.  Make sure that the surface temperature is above 50 degrees too.  If you are working inside on an unoccupied structure, use heaters to insure proper drying.  Do not leave your pumps outside in cold weather, even for a long lunch.

Do NOT leave any material in an airless that is left outside for any length of time.  Even in the back of your truck covered with a tarp.  If the material reaches freezing in a closed system, it WILL crack the cylinder and/or sleeve.  I see it happen every year.  Remember that the pump saver, conditioner, etc are NOT freeze resistant.  Pump saver PLUS is.  It will be labeled as an anti-freeze if it is freeze resistant.  Otherwise it will freeze at 32 degrees!!  If you think that you must leave anything in you pump, go to the auto parts store and buy some auto anti-freeze, mix it with water and use that.

My advise is to clean out your machine after every use and store it clean and dry or with an anti-freeze/pump conditioner in it.  But always leave the prime valve open.  Every day.  All year.  It's safer and smarter (and cheaper in the long run).

I'm hoping that you are having a very MERRY CHRISTMAS.  And we are all praying for a bright and prosperous New Year.

VOIP revisited

After using magicJack for over 2 months now, I highly recommend it.  My original mJ ended up connected at our house.  We have started using it for our house phone.  We will phase out all regular landlines soon.  I found out that I can connect the base phone to mJ back to the wall and have mJ phone service in all of the phone jacks in the house.  So, I got another magicJack for the business.I have now cut my AT&T service to the minimum.  Commercial phones are expensive time wise, so this will save me around $30.00 per month in local and short distance alone.  The sound quality is really good.  I have rarely gotten a short echo for 1 second or less (on my side only) when the internet is really busy at our house.  As in all 5 computers are on the net.  It doesn't keep me from understanding anyone and I have been told that the other party doesn't hear anything.

Check them out.  www.magicjack.com

Have some time on your hands this weekend?

OK. OK. I know that I said that I would never join a fantasy football league. I lied. I have a friend that I have never seen (he reads this blog) that has bugged me for a month to join their league. You see, He knew by my last name that I'm Dutch and theirs is a league of the same. Due to the sarcastic nature of their wit (?), they don't want mere mortals (thin skins) to participate. They needed 12 teams to get granted their own league. (because no other league will have them?) As of opening day of the NFL, they had 10 teams. After enduring a few emails of blistering invitations, I agreed that I would sign on (it's free of course, I mean, they are Dutch) if they got an 11the team and couldn't dredge up a 12th. So last week, I got the email that I was hoping to not get. They had 11. So I agreed, only if I don't have to read up on players, do anything on a timely basis, cheer for the Cowboys or Raiders OR participate in the drafting of the players. I gave him permission to run my draft and I would accept any players I got. I was informed that my conditions were granted and that the draft was automatic. I just had to sign up, pick a team name, look at draft options and check any players that I knew that I would like to have. Or not.

I signed on (up) and created the "Pumas". Our league is "Dutch Treat". I clicked on everything automatic. Then I went to the automatic draft and looked at how they had the names listed (ranked). I selected JT O'Sullivan because he is inexperienced in the league and is GROSSLY underrated. I like Kurt Warner 'cause he is old and reliable. I like Roethlisberger 'cause his name is harder to spell than mine. They became my 1st, 2nd and 3rd picks for quarterbacks. I don't like either of the Manning brothers and Tony Roma is a Cowboy. So let them fight over them. I like Favre, but in and out of retirement is goofy. I picked Frank Gore for running back and Larry Fitzgerald for Wide Receiver and the Steelers defense. The rest, I don't know or care much about. As long as Dallas and Oakland lose, I'm good. Hopefully the 49ers and Redskins win.

So. All set up for week 3, I turned on the telly and fired up the laptop. I was hoping to figure out how one wins or loses at this. Scoring at this is interesting to say the least. How do you cheer when the running back you have is plowing up the defense team that you have?? Hope that he runs for 110 yards but then drops the ball so that your defense can recover the fumble?? How schizophrenic can one be?? So... you have to gather points from all of the players from all of the teams that you have listed as "active". I had 9 players on 9 different teams. So you don't watch all of your players. (well, I guess that some nuts do) I watched the Niners, 'cause I like them and kept the laptop on my "game" against the other team. cool. You can "chat" with the other team "owners" during the games over the website. Which means "verbal abuse" in this league. No wonder that they don't let "sensitive" races into this league. My game was give and take through the first quarter. I was losing. Then in the 2nd quarter, he lost his best runner/receiver/scorer to injury. I was leading at the half. Then in the second half, the Pumas really got down to business. At the close of Sundays games, I was done for the week with a score of 109 !!!!! The Footballiers (English as a second language?) were at 55 points and only had his kicker for Monday Night Football. No way can a kicker get close to 54 points. So now they want to find a new owner for my team. Typical Dutchmen.

