Home Builders: Taking on the Search for Skilled Labor

We've been reading interesting articles regarding a labor shortage in the homebuilding trades and seeing suggestions as to how to find qualified vendors.  We'll highlight a few -- as well as ask have you considered how to best manage the resources available to you?

First, the suggestions:

-- Network
-- Encourage current employees/vendors to join in the process
-- Build a pipeline
-- Make sure you're competitive
-- Develop talent within
-- Consider apprentice programs (your own and those in the community).

All great ideas; some will take a fair amount of time to produce results.

FieldCollaborate: anywhere/anytime scheduling & more!

We have one additional suggestion that can generate results almost immediately: make sure you're maximizing your current resources. 

Automated construction scheduling will not only create schedules and allow you to track/report progress against the schedules.  It will highlight problem areas, allow you to focus attention on trouble spots and help you develop solutions.

Do you know which trades show up on time, have all their equipment available and are ready to work, leave the job site clean and ready for the next trade? Scheduling systems that include quality ratings, punch lists and safety assessments will take you a long way in answering those questions.

How about taking your knowledge and expanding it throughout the supply chain? Make drawings available on line through a Vendor Portal; provide illustrated guides to specialty installations; put your schedules on line to streamline the trade partner notification process and keep everyone up-to-date.

Growing your labor pool is essential; maximizing its effectiveness is critical, too. Talk to us and see how CPS' FieldCollaborate can add efficiency and effectiveness to your construction process.

Touchscreens: Illustrating Livability

We suggested in an earlier blog that a successful interactive touchscreen system helps your home shoppers become more engaged as they find out about your product and more informed when they begin a model tour. 

They're not just looking, in other words, once they're taking the model tour; they're already making decisions.

Help your buyer visualize living in the community

That concept is actually one of the major differences between touching a screen and a mouse click: the brain is making decisions with each touch.

Well-designed touchscreen systems incorporate this powerful concept into their design. No doubt you've heard us say SalesTouch is more than "just a pretty face." Design, when you're thinking about touchscreens definitely includes great-looking photos, virtual tours and video.  It expands to include considering the target market, neighborhood features, selling opportunities.

Energy savings interest every demographic!

Encourage touching by showing information your buyer wants more of: livability items (neighborhood shopping, dining, schools and recreation), home specialty items (lazy Susans, open wire shelving in the closets), green features (tankless water heaters, Smart vents). 

Keep in mind: effective design directed towards encouraging decision-making  has to be oriented towards your buyer demographic and their livability objectives. There's absolutely no sense, in other words, in showing 55+ images to first-time buyers (or the reverse). Both generations are interested in energy savings, however.

 Use the touchscreen to visually describe how your community meets your buyer's livability objectives.

Memorial Day 2014: Honor and Remembrance

Memorial Day has been set aside as a day for all of us to remember the sacrifices made for our country by our military and to honor their memories.

Korean War Memorial -- Washington DC

Traditionally, we recognize members of the CPS family who have served our country.
Two family members served during World War II and this year is particularly memorable with  the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

Bob's father, Robert S. Musa (US Marines, retired) was a Pearl Harbor survivor and spent his World War II days throughout the South Pacific. Zoe's father, Charles Miller (US Army) served in the Philippines. Memories of their service years served as a constant throughout their lives.

We remember and thank these CPS family members for their military service:

Bob Strickland, US Air Force

Chris and Dave's father, Michael Lott (US Navy, retired)
Michele's father, Robert DuBois (US Air Force)
Michelle's husband, Jerry Stone (US Navy)
Sean's father, Chris Miyazaki (US Air Force, retired)
Troy's brother, John (US Air Force)
Zoe's brother, Wilson Miller (US Army)

Retail Line Queue Management: Disneyland Innovated in 1955!

Did you know there's a person known as a waiting lines expert?"

Actually, it's Richard Larson and he refers to the line management process as "queue calculus."

Both shopping carts and baskets are welcome!

Waiting in line," said Lewis in a recent article, "is a stressful game with mostly losing players and picking the wrong line can lead to queue rage."

Queue rage and simple economics are the reasons you see a "single serpentine line" in many retail locations.  Queue psychology was born in 1955 when Disneyland opened and learned to keep guests happy by having them wait in a single, serpentine line.  That's back when a 45-minute wait for a 2-minute ride was a novelty!

The single line satisfies the most number of people because it "guarantees first-come, first-served," says Larson. And, the single line can drive additional sales of "grab and go" items -- not just in grocery stores but other locations with easily understood and selectable items (as examples, think Best Buy, Marshalls and T.J. Maxx.).

Traditionally, grocery stores have been considered "hold outs" in this customer-service trend (emergency rooms are another hold out).

However, Whole Foods has proven to be an exception -- especially in large, metro areas.  As Larson mentions, their typical consumer "doesn't buy a week's worth of groceries for families." He continues, "You can fit those people into a serpentine line without wasting a lot of valuable sales space."

