When business owners enter into a brand new field, it simply takes time to develop a knowledge base. Undoubtedly, questions will come up with answers that are a bit too elusive, but clients still want to see confidence for them to feel reassured.
With the right training, inspectors can use their infrared cameras to add valuable insights to their reports, and avoid the common misinterpretations and misdiagnoses that untrained home inspectors make all the time.
Being responsive is a valuable quality in any professional industry, but we’ve found that property inspectors who prioritize this trait separate themselves from their competition and set themselves up to leave a lasting first impression.
By Jon McCreath, NPI, Inc.’s Technical & Training Director In any industry, success often comes from separating yourself from the pack. Some businesses have exceptional communication skills, prioritizing customer service above all else. Other business owners invest in a diverse array of add-ons, making them a convenient one-stop shop for their clients. Then, of course, veteran business owners might trust that the quality of their products and services will naturally trump all in the end. Dedicating your attention to becoming the best among your competition is an excellent goal, but proving yourself to clients takes work, too! We’ve talked about how to get more reviews by prioritizing Google business listings for better online searchability, but there is another powerful tool that too few home and property inspectors utilize: sample reports. Home inspectors who host a sample of their inspection report on their website can display the quality of their product for any prospective clients and answer many of their burning questions before they even pick up their phone. If you’d like to start using sample reports on your website but you’re not entirely sold on the concept yet, let’s review a few of the benefits and discuss some of the
By Jon McCreath, NPI, Inc.’s Technical Supervisor & Training Administrator When running a business, owners work extremely hard to find their unique strategy for consistent success. Winning over a share of the market takes time and plenty of energy, but one common pitfall that entrepreneurs frequently encounter is losing that initial fire to learn and experiment. Too often, professionals find a comfortable place in their industry and then fall further and further behind while competition follows trends and implements what works into their businesses. So, what’s the solution? How do small business owners stay up to date in their industry? In the home inspection industry, some may point towards licensing requirements in each state as a solution, but this doesn’t resolve the problem for a couple of reasons: Ultimately, keeping up to date with your industry has to start with an internal desire to improve your services and elevate your business. Required courses will not cut it! So, for any property inspectors out there who want to keep their business practices and their personal knowledge on the cutting edge, let’s discuss a few of the top strategies. 5 Ways to Stay Up to Date in the Home Inspection Industry 1.
March is International Women’s Month, and we’re taking a moment to celebrate a few of our amazing female inspectors who are helping transform the industry. We had a chance to ask them all about their experience, from what it’s like to work in a male-dominated field to what they love most about completing inspections and helping clients. Get to know Savannah Guenther, Ashley Brown, and Susan D’Andrea, and be sure to give them a shoutout if you see them around. Thank you for sharing, ladies – keep up the brilliant work! Q: As a female inspector, what are some unique benefits or challenges that you face in our industry? How do you overcome them?Savannah: I would say that one unique benefit is being able to help female REALTORs who may be working an open house or event by themselves feel more comfortable. Women feel a bit more at ease with another woman one-on-one than they might with a man they may not know very well. I’ve found that we can have an easy conversation; they’re inclined to share more about their work and background, and they’re more open to listening to what I have to say. The challenges of working
By Stepha Vesper, NPI, Inc.’s Senior Marketing Communications Strategist Every year, the National Property Inspections home office hosts its annual conference, inviting professional property inspectors from all across North America to gather in Omaha, Nebraska with the intent to network, learn about the latest happenings within the industry, and celebrate the past year’s achievements. While it’s a great time to reconnect and catch up with one another, the InVision Conference is also planned with adding direct value to your business in mind. If you haven’t been to the InVision Conference or if you’re interested in learning more about what to expect, here are a few takeaways you can look forward to! Discover Opportunities to Expand Your BusinessWhether you’re curious about adding a new service to your business or you’d like to partner with a nationally recognized vendor, the InVision Conference offers opportunities to meet with representatives about potential partnerships. In 2023, the InVision conference featured booths and speakers from Thumbtack, ISN (Inspection Support Network), Guardian, MFD Home Certifications, AirAdvice, Inspector Cameras, Fixle, Sporecyte, Scarpello Consulting, and Secure24. Our team does their best to provide a slate of high quality vendors like these every year at the annual conference. If you’re