New Business Internet Phone

After watching the fiasco with VOIP (internet) phones, I finally heard of one that seems to appeal to the prudent buyer. Vonage has such a bad reputation here for poor voice quality and dropping calls, Skype is similar and is expensive. Both of them require you to buy their equipment. AT&T now has VOIP here that comes under the U-Verse label. But it is still internet iffy and is $40.00 per month. However, it looks better than paying for every call on a landline. And most businesses have some kind of broadband internet service already.

Enter MagicJack. 1. it is sooooo simple. plug a USB jack into your desktop OR LAPTOP. It installs its own software phone and gets you to the setup menu where you get your new phone number. 2, It uses ANY regular phone. no special phone gear to buy. Therefore, better clarity of sound, and you can use your existing phones! 3. $40 for the USB device AND your 1st YEAR of local and long distance calling. 1st YEAR. Every year after that, it will cost you $20.00 PER YEAR. As with any internet phone, you should have a Uninterruptible Power Source. Of course, for a business, you should have your computers hooked up to one anyway.

This is worth trying out. I had read both good and bad about the service. Most of the bad was lack of customer service. I can't figure out what you need customer service for. I've installed it and used it for a month now. I can't figure out what they were calling customer service for.?. The sound is great. Setup couldn't be simpler. You are limited as the area code prefix's. I have area code 916 like all of our other phones, but prefix 222 ??? Where is Michigan Bar, Ca?? I will have to look on a map.....

So even when you close up your business for the day or weekend (or vacation), You can bring all of your calls with you. I have the software installed on both the store computer and my laptop. I carry a small flip phone in the laptop case for when I'm anywhere that there is wireless internet. Home, coffee shops, book stores, hotels, etc. Yes, I carry a cell phone, and I have unlimited calls to Verizon customers and more minutes than needed for the rest of you guys, but this is a phone that can be shared by everyone AND if I am away from home, the same calls get through. Oh, the $20 per year includes call forwarding and voicemail and ,,,,,,,,well, other stuff too.

Check it out. magicjack.com

Season stutter start

Here we are at the end of August and the painting season seems to be starting and stopping.  As was predicted here, the repaint market is only doing well if you have provided excellent customer service when you were really busy.  Fighting for new customers (without referral) is really difficult for the TV watching public that believes the news readers.  Creating cash flow by bidding too cheap is only going to further the problem.  Bidding less than $200 per 8 hour man day is foolish.  We were bidding that much (and getting it) during the last recession.  Remember it?  We worked fewer days than some, but as they were bidding $100 per man day, they had to work twice as many days (and weekends) to make the same amount of money AND IT COST THEM MORE TO DO SO.  They had twice the gas, oil, tire rubber, etc.  Twice the away from home meals.  Twice the supervision cost and headaches.  How does that make any sense?

OK Keith, off the soap box.  Some will never get it, or have the intestinal fortitude, or business sense to survive.

