Miracle Pool Service: Growing and Giving Back
In 1995, Noel Conley started Miracle Pool Service in Garland, Texas — a suburb northeast of Dallas. He had a truck and ran his office out of his home.
Internet Sales Carry Warranty Worries
“I SAW THAT ONLINE FOR A LOT LESS.” Each one of us going out on sales calls has heard this from customers. Over the past five years, the swimming pool industry has dealt with underpriced Internet items and improper installations. Pentair, one of the leading manufacturers of swimming pool equipment, recently helped level the playing…
Commercial Mosaic Mastery
The swim team at Brophy College Preparatory, an all-boys private Jesuit high school in Phoenix with more than 1,200 students, has won 26 consecutive state titles (36 total) and one national title. But the team’s swimming pool was more than four miles away and not accessible to the rest of the students and staff. “Brophy…
A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Words…and Your Next New Customer
Every year, pool builders look at new ways to market the latest trends and technology to potential customers. While finding ways to get ahead of the competition is important, one thing will never change: Before builders can promote a brand or a feature, they have to sell the idea of owning a pool in the…
Avoid Talking Yourself Out of a Sale
I can hear it now. “C’mon, man,” you say. “What’s this all about? Talking yourself out of a sale? Really?” You may be saying to yourself, “I have enough problems talking myself into a sale. Now I have to worry about this too? You can’t be serious.” Au contraire, my pool and spa selling friend:…
Clean Sweep
2 Wheel PoolCleanerPoolvergnuegenthepoolcleaner.comhayward-pool.com In December 2013, Hayward Industries, Inc., acquired Poolvergnuegen. Poolvergnuegen’s cleaners, branded as the The PoolCleaner, bolster Hayward’s offering in the automatic cleaner category. The PoolCleaner’s suction cleaner comes in two- and four-wheel configurations. One patented feature of the cleaner is its self-adjusting turbine vanes, which look like a paddle wheel. The adjustable…
Salt Conversion
Everyone is looking to save a buck these days. When the recession started six years ago, the “How much can I save and still get what I want?” mentality hit in full force. Though there have been a few upswings in the economy since then, we can’t seem to shake the nervousness. Business owners know…
2014 Pool Trends: What the Customer Wants Now
“Because our company only does design, we work with a lot of builders on projects that include details they’ve never done before,” says Brian Van Bower, president of Florida-based design firm Aquatic Consultants, Inc., and president and co-founder of the Genesis 3 Design Group. “Often the driver is the consumer who’s seen it elsewhere, brings…
Not Your Dad’s Technology
Gather ’round, kids, and let me tell you about the tough times when there were no whiz-bang apps to operate your pool with your smartphone. Heck, before smartphones we had dumb phones that only allowed you to make or receive calls; no texting, surfing the web or playing Candy Crush Saga. Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn —…
Moving Up
Rick Woemmel left his computer-science job and got into the pool business because he didn’t want to sit behind a computer and a desk all day. “Now I sit behind a computer and a desk all day,” Woemmel says, which shows just how much the world and the industry have changed since he opened Bi-State…
Diving Board Troubleshooting
Diving boards are an excellent opportunity for a service business to increase its bottom line. This particular piece of pool equipment is less common than in the past, yet a diving board is a great source of fun and entertainment in the right pool. Many technicians choose not to service diving boards due to liability…
How Houzz Can Help You Sell More Pools
Are you still trying to tweet your way to more pool sales? Step away from Twitter and Pinterest while I tell you about the one social medium every pool builder should be using: Houzz.com. Pronounced just like how’s (as in “How’s your mama?”), Houzz is a match made in heaven for pool builders — especially…