Let's face it. These are some scary and uncertain times.
The stock market is going up and down like a yo-yo, Congress is now buying preferred stock in the national banks. It sure feels like the sky is falling on us, right?
The problem is that it really isn't.
The reality is that while things aren't as peachy as they have been in the past two decades, there is still plenty of business for Americans to pursue and get. I have been all over North America over the past six months and again, while business isn't falling out of trees like it has in the past, it's still out there.
But things have to change. We have to change. Now I know that is the most uncomforable of words at this point because it feels like the whole world is changing our lives for us. But the key to business and economic survival is to get aggressive. Think about it!
Sixty years ago, things were bad. There was a World War going on and when we started into it and our military was still using horses (true story: the US Cavalry has approximately 100,000 horses, yes, horses in the Army stables!). So it was time to buckle up, get serious and start innovating new ways to fight.
I look at this world economy and think we are in a situation just like that (without the 60 million casualties). We have to stand up, take notes, then fight our way through this. We cannot bury our heads in the sand. It cannot be an option.
Enter the Power Pole:
What I find so exciting about this Power Pole equipment is that it gives us the opportunity to make things easier for us. For example, if you are installing heavy siding, masonry, windows, roofing or really anything on the outside of the structure (single family new construction or multi-family or even light commercial), the Power Pole will give you the ability to get up that wall with a thousand pounds of weight just by pressing the trigger on a common 1/2" drill. It's really quite amazing.
Not only do you improve your productivity, but you do it safely. The Power Pole is 100% OSHA compliant and it has CE Certification for the Europeans, so it satisfied even the strictest safety regulations worldwide.
But the question always remains: what does improved productivity mean to me? Well, here goes:
I have found that the contractor ends up saving between $500 to $700 per house in reduced labor costs. That means if you are working on 30 houses per year, the low end of the scale will prove out to save you about $15,000 in reduced labor. Now what you do with that savings is up to you...you can take it to the bank in terms of higher profitability, you can lower your overall costs in order to not only maintain your original desired profit margin, but to increase the probability of getting the job because you underbid your competitiion, or split the difference (maybe lower your price by $250, but increase your profit by $250).
The point is that you really shouldn't do things the way they were done 80 years ago. Specifically, if you use pump jacks, you are wasting money. Eighty years ago when pump jacks were invented, the fastest airplane in the sky was traveling about 60 miles per hour. Now you can get a moped to do that.
I had a guy in Edmonton, Canada tell me last week "I can pump up that wall as fast as you can on those Power Poles." I laughed and told him he was out of his mind. First of all, he has to set those pump jacks up and attach them to the roof (you don't attach to the roof with Power Poles up to 24' high). Secondly, if we put 800lbs of materials plus him on the pump jacks, he wouldn't be able to even pump up, let alone do it efficiently. Lastly, while he is toiling away at getting up that wall, I was busy kicking his butt and installing several pieces of James Hardie ColorPlus siding and smiling.
In conclusion, if you are going to be competitive in a changing market, you better get a car with a bigger engine. There is no argument that work is definitely showing down out there. But you can do one of two things: 1) bury your head and the sand and stay home playing your X-Box or PlayStation 3 in your underpants all day or 2) get yourself efficient, profitable and competitive and attack the market.
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