OK.  Have you noticed the downtown Sacramento area?  Notice the new commercial buildings?  The new high-rises?  Some of these are being built right next to other properties that have vacancies.  Are these big developers crazy?  Or do they know something?  Here is what I've researched.  Sacramento is rated in the top 10 cities for being attractive to the new desired workforce.  These folks range from 25 to 45 years old and this is what they are looking for in a city.  They want to be close to the following.  Theatres (film and stage), parks, large shopping malls, restaurants, fast food, indoor recreation (bowling, indoor racing, billiards, gyms, etc) ,  outdoor recreation within a 2 hour drive (boating, asterisking, snow skiing, hiking, biking, etc).  Sacramento has all of that.  <by the way, Forbes is a great place to find this information>  In fact, Sacramento has been rated 8th in the nation for these things.  Being half way between San Francisco and Tahoe is a great advantage.  It's why my bride made us move here in 2000.  The information I gleaned is that this major workforce will come into its own by 2015 and will be firmly entrenched before 2020.  These companies that have time and money to plan way ahead have not slowed down and it looks to me like they are ramping up their properties so that the companies that look to Sacramento will have existing facilities to move into.  A few of our customers are reporting bigger years than 2006 and 2007.  These guys are all in the new commercial field, but that leaves room in the commercial repaint area open for competition.  Getting established in the commercial market takes time.  Large property owners are skeptical of transient contractors.  You must be consistent and you MUST return phone calls.  Some property owners/managers will take advantage of the slow market and try to get cheap prices.  These are the customers that you DON"T want.  They will hammer you for every dime and you will struggle to break even.  If you don't make money working, stay home and enjoy your family.  The contractors that we know that are still really busy are the folks that returned every phone call and turned in every bid that they were asked to EVEN WHEN THEY WERE REALLY BUSY!!  When you do this, you create a sense of stability, honesty, integrity, etc.  If you are really "too busy to return phone calls", you are telling a potential customer that you don't want or need them.  Great customer relations!!  NEVER stop advertising or promoting.  When you are really busy, you should return calls and bids, just increase the price!!  If you get the job, you will love it.  If not, you have still continued the image that you should want of being a "businessman", not an unskilled laborer/painter.  The notion of "having to bid cheap to get the job" is the thinking of a laborer, not a businessman.  "I don't make any money on each job, but I make it up in volume" is a joke.  Get to understand that.

My father had a saying that he lived (quite well) by.  I never lost a dime on a job that I didn't get.  Make it your mantra.

Spring 2008

The word that we're getting here is that residential housing is starting up again.  None of the large 100+ home tracts, just the 5-15 unit tracts.  The large tracts are just starting to revive and they will also go with a very few at a time.  The commercial side has slowed (last year) but is pretty much back on track.  Residential repaints are slowly starting to emerge.  Repaints are the untapped market now.

Remember to advertise.  Canvas neighborhoods that have houses that are in your market size.  Network with everyone that you meet.  Call the Real Estate agents and offer a special deal to the sellers, OR give them a coupon to give the buyers.

Do NOT bid low.  If you do, then you are telling the market that your time (and talent) is worth nothing.  If you need to be more competitive, offer free items like free fence painting, free 3rd color or a 10% off coupon.  These items should have an expiration date on them, say 60 or 90 days.  That way, when the market turns around and you have more work, you won't be tied to a cheaper price.  It is YOUR choice to extend the offer or not.

All of the houses that were built during the boom of 1999-2006 need exterior paint jobs.  Walk all of these neighborhoods.  The wood has only had 1 light coat.  Most of the trim is cracking.  Make sure that you point out that none of the wood trim was caulked at the top (where it's not seen).  Stress protection and preservation of their investment.

thoughts about a recession

The more that you fear a recession, the more that it will affect you.  A recession is the public reaction to a "perceived" problem.  In truth, if everyone ignored the news of a recession, it wouldn't happen.  There isn't any less money.  The job market is really good.  So what is the problem??  The TV News has to make everything a big deal in order to sell advertising.  We, at Airless Spray Center, are dependant on the construction industry.  The TV news claims that the sudden drop of "new housing starts" is the main problem.  In actuality, there are now more houses that need maintenance than ever before.  So the jobs have just swung from new house construction to repair and maintenance.  And all of the new houses built in the last 10 year boom were "tract homes" and need work on them to make up for the minimum paint jobs, etc that they were sold with.  So there is more work needed now than ever.
Most of the lasting problem is with the houses that were purchased by people that couldn't afford them.  The teaser interest rates allowed people to qualify for houses that they had no business buying.  These owners have done no improvements and most have let the property run down as they couldn't even afford the mortgage.  So they are making the housing market dip back down to affordable prices.  This lets new buyers, that couldn't afford the inflated prices, now start looking at these homes.  And they will be solid buyers.  They will hire contractors to revive these neglected homes and the market will gradually come back.
The TV news makes it sound like this has never happened before.  I am well below retirement age and this is the second time that I've seen it happen.  The trick to making this cycle work for you is to NOT buy a house when prices are climbing beyond what you know the house is worth.  Buy NOW when you know that the houses will increase within the next 5 years.  Look at it this way.  You wouldn't buy a $80.00 jacket if it was being hyped and priced at $120.00.  But you WOULD buy that same jacket if it was priced at $75.00   If you watch the housing cycle, you will not be surprised or ever take much of a loss, if any.  Be smart, Be cautious, Be informed and TURN OFF THE TV NEWS !!