• Customer Service and Sales Training
• Margin Management
• Successful Installed Sales Operations
• Basic Blueprint Reading and Material Takeoff/Estimating
• Benchmarking for Excellence and Continual Process Improvement

His educational and training seminars have been utilized across the country by Federated Associations, Independent LBM operations, buying groups and the top national lumber operations in the country.

Today’s employees need coaches and leaders, not managers who mandate or dictate methods and procedures.  Customer service is especially subjective to these differing types of leadership techniques as employees tend to follow the examples set by their individual managers.  It does not work for a manager or owner to simply tell employees that they want them to provide better customer service, the owner or manager must lead by example.  

Our program will demonstrate how to identify customer service areas that may be lacking in a company and how to chart a positive course for change.  It will also cover the Cycle of Service, Service Leadership and Authority and Power through Recognition. 

Customer Service and Sales Techniques

This program will arm your staff with customer service and sales skills!  The session focuses on service strategies, customer perceptions and understanding the economic impact of poor service as seen through the eyes of your customers, as well as zeroing in on specific sales and negotiations skills.  Customer qualification, value-added selling, and converting product features into tangible buyer benefits are discussed in depth.  Also discussed are issues such as dealing with multi-generational customers. 

 Program Length:  One – day seminar

Who Should Attend:  Everyone from yard workers to office and clerical staff to the highest member of management will benefit from this important training seminar. 

This seminar presents a systematic approach to selling, which consists of analyzing your current business, maintaining profit margins, customer identification and ranking and establishing a “truth chart” for your customers, along with advanced sales and margin management ideas.  This program also includes a comprehensive customer profile that can be used to identify areas that will increase the penetration of your business into the jobsite.  The “in-house” program takes this point a step further by analyzing specific accounts and helping to prepare your salespeople for pre-call planning and post-call reviews.  

Program Length:  One-day open enrollment seminar or a Two-day “In-house” program

Who Should Attend:  Inside and outside salespeople and their managers.

Basic Blueprint Reading and Residential Framing, Lumber Estimating The Blueprint Reading seminar leads participants through a typical blueprint format, scale and content.  Students will develop an understanding of architectural symbols such as wood, concrete, insulation and electrical schedules, knee walls, wall sections and cantilevered joists.  They’ll also learn about “specification and general notes” – their necessity, importance and how they relate to retail sales.  In addition, the seminar teaches participants how to approach reading a blueprint to ensure thoroughness and accuracy when completing an estimate of materials.

The second day focuses on the skills necessary to calculate the framing lumber requirements of the complete shell of the house through comprehensive study of each construction item.  Included in this is a review of contemporary “cut roofs” and their unique estimating requirements.

Program Length:  Two-day seminar

Who Should Attend:  Sales/estimating staff, management personnel, or anyone involved in reading blueprints.  It is especially useful to those with minimal skills in reading blueprints.

Day 1

Introduction to Estimating & Construction Methods

Areas covered include:

• Basic blueprint reading
• Understanding elevations, floor plans, details and symbols
• Using an architectural scale
• How building products are used on the job-site
• Introduction to estimating formulas
• Estimating simple projects (decks & garages)

Day 2*

Residential Material Take-Off

Areas covered include:

• Floor layout
• Wall framing
• Roof systems
  • Trusses
  • Over framing
  • Common, Hip & Jack Rafters
• Siding
• Sheetrock & Insulation

*Attendance at Day 1 is mandatory for attending Day 2 or have proficiency at reading blueprints.