Then it's O'Meara's job to put the right people in the right
places to get the best workmanship and the greatest efficiency.
"You might have one guy making $10 an hour who can only paint
one window in that time. Another guy who makes $15 an hour might
be able to do three windows an hour. If you have a job with a lot
of windows, you're better off plugging in the higher-paid employee.
It's like the guy who shucks oysters. Doing that repetitive task
over an over again, he's going to go from one pound an hour to five
or 10 pounds an hour," says O'Meara. "The same applies to our
business. You need to train your people, develop their areas of
specialization, deploy them properly, and then systematize your
approach to the job."
Organization Counts
O'Meara's crews function like a well-oiled machine, each part
working in concert with the others. "First, you send in a guy
with a fully-equipped spray truck who does nothing but spray.
There is one pump for flat paint for the walls, and a second pump
for the enamel for the doors. When he is done spraying, you send in
the enamel crew. They start by checking all the hinges and returns.
And so it goes," explains O'Meara.
"We teach everyone to work in a particular pattern and according
to set standards. That adds efficiency throughout – to the crews
on the job, to the supervisor inspecting the work, to the billing
department," he says. Even DOMCO's equipment is standardized, down
to the last detail. Every truck has identical ladders, identical
pumps, a stack of four caulk guns (all with top quality siliconized
acrylic caulk), etc. "Organization means a lot," says O'Meara.
Indeed, according to Greg Balbirnie, executive vice president at
Robert Bruce Development Group, a long-time DOMCO client that
builds homes in the $400,000 to $2 |
 |
| O'Meara has
proven that builders indeed do value top-quality workmanship and
detail-oriented customer service. |
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million range, the organizational excellence and quality of
DOMCO's management team is the number one reason the firm
gives its business to O'Meara.
Economies of Scale
By systematizing the sales process, O'Meara gains tremendous
economies of scale. "If you set up your business properly, it
isn't too much different selling a development than it is selling
a homeowner," he says.
O'Meara describes his procedures this way: "Maybe there are four or
five models in a subdivision, but I price out the job only once. I
develop templates for the options we plan to offer on the various
models, and enter them into our computer system." Once the system
is in place, the sales take care of themselves, he says. Home buyers
select the upgrades they want from DOMCO's price sheet; the builder
calls in the order. "All we do is call up the template for the
particular model home, and our computer system |
builds the work order and the cost-collection module. Everything is
automated."
"At that point, my vice president of operations, Angelo Tropea,
can pay attention to the job and I can concentrate on my client.
Every Tuesday, I visit all of our jobs and meet with the builders
to keep them informed. Good communication is important," he says.
New Marketing Tools
O'Meara is always looking for new ways to convince home builders
to collaborate with DOMCO on paint upgrades. To that end, he
recently added a new weapon to his arsenal, - an informative,
professionally-produced sales video on property management that is
sprinkled with client testimonials.
Entitle "The Test of Quality," the video incorporates much of
O'Meara's business philosophy, educates the viewer about painting
and provides guidelines on selecting a painting contractor. On the
last point, builders and property |
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