by Sonnhalter | Apr 25, 2017 | Events/Trade Shows
By Rachel Kerstetter, PR Architect, Sonnhalter
Did you know that today is Hug a Plumber Day? (Sometimes called Plumber’s Day.) Often plumbers don’t receive the credit and fame that they deserve, unless they’re Mario and Luigi and trying to save a princess. The Super Mario Brothers are the most famous plumbers, and they live in a Nintendo game.
The reality is that without plumbers, our world would be far from sanitary or pleasant. As part of our team’s commitment to getting our hands dirty in our clients’ work, we’ve had the opportunity to see plumbers at work, we’ve used their tools and we’ve heard their stories; we know that they deserve to be honored, not just hugged, today.
Plumbers do so much more than unclog drains and fix leaky faucets. It’s plumbers who install the miles of piping that make hot, cold and process water and gas utilities possible.
Did you know…
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by Sonnhalter | Apr 19, 2017 | Tradesmen Insights
By Chris Ilcin, Account Superintendent, Sonnhalter
One of the things that always struck me about manufacturers is they generally don’t realize how cool their jobs really are. And I get why. You’ve been doing this your whole life, it pays the bills and it has its disappointments, headaches and setbacks.
But manufacturing made the modern world we live in possible. And the stuff you see as routine, through anyone else’s eyes is really, really cool.
Don’t believe me? Ask a bunch of middle school kids in Pennsylvania. (more…)
by tradesmeninsights | Apr 18, 2017 | Marketing Tips
By John Sonnhalter, Rainmaker Journeyman, Sonnhalter
I think we all can agree that content marketing is playing a vital role in everyone’s overall marketing plans. Everyone wants lead generation and engagement, and to get both, you have to provide good content!
Many manufacturers focus more on their brand than trying to help solve their customers’ problems. Don’t focus on selling. Focus on solving. And more is not better. Give them good content not a lot of content.
According to recent article in Content marketing institute: (more…)
by Sonnhalter | Apr 12, 2017 | Tradesmen Insights
How often have you heard sales people say leads generated by marketing are just “literature collectors, college professors, students, lookers or tire kickers?” Or, “I don’t have time for sales lead follow-up.” Or the sales manager who says, “I know my sales people are following up. They just don’t have time to provide feedback.”
All carrot no stick
I’ve worked with many companies over the years that made lead follow-up an imperative with their sales forces. In every case where it was required it yielded significant and profitable results reporting hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars in sales.
There is much discussion in internet groups about “aligning marketing and sales” and lead follow-up is a critical part of this discussion. (more…)
by tradesmeninsights | Apr 11, 2017 | Tradesmen Insights
By John Sonnhalter, Rainmaker Journeyman, Sonnhalter
Contractors (HVAC, Plumbing, Electrical) have some serious challenges moving forward.
The Average contractor is 50+, most aren’t tech savvy, and they’ve been doing things the same way forever (chasing paper work orders). As Boomers leave the workforce at a rate of 1 every 8 seconds, a shortage of middle management will become apparent. Boomers dominate technical jobs, with the exception of IT.
I learned a long time ago if you got into business, among your priorities were: grow your business, make a profit and have an exit strategy.
To grow your business, you need to hire and train good people. And who’s going to train the millennials? The boomers! The boomers have the intellectual capital (work experience) that needs to be transferred to the younger generations. Your pool of talent will come from the 18-34 age group and they look at things a bit differently than their older counterparts.
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by Sonnhalter | Apr 5, 2017 | Tradesmen Insights
By Chris Ilcin, Account Superintendent, Sonnhalter
Wait, Did You Feel That?
The needle began to move on the skilled trades gap.
Don’t look now, but the problem you’ve known about for a generation, the lack of people coming into the skilled trades, is finally going mainstream.
It’s subtle, but change is beginning to show.
Source: This Old House
First there are the local advocates, who have been talking about the problem for years. You know them, they’re in your local Union Hall, Welding School, or in the rapidly dwindling number of High School Vo-Tech programs. Or they’re part of the increasingly aging workforce itself, all too aware that there are more of them retiring than entering the workforce, and hanging around looking for someone to step up.
And there are now countless local efforts. Here in Northeast Ohio, the Cuyahoga Community College launched a mobile workforce training center. Tri-C customizes it with virtual welders, CNC machines or other demos as the employer or school needs. Also in the Cleveland area, Lincoln Electric, whose Carl Peters is an advocate for training program development, recently capped off the framing of their new, $30 million welding technology center project.
Nationally the news is just as encouraging. Mike Rowe, who has capitalized on his TV fame to promote the trades through his foundation, is getting ready to take applications for 2017 scholarships. He’s also a great social media follow, and recently testified before congress.
Even more promising, This Old House, the venerable PBS show, launched Generation Next a partnership with MikeRoweWORKS designed to highlight the jobs available in the skilled trades and destigmatize these jobs for today’s youth.
NPR’s excellent Marketplace program recently had several in-depth features on training skilled workers, produced by senior education correspondent Amy Scott.
Plus, there are the national groups dedicated to the trades, Skills USA, Manufacturing Day and more.
So what are you doing? What plan does your company have, and how effectively is it implemented? A few places to get started/re-energized:
- Find national and local training programs with Sonnhalter’s list
- Approach local schools and investigate opportunities to show off the work you do by participating in Manufacturing Day
- Don’t let everyone leave early at your next trade show’s student day. Instead, find out what schools are coming and be proactive
- Work with your Trade Organization or Union, volunteer to be a part of their training efforts
There have never been more resources and creative thinking addressing this looming crisis. Is it enough? Probably not, but the needle has moved, and it’s in your company’s best interest to do what you can to help build momentum.
