GuildQuality

In our Newsletter from January, you’ll find our Q4 Member Prediction Report, tips on how to get the most out of your membership  a great feature about a miniature castle built in South Carolina and more.

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GuildQuality is pleased to announce a partnership with Kohler‘s Leading Edge program.  Effective immediately, GuildQuality will provide customer satisfaction surveying for members of the program, enabling the plumbing contractor to 1) receive real-time feedback from clients, 2) evaluate business strengths and weaknesses, and 3) communicate performance scores to prospective clients.

The Leading Edge program is intended for “plumbers who demonstrate a commitment to their business, from the service they provide to the products they sell.”  Kohler has put together a unique offering including GuildQuality surveys, marketing and advertising tools, and online training. Following a successful pilot, we have two Leading Edge plumbers - Lakeside Plumbing and M/R Plumbing Mart – signed up as full members of our community of quality.

For more information, please visit our Kohler partner page.

Our friend and industry journalist Leah Thayer at daily5Remodel continues to churn out great information every weekday morning for construction professionals, and we happily endorse d5R’s move into the “paid content realm” with d5R Premium.

Here are two of the many great things about d5R Premium:

1) besides all the free daily content that comes with a standard d5R subscription, your Premium sub can also save you hundreds of dollars on services from some of the best consulting sources in the industry, help you leverage customized marketing tools for your business, and give you 24-7 access to in-depth case studies and reports.

2) as a Guildmember, you save 20%!

To take advantage of the 20% savings, you’ll need to enter a special GQ code in the “special offer” box, shown in the image here:

If you’re a Guildmember and don’t have a discount code, contact d5R directly to request one (type “need GQ code” in subject line).

By the way, if you’re not already getting d5R, we recommend that you start today. Click here to register for a free subscription, which starts with a 30-day free Premium trial.

In 2009 and 2010 GuildQuality powered a Service Excellence Award for Remodeling’s Big50. To be eligible for the service excellence award, you must apply to become a Big50 Award Winner. In the past, there’s been some confusion about whether or not Guildmembers were eligible for this award. To be clear, you are absolutely eligible, provided you’ve not previously been recognized as a Big50 Remodeler.

Complete the application, and be sure to opt-in to the “The Big50 Customer Service Award” at the end of the form.

This morning, the team at Thompson Creek welcomed President Obama to tour their factory in Landover, MD. The President used the opportunity to announce the appointment of Gene Sperling as director of the National Economic Council. The above picture is from NPR’s blog, and features CEO Rick Wuest introducing the President to the best marketer in the history of the world.

While touring the factory, the President remarked, “Building this business has been an extraordinary accomplishment.”

According to the Washington Post,

After mounting a makeshift stage before several dozen company managers, Obama held up Thompson Creek as an example of a company that not only survived the economic downturn, but thrived, thanks to supportive policies from his administration.

“The government can’t guarantee that Thompson Creek or any other business will be a success,” the president said. “But it can break down barriers . . . and remove obstacles. Thompson Creek grew from 200 employees in 2008 to nearly 300 this year. It took advantage of the tax credits we put in place.”

Heather sent me this interesting comparison of Facebook versus Twitter, courtesy of Atlantic Monthly (I wish they’d add LinkedIn, as well). A few things that stood out to me:

1) A slightly higher percentage of Twitter users are older than 25.

2) A higher percentage of Twitter users earn over $50,000.

3) Twitter users update their “status” far more frequently, but log in to their account far less frequently.

4) Far more people use Facebook.

5) Twitter users are more selective about the brands they follow, but also more likely to buy from them.

My personal observation is that Facebook connects me to people and Twitter connects me to information and ideas. Twitter users (at least the good folks that I follow) don’t really do “status updates.” Instead, they share interesting and relevant observations or articles that make my life better.

Check out GuildQuality on Twitter or “Like” this post on Facebook via the little doohicky at the top of this blog post.