Who has started to turn their marketing dollars back on?

Check out the poll I have set up on Linkedin. The poll is to measure who has turned their marketing dollars back on.

Click here to complete the poll:

Nominations are now open for the 2009-2010 Ontario Construction Report Readers Choice Awards

The Nominations are now open for the 2009-2010 Readers Choice Awards for the Ontario Construction Report.

You can nominate as many companies you want for our 15 categories:

1) Outstanding Customer Service Award
2) Outstanding Construction Supplier Award
3) Best Equipment Rental Provider
4) Outstanding Architect
5) Best All-Around General Contractor
6) Best Residential Contractor
7) Most Effective Construction Labour Agency
8) Outstanding Subtrade
9) Green Project of the Year
10) Outstanding Commitment to Sustainable Development
11) Best All Around Construction Project of the Year
12) Best Landscape Architect or Landscape Designer
13) Outstanding Provider of Professional Services to the Construction Industry
14) Most Innovative Green Product of the Year
15) Owner or Developer of the Year

To nominate someone simpley click here: OCR Readers Choice Awards

Ontario Construction Report August 2009

GTA Construction Report August 2009

New look to the GTA Construction Report

Starting with the August issue of the GTA Construction Report you will notice a change to the cover. The GTA logo has been updated to include a new banner that reads:

Serving Barrie ~ Greater Toronto Area ~ Hamilton- Halton ~Niagara

Why such a small change?

The change is actually a large one that has developed over the past two years with the expansion the paper beyond one city (Toronto) to encompass a larger region. Coverage each month touches on the construction industry of each city from news to features.

Why did we not change the name?

Well after more then 10 years of publishing the name is pretty well recognized. The practise of covering news and stories outside the area was gradually accepted by the companies and people we interviewed. It naturally progressed to a regional title based on where our readers were travelling to do jobs and business. The GTA Construction Report has moved with them.

What is the advantage of a more regional focus?

For readers they get a larger view of the industry and great access to new and potential projects. For our featured companies and advertisers they gain a larger audience for people to notice the work they do and generate new business. The past year as we hit the economic down turn our readers in the construction industry also became in part more regionally focused with their businesses by travelling a little further to bid on jobs and expand there market share. We simply were there with them.

When does a house account become a new lead?

Working in the trade publication industry targeted at the construction industry you always come across previous customers who have dealt with your company before. In some cases these companies may have advertised with your group of newspapers 2 years ago or had a previous feature done. What happens with a customer like this is they are usually forgotten and rediscovered by a new sales rep. Should these be classified as new sales? How long do they need to be neglected before they are new again?

How does your business handle these types of situations when commissions are involved and territories may overlap based on where the lead was originally generated? What if someone outside of sales asks for the business and gets it? Do you have the sales reps share the commission? Does the house step in and take 50% as a house account?

We have a great sharing policy in place for these grey areas since all sales reps are compensated with a guaranteed salary. Commission is paid for exceeding monthly targets. This sharing policy helps avoid cut throat techniques and hoarding of information which could have an adverse affect on your "Brand". If people are all working towards the goal of having a thriving business and a portion of the rewards from leads that overlap territories or house accounts is shared then everyone is happy. Giving a small percentage helps to encourage team work and avoid people feeling as if they were cut out.

What challenges has your business faced with sharing commission and tracking who owns a lead?

Design and Construction Report Magazine