CPS' QuikLine queueing management system takes the process a step further -- multiple lines feeding a changeable register bank and the ability to differentiate between "express" and "standard" registers. Shopping carts are welcome, in other words!

Meeting your customer's needs, generating additional sales: queue management is an idea worth exploring!

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How Do You Stack Up: 4 Keys to Effective Master-Planned Communities

There's a very thought-provoking article about Johnson Development in the recent BuilderOnline: A Developer of Master-Planned Communities Shares Know How. Read the entire article here.

In the article, Johnson's COO, Douglas Goff, suggests today's MPC isn't your father's MPC.  "There's no secret code," according to Goff, but today's MPC offers features that weren't important 20 years ago.  "Walkability and mixed use are becoming more important," Goff says.  And, Johnson loves to develop communities that can support close-in employment and generate jobs.

What makes a successful MPC today?  Johnson Developments suggests the following:

(1) Cast a Wide Net -- MPCs used to be primarily single-family oriented; now they need to address the full spectrum of potential buyers -- singles, move-down, families.  And, there's interesting info regarding price range: Johnson Development mentions while proformas don't usually pencil out for first-time buyers, upscale rental housing is a good alternative for that segment of the market not wanting to make a home commitment...yet.

Put Your Buyers in Touch with the Amenity Package

(2) Mine the Data -- Data surrounds us today; using is correctly is key.  Johnson collects and analyzes website traffic and on-site visits -- and shares that information with its builders.  They're also taking advantage of QR codes to deliver on-demand information (vs. lots of pre-printed information delivered by a fully-staffed welcome center).

We've talked about today's buyer in previous blogs -- interested in using touchscreen systems and tablets for  narrowcasting (being able to select from a broad range of information to focus on what's of interest) and "green" conscious (print on-demand makes sense as compared to reams of paper).

(3) Fast-Track Amenities -- Sense of place is important to today's buyer.  Remember we talked about "selling the neighborhood"? MPCs, according to Goff, need to invest more upfront in community anchors and enhanced natural features.

This "new but fully-functional" neighborhood is consistent with the ability to compete against resale -- as long as buyers can see what's either available now or planned for the short-term.  Take a look at Neal Communities' Grand Palm Amenity Package -- there's something for every buyer!

(4) Plan for Down Cycles -- Goff suggests that cultural and economic shifts need to be on everyone's radar.  Whether its keeping tabs on the quality of school districts or growth projects, knowing the market via research and attention builds a strong foundation.

 

 

Queue Management Enhances Your Customer Experience

It's been said that "creativity can be time-consuming!"

So..in an effort to assist in the creative thinking process, here is an outside the box digital signage solution to help you differentiate your business and more effectively engage customers.

QuikLine: Improved wait time; enhanced customer experience

Everyone waits in lines...whether the grocery store, DMV, sporting events, big box retailers. 

Generally, few of us will report a good "line experience." As James Bickers, DigitalSignageToday.com's contributing editor reminds us, "The psychology of the customer experience says that when things are bad, it's noticed right away; but when things are good, they often go unnoticed."

When considering lines and looking to improve the customer experience, why not add digital signage to the queue?  Instead of having customers wait and wait and... add digital signage to the process to logically queue customers and send them to the first available location. And, while customers are waiting, engage them with messages, specials, images, too!

The effect: enhancing the wait process and reducing your customer's perceived wait time.  A win/win for this creative use of digital signage.  Technology enabled the task (better queue management) to be accomplished and your customer experience has improved, too.

Let us know if you'd like information regarding CPS' creative QuikLine solution tool -- effective line queue management software utilizing off-the-shelf hardware.

Individuals as the Future of Brands

Traditionally, notes Hearsay Social's CEO Clara Shih, corporate marketing teams controlled the brand voice.  Now, Shih suggests, individual voices of employees, customers and the greater public are being empowered and transforming marketing processes. You can read more on Hearsay Social's blog.

It can be argued that the corporate marketing process is being transformed to what can be called curatorial or a facilitative role.  The "silo" approach with centralized control is changing to more of a consumer-directed dialogue.


Customer Comment Board: Empowering the consumer voice

Social networking has been driving much of this change; however, there are other ways to solicit and encourage your customer's voice. 

Take a look at the Whole Foods Customer Comment Board  featuring an interactive touchscreen.  Stores are practicing proactive customer service -- actively asking for input, soliciting advice, encouraging shoppers to highlight particular team members because of their engagement.  Team members respond to every one of the consumer comments, suggestions, requests and Cool Beans recognizing employees. 

It's no longer about putting out fires -- this is about focusing on the opportunity to do better business and stay relevant to consumers.

Are you reaching out to your customers to understand their needs and provide personalized service? What processes do you have in place to actively encourage consumer dialogue and integrate their voice into your brand?