In our Franchisee Spotlight series, we like to take some time to recognize the efforts of some of our most outstanding franchises. Every year, we partner with new inspectors and seasoned professionals seeking extra support to take their businesses to the next level. While our marketing, technical support, and national accounts all work together for ongoing assistance, we think that one of the most impactful resources our partners gain when joining the NPI family is access to some of the best business owners in the inspection industry. Today’s feature is Chris Harr and his team from NPI Columbus SE: our 2023 Franchise of the Year. Veterans of the industry, the Harr Team has served Central Ohio since 2002, and in that time, they have established themselves as consummate professionals. They are prime examples of NPI’s core values–Honesty, Integrity, and Professionalism. The Harrs are true mentors, and we’re always excited to see what new strategies their team discovers. With that said, let’s discuss who the Harrs are and what makes them stand out. Chris Harr pictured with his sons Jake and Will at the 2023 InVision Conference Awards. NPI Columbus SE & the Harr FamilyFounded in 2002, NPI Columbus SE has
By Kimberly Stevens, NPI, Inc.’s Marketing & Business Coach As a small business owner, getting your phone line to start ringing can sometimes be a difficult task, but once those prospective clients’ calls begin to roll in, that doesn’t always mean you’ll be booking inspections right and left. Often, a lack of conversions can be due to the fact that while some people might make an inquiry, many would-be clients are likely to get a second, third, or even fourth opinion on their search for the best price (or in other words, the lowest price). Marketing experts over at First Insight break it down by explaining that all businesses are battling the top two deciding factors for consumers: price and quality. The best business owners endeavor to offer a product that is uniquely valuable to their clients, something that goes above and beyond their competition, hoping to become the obvious preferred option. If an entrepreneur has confidence in their product but they aren’t closing the deal, then the problem lies in their ability to explain their product or service’s strengths, leaving potential clients to default to price as the deciding factor. This situation can be incredibly frustrating for owners who
By Jon McCreath, NPI, Inc.’s Technical Supervisor & Training Administrator When imagining life as a home inspector, naturally one’s mind jumps to the on-site experience of gathering photos of a house’s interior and landscape, as well as maybe climbing onto a roof or roaming through a crawl space. What people who haven’t actually been a home inspector may not realize is that a surprisingly large amount of our time is actually spent in the car, traveling between locations, especially if you’re an inspector that serves a larger or mostly rural region. Keeping your work vehicle looking sharp and in working order is crucial to running a professional, successful property inspection business. Although you may have a great system already in place, here are a few reminders about how to take care of your mobile property inspections headquarters! The Importance of Vehicle MaintenanceKeeping a consistent routine of vehicle maintenance and servicing appointments scheduled should be a normal piece of your business’s expenses each year. While it may seem obvious, if an inspector’s vehicle breaks down or is delayed on the way to a job, their entire day’s schedule could be thrown off. Emergencies happen, of course, but changing plans at the
Whether you’ve just started or you’ve already been sending out campaigns for years, chances are you’re making these email marketing mistakes.
Nailing that first addition to the team is an important step for growth, so let’s discuss who to look for, and specifically what will make that first hire great.
What does it mean to have a “growth mindset,” and (crucially) how do you know if you have it? Let’s discuss!
For those interested in diversifying their marketing strategy, let’s chat about a few ways to get started with direct-to-consumer marketing!
Coaches can be great resources for business owners who are just starting out, or for those who are looking to break through to the next level.
To recap our conference and our year as a whole, let’s take a look at what our franchisees had to say about their takeaways from this year’s InVision conference:
Volunteering is a great habit for everyone to build into their routine whenever possible, whether it’s supporting a local organization or devoting time to a cause that’s close to our hearts.
When it comes to funneling online customers to your website, there are many companies that promise to boost your SEO for fast and easy results, but real organic growth on Google’s rankings takes time and patience.
When business owners enter into a brand new field, it simply takes time to develop a knowledge base. Undoubtedly, questions will come up with answers that are a bit too elusive, but clients still want to see confidence for them to feel reassured.
With the right training, inspectors can use their infrared cameras to add valuable insights to their reports, and avoid the common misinterpretations and misdiagnoses that untrained home inspectors make all the time.
