Certified Contractors Network Blog

Water damage to a homeowner’s property as a result of a leak or unanticipated thunderstorm is the leading cause of insurance claims in the roofing industry. Unfortunately, even if you and the homeowners do everything right, water damage can still occur and lead to expensive insurance claims. If these claims are not handled quickly and […]

The Producer Price Index for construction goods rose 5% over the three-year period ending in November 2020, per the Association of General Contractors. There are many factors causing the rising cost of materials. Tariffs and trade issues drive costs up, as do environmental regulation and changing demand. Many projects require lumber, steel, fuel and iron, […]

After a turbulent year of adjusting forecasts and changing expectations, 2021 will be a year of reemergence and growth in the construction industry. Rising construction costs and labor shortages persist, challenging the industry to innovate competitive new ideas, while stricter regulations contribute to a reduced margin for error and waste. This year, the COVID-19 pandemic […]

If you were at the Fall Conference in Philadelphia in September, or at the Technology for Contractors conference in Park Slope, UT, last June, you probably heard presentations by Michael Matalone. Michael Matalone, who had a feature article in last month’s Toolbox about finding and keeping talent, is an expert on exactly that subject: talent. […]

It’s a mistake to think that the only thing production people can or should do is install. Everybody at a contracting company has a job to do. The owner or general manager (often the same person) runs the business. The salesperson’s job is to get the truck in the driveway. Admin does so many things […]

Ever have an installation go well but the relationship gets ruined because of a miscommunication with the homeowner? Or have something go wrong on a job because sales made a verbal promise that was never communicated to the installation crew? Most customer complaints arise during the dead time, from the time of the sale to […]

If you’ve been reading this blog, you might remember an article I wrote for CCN in December called “3 New Harsh Realities of Google Search for Remodelers.” In that post, I talked about a few different shake-ups in the search engine results pages (SERPs): Google’s local listing “7-pack” turning into a “3-pack” The increasing importance […]

Resolutions are essentially goals, or promises to yourself. They’re a wish list with a time frame. The Long Island newspaper Newsday says the ten most common resolutions are to: 1. Lose weight/Exercise more 2. Quit smoking 3. Eat healthy 4. Learn something new 5. Spend less, save more 6. Drink less alcohol 7. Travel 8. […]

Google search for remodelers is always changing, and the changes aren’t always pleasant. If you’ve had a website any time over the past 10 years and you’ve been concerned with your overall search engine visibility, you know one thing is true– Google changes everything at the drop of a hat. As a remodeler, you might […]

MANAGE YOUR TIME. Sounds like common sense, doesn’t it? You decide what’s important, and then you do it. If only it were that easy. The reality is that managing your time is hard work. First you have to figure out what’s worth spending your time on, then you have to master the discipline that enables […]