Business

Kohler Co. Sharing Sustainability Stories Through Believing in Better™ Platform

Environmental sustainability takes many forms at Kohler Co. – from designing more water-efficient plumbing products to restoring iconic buildings, and from polypropylene resin engine covers made from recycled carpet to associates completing hundreds of projects in-house to reduce the company’s environmental footprint.  Sustainability is a journey that many of Kohler’s 30,000 global associates have embraced and are taking action to positively affect the world around them. As an appropriate next evolution, Kohler has created a story-sharing platform to highlight the successes around sustainability achieved by its associates, channel partners and consumers.  Their stories are now being told on a new blog called Believing In Better™. “Believing In Better is grounded in humility and authenticity that each of us can be better, and that we must continuously improve every day.  If we do that, then we believe the things we do – big or small – will help make this world a better place,” said Rob Zimmerman, senior channel manager-sustainability at Kohler.  “As we continue down our sustainability journey, we have much to learn, but also much to share.  That’s why we created this interactive platform.” In delivering content and inviting others to join the conversation through the Believing In Better blog www.believe.kohler.com , Kohler is focusing its story-sharing around four pillars, including the company heritage, process efficiency, product innovation and associates’ actions. The company also encourages participation on Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook @kohler via the hashtag #believinginbetter. “Since launching our sustainability strategy, we’re getting better and making progress because of the efforts of Kohler associates, who led or participated in footprint reduction projects at our facilities worldwide,” said Zimmerman.  “We are also ahead of our sales target for more environmentally favorable products.” In 2008, Kohler Co. formalized its three-plank sustainability strategy: (1)  reducing its environmental footprint (greenhouse gas emissions and landfill disposal of solid waste) to Net Zero by 2035 with offsets; (2) developing more environmentally favorable products; and (3) driving awareness and education around sustainability and water/energy conservation. Kohler is showcasing myriad achievements centered on the idea of betterment in Believing In Better blog posts, such as: collaborating with a national organization to plant 1 million trees in China to help support the country’s ecological system. saving hundreds of Many Glacier Hotel’s (Montana) century-old cast iron fixtures headed for scrap heap by reenameling them to look new and last another 100 years. donating discontinued plumbing products to World Vision, a non-profit organization that distributes donated goods to under-resourced communities across the United States. repurposing used water from its plant in Reynosa, Mexico, to irrigate a nearby soccer field which now hosts friendly neighborhood matches. constructing new facilities in Zibo, China, and Kohler, Wisconsin, which have achieved LEED Gold accreditation from the United States Green Building Council. achieving its sixth consecutive WaterSense award from the United States Environmental Protection Agency, including the inaugural 2013 Sustained Excellence Award for Kohler’s ongoing commitment in product development and education/awareness in water efficiency. About Kohler Co. Founded in 1873 and headquartered in Kohler, Wis., Kohler Co. is one of America’s oldest and largest privately held companies. Kohler is a global leader in the manufacture of kitchen and bath products, engines and power generation systems, tile and home interiors, and an international host to award-winning hospitality and world-class golf destinations. via Kohler Co. Believing in Better Through Sustainability.

Tour Highland’s New Web Site

Highland Tank has recently launched a wonderful new website full of news, products, and resources for industry professionals such as contractors and engineers.

via News Details – Highland Tank.

So I travel a lot, in the air almost every week.  I am in Atlanta, flying on to Michigan for a few days.  I am a 1K on United, flew over 100,000 miles with them last year, will be about the same this year.  That is a big deal, when I call for help they know my number, ask how is Mr. Hinshaw today?

I am in Atlanta, waiting a gate 15 for my flight leaving at 5:30 PM.  It boarded at 4:55 just fine, I am in 3 C, sat down and promptly fell asleep.  Woke up at 6:00, still sitting on the runway, which is not a good thing.  The Captain comes on, tells us we are heading back to the gate, some sort of mechanical issue.  Full disclosure, I am glad we went back to the gate.  I am confident that any sort of problem on an airplane can be fixed better 5 feet off the ground than they can at 30,000 feet.

When we got back to the gate, the pilot says we are going to disembark.  Get off the plane.  That is a very bad thing, means they are sure that plane is not going anywhere.  So we get off the plane, I look at the surrounding gates, notice that there is a flight going to the same city leaving from gate 14, in 45 minutes, how great is that?

All good until I hear them announce that flight is cancelled due to mechanical problems.  Wow, two planes going to same city, adjacent gates, and both with mechanical problems.  Unbelievable.

I get on the phone, my United agent says, how are you Mr. Hinshaw?  I tell her not so well, she says I know, you are stuck in Atlanta!  She says both the flights to my city are down, she had already booked me on a Delta flight leaving in two hours, exit row, aisle seat!  How great is that.  Gets even better.  At the Delta gate I witnessed the best gate agent ever.

He called out each passenger by name as he checked their boarding pass: how are we doing Mr. Jones, what a great hat Mrs. Smith.  Every customer.  It was amazing.  I was there an hour early, watched him in action on the flight before mine.  When he was finished with the earlier flight, he asked me where I was from.  Told him Colorado, he asked if I could recommend a ski resort.  I told him we had been to Copper Mountain several times, and while we did not ski, we had friends who did and they said it was excellent.  And it is close to Denver, at least compared to some that are a lot further up the mountain.  He actually took notes, thanked me for the reference.

