Photos by: Robert Lipscomb Winky Vaughan grew up in the pool business: Her parents owned a swimming pool company in northern Virginia. When she graduated from Virginia Tech, she decided that she wanted to own her own pool company. In 1977, she and her husband Jim started National Pools of Roanoke. Soon, her parents —…
If the majority of your workday is spent planning pool service routes, it may be time for a new strategy. Depending on your needs and budget, there are a variety of ways to effectively retool your service routes. What the Process Looks LikeDan Lenz started working for All Seasons Pools, near Chicago, in 1987. He…
Every company has some version of MSP — marketing, sales and production — and it is an extremely valuable tool. However, few use it in the manner I am about to describe, and I think we are often doing it all wrong. Most companies spend money advertising, then they or their salesperson runs to the…
With today’s technology, no one should struggle to maintain proper pH levels in salt-water pools. After traveling and listening to pool professionals complain about high pH levels, I’m surprised more people don’t know major manufacturers have pH control systems that test the water as the pool is running and dispense acid as needed for proper…
If you are a contractor, your world turned upside down in 2008 and 2009. The housing bubble burst; new construction dried up; unemployment went to 10 percent; and consumers stopped spending money. Unless you sold your business for millions before this happened, your company was affected. Most everyone has heard the definition of insanity: doing…
The most successful email marketing campaigns are done through software or a service that not only allows customization of a top-notch digital presentation, but also captures data to follow your ROI and aid in making leads into customers. Here are a few of the programs available to assist your efforts. benchmarkemail.com Base Price: The free…
I got involved with the process of developing the Model Aquatic Health Code in 2005. United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sponsored a workshop at the request of the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists. Since the ’90s they had seen an increase in pool-related illnesses. It was difficult to address because health…
The most important time in your business is the time you take away from your business. Call it what you want — vacation, holiday, retreat, getaway — but the longer you stay away, the better you and (probably) your business will be. There is a certain serenity in being away from your business: It clears…
You’ve been putting off replacing — or expanding — your service-vehicle fleet because of the economy. You’ve been diligent with maintenance and are pretty sure you can get by another season. You’ve had other things to spend money on. But maybe it’s just time: The old rig is on its last legs, theodometer has more…
For the last five years, I have struggled to sell vacuums to my customers due to Internet prices. This is no secret in our industry. But finally, the big manufacturers are coming to our aid. They are offering considerable rebates to the homeowners and not allowing Internet sales on some of their products. So now…
Two major factors cause companies to go out of business: The first is improper labor pricing. Let’s assume you know your costs of doing business and what to do as costs change. Proper labor pricing is critical, and you must change your labor rate as costs change. Understanding what to charge per hour is only…
In May of 1971, Canadian rock group the Five Man Electrical Band hit the Top 40 with the song “Signs.” While the song lamented the use of signs to dictate societal behavior — remember, this was the flower-power days the early ’70s — signs help us stop our cars at intersections; locate the street we…