Each one of us contractors realizes the need for training. Some of us do it more than others. Almost everyone provides some type of technician training for their service technicians and installers.

How many of you do any business training for your service technicians and installers? I’m guessing not very many. However, how many of you have ever been asked by one of those service technicians or installers regarding the fact that you charge at least $90–130 per hour and yet he only takes home $25 per hour?

I’m not really much of a fan of reality show television, but I must admit that the title and concept of “Undercover Boss” intrigued me. If you haven’t seen it, this new show premiered right after the Super Bowl.

I’m not really much of a fan of reality show television, but I must admit that the title and concept of “Undercover Boss” intrigued me. Its premise is that the president/CEO of a large corporation goes “undercover” within his own company to see how things are operating.

In our last column, we looked at the things we need to understand about the makeup of our customers. Now our job becomes that of determining which media does the best job of reaching potential customers. Whereas a few years ago there were just a few advertising options available, now the options are almost endless.

I had a dream, (or was it a nightmare?), that I spent my next 30 years advertising budget on a 30 second Super Bowl commercial. When I woke up, I remembered I had spent the previous day working on my ad budget for the year. The irony of the Super Bowl ad hit me. In my dream I hadn’t bothered to determine who really is my audience.

I had a dream, (or was it a nightmare?), that I spent my next 30 years advertising budget on a 30 second Super Bowl commercial. It was so obvious; our company name seen by millions and millions of people and us associated with the biggest annual sporting event.

As we prepare for 2010, it’s time to quit fretting about the times we have had the last couple of years. It’s time we took our destiny into our own hands. Let the negative talk and pessimism be for others; let’s be positive and optimistic when we talk to our employees, our customers, and everyone we encounter.

When I found out that nobody from The NEWS was attending the SMACNA Convention in October, I suggested to Mike Murphy that perhaps he would like to have me file a report. I should have known when he answered “Yes” so quickly that maybe it wasn’t going to be as easy as I might have thought.

The older I get, and according to relatives the more difficult to buy things for, the more often I receive gift cards. The whole issue of gift cards made me think how they might apply to our business. I have been trying to figure out a way that we could integrate the sale of gift cards into the culture of the HVAC business.