How long has it been since you or someone from your company has delighted a customer?  Where they were not just satisfied, but rather you turned them into raving fans.  Where the experience was exceptional, much better than they had ever imagined.  It may be as a result of a problem that occurred (my experience with United), or the fact that they showed they cared while doing their job, such as Delta.  Either way, it is so rare that a company goes above and beyond that we are amazed when it happens.

So equip your employees to make a difference in the lives of your customers, to provide an outstanding experience.  In most cases our customers have not actually done a project of this magnitude before, no matter if we are talking about a new comfort system, a total remodel of the master bath or a 5 KW solar system installed on the roof.  We may have done 40 jobs just like this in the past, but not in this home.  This may be the first time this customer has ever opened up their home in this manner; they don’t know what is going to happen next.  Make sure your team helps them feel good about it,

Contractors, the time has arrived to modernize, save money, and get digital. Technology has changed dramatically over the past 5 years to your benefit. So much so that you can no longer ignore the importance and advantages of using some digital technology to your advantage. And the best part for you is that it’s so inexpensive that it’s nearly free.

Recently, I was speaking to a professional in the industry who mentioned that there were some contractors who just purchased their very first fax machine. I was a little shocked, not that it took so long to have fax capability but because a hardware device was purchased. Fax machines alone are not very expensive depending on its capabilities, but somewhere around the $100 range for an average model. But then there is the cost of the fax line from a local carrier and any extra cost for ink for every fax that comes through. For some contractors, having fax capabilities are necessary. However, there is a much simpler, streamlined, and cost effective method. It’s using online fax services. They provide you the fax number and all communication is done online. Instead of printing a document and faxing it, you can simply fax it right from you computer or even from your smart phone. In addition, faxes can be sent directly to your email address automatically, no extra fee in a PDF format. If you’re looking for an important fax and you’re on the road, this can be very convenient to receive a fax directly to your smart phone anytime and anywhere.

Many of these same companies, among others, also provide online phone services. For some operations, a receptionist is necessary. But some businesses need to save under this economy but still offer a professional service and quick response to their customers. Without a receptionist, you can always have a customer contact your cell phone. But you may prefer to also have an office number or may have several employees out on the road at once, leaving the office empty. Instead of using an answering machine, you can use online phone services that are inexpensive and extremely flexible to meet any contractor’s need. Want customers to be greeted professionally and have calls routed to various employees or business owners on their cell phone whole on the road? No problem. If they don’t answer, would you like the customer’s message to be left in the main phone system message box? Sure, no problem. How about having any messages emailed directly to you, whether on your computer or smart phone, in an mp3 format? Sure, that’s easy. No more waiting to get back to the office to see if any new customers have called. It comes to you instantly. In addition, the cost of online phone and fax systems is minimal. Some can be as little as $7 – $10 per month depending on your need.

How many of you have recently started your new business or perhaps you would like to rebrand your business? It’s simple and can be quite fun actually. There are tremendous online resources to produce and design a new logo, business cards, brochures, and more for your business in a contest format. The best part is how it works and the benefit to you. You simply use on of multiple websites available and enter your need and design requirements. Then thousands of developers from around the world can compete to win your “design contest”. You may receive 80, 90, or well over 100 designs from various designers from all over the globe. And you only pay the winner of your choosing. How can you beat that? Each website and contest offers something unique that you can choose to your liking and budget. But instead of paying someone to develop several designs that you do not like, only to pay again and start over, these online contests offer a tremendous advantage for any company and any budget. You can easily take a look at the quality of designs being produced as well on each site. I recently read a story of a fortune 500 company spending several million dollars just for their logo, when I saw the result, I was quite unimpressed. Logos are important as they offer a unique identity. But they also can be overthought. Think of the simplicity of the Facebook logo, yet it’s identifiable.

The greatest area of need for contractors is in obtaining your first, or upgrading your company website. This technology has seen the most dramatic transformation of them all. It used to be, even several years ago, that if you wanted a professional looking website, you would need to spend a minimum of $10,000 or far more. Otherwise you were left with a simple static website that looked like it was built by you, or a relative or something in their spare time. They were mainly a few pages of text, maybe a few pictures, and even a contact form. But the overall look was not pretty and looked very “texty” than professional and beautiful. But hey, your contractors right? Where’s the beauty in some pipes and drains? Well it’s much more than that. Think of it like this; imagine treating your wife or some friends to a nice steak dinner on a Saturday night. Perhaps you heard of a place having great steaks and you show up and the building looks like it’s about to fall down. The restaurant sign can barely be seen and is tilted sideways, the paint is chipping everywhere, the parking lot is full of deep potholes, minimal lighting, and the entrance is hard to find as it’s in an awkward position. Then you walk in and the hostess can’t be found so you wait, then she shows up in very old dirty clothing with holes. The entire inside is dusty, dirty, dingy, and looks like it has never been cleaned since its grand opening 50 years ago. You see some tables that aren’t even washed as she proceeds to seat you and your group. How quickly is it before you want to pick up and leave to a restaurant that is much more presentable for your wife or friends. The steak may be great, but what good does it do if nobody wants to even stay to find out. Or perhaps you heard of a great restaurant but can’t even find it. How many of you don’t even have a website for your business.

This has been the norm in the contractor community unfortunately. Perhaps it’s because of the cost to have a website developed for your business. Well, that has now changed all due to a website platform called WordPress. Today, you can have one of the most professional looking websites for as little as $40. That’s right, $40. The reason is all because something called a “theme”. A theme is basically like a house built on a good foundation. The foundation and structure is very sturdy and stable but the inside can be changed to look however you want and whenever you want. Themes are similar, they are websites built upon the WordPress platform but they have their own look and feel to them and can be changed at anytime. In the past, themes were very basic and offered little in your ability to change the look of the theme you purchased. It was kind of “What you see is what you get”. But now, technology has changed so much that each them has thousands or almost an infinite amount of variations to make it look exactly like you want. 10 years ago, some of these same themes for $40 or $60 would have cost well over $30,000. But now, even the smallest of businesses with the smallest budget can have an amazing, professional, beautiful, and very functional website for almost no cost.

In addition, these themes no longer require a programming degree or years of website study and development. Yes you too can build your own website. Of course there is always some minor learning that you go through as with anything you buy these days, just as you would learning how to use a smart phone or iPad for the first time. But it can be quite simple. Most themes simply use drag and drop systems to design your own website. You simply design it in a way you want your company represented the first time someone comes across your business. What message do you want them to see? Are you more of a Kitchen & Bath specialist, you may want to have a more image and graphic website for customers to see your work and capabilities that can be very powerful. Or perhaps you offer 24hour service, this is something that can be the main highlight, or perhaps you have or want to produce videos. With WordPress, this step can be 1-2-3. You simply upload your video to YouTube, copy and paste a code into the section you prefer on your website and instantly your YouTube video plays through your website, even though it was uploaded to YouTube.

For contractors, this technology is simply too good to pass up on. There is no budget too small for any contractor not to have a website. It never will replace referrals, hard work, and running a business with integrity. But it’s an increasingly becoming a digital world that can be used as an advantage. This is unlike social media that can come with all the other headaches of non-business conversations and can be very time consuming. A website is basically the very fist location people go to now days to investigate and research whether or not they want to consider doing business with a company. How many of you pull out your smart phone to go on the web to look something up whether it’s the latest news or your about to buy a new TV and you want to see who has it at the best price. Why shouldn’t contractors be just as visible in their services? Especially for $40 – $60.

WordPress is an open source platform that is by far the most flexible and resourceful website platform available in the world. Because it’s open source, it means that there are contributors and developers around the globe that help to continually make it the most powerful, useful, and affordable website program in the world. This is to your advantage. For instance, perhaps you decide at some point you want a little help with the website from some developer. You have thousands of developers at your disposal rather than having to be constrained to using some local company that built your website on a proprietary platform that us unknown to other developers. That’s a recipe for disaster and high expenses. In addition, there are thousands of resources available to help anyone with their website. In fact, with the purchase of many themes, you can simply ask the theme developer questions in their support forums for additional help at no extra cost.

And get this. Let’s say that after 3 years or so you have built up a lot of information on your website but you decide it’s time for a change, a completely new look. WordPress can handle that in a jiff. Simply get a new theme, upload it with a click, make a few minor tweaks to the layout to make it look how you want, and “voila”, you have a brand new looking website with all of your old data in tact. That’s the beauty and power of WordPress.

In addition, WordPress is extremely Search Engine friendly as it comes somewhat SEO (Search Engine Optimization) ready. That’s extremely important because being ranked higher when someone searches for contractors in their area on Google, you want to be at or near the top. It’s not quite set-it and forget it to get ranked high without paying a fee to Google, but it’s minimal. And even if you did set it and forget it, your still probably ahead of some other contractors simply because of the SEO backbone built into WordPress compared to their website.

How can you pas up this opportunity to upgrade or finally get your very first website for your contractor business? The cost is minimal and now, you too can finally have one of the most professional, powerful, functional, and beautiful websites in the industry for less than $100.

Here’s the simple process. Pick out your website name on Go Daddy or some other domain name company. Sign up with a hosting company of your choice for about $5 per month. Install WordPress, typically a one-click installation. Purchase the WordPress theme of your choice. Upload the new them through the auto theme installer for WordPress. Add pages, your information, and adjust some settings to your liking. When it’s ready, simply point the domain name you have registered to point the hosting company of your website and your new website is live. Of course the process can take some time to get it just the way you want, And if you need help, there are thousands of helpful resources to help you build your website. Or contact me, and I can help you.

But the time has come for contractors to take advantage of useful digital tools that are extremely cost effective and allow you to do-it-yourself. Whether it’s phone and fax systems, logos, brochures, or getting your very first website. It’s simply too good of a deal to pass up during an economy like this.  So contractors, it’s the perfect time to get digital, modernize, and use 21^st century technology to your advantage. After all, it’s practically free.

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