With the recent developments around the world, many service-based businesses are taking a major hit. For those in the pool service industry, we have the good fortune to be in a space that allows our businesses to thrive even during these trying times. Practicing social distancing, being around germ-killing pool supplies, and working in the… read more
Many businesspeople speak of thinking outside the box. Why? Why is this concept potentially beneficial to your company; and how do we master this process? The definition of thinking outside the box, according to the Cambridge Dictionary, is: “To think imaginatively using new ideas instead of traditional ideas.” Why is this important? Because new ideas… read more
By: Charles Baird I have written and spoken on the subject of quality service and improved incomes for pool service companies for decades. Still, I encounter pool service companies who want higher incomes but lack the motivation or enough customer respect to provide the higher quality service that is demanded with those higher incomes. I… read more
We have had to fight for decades to shed the stigma of “The Pool Boy;” and Hollywood didn’t help at all with the Mark Harmon movie. However, while I believe we have done an adequate job of creating a more professional industry; there are still a great many unprofessional service companies in operation. This… read more
This may sound mundane, but new and improved profit streams are necessary for the success of your business. Even without tariffs, operating a business is becoming more and more expensive every day. If you do not stay ahead of the curve, you might find yourself off the road in a ditch. I have… read more
Many pool service professionals do not evaluate their business or refine their business systems. If they did, most pool men would notice a reduction in the percentage of profit from year to year. Granted, they may be experiencing a larger bottom-line due to increasing the number of customers on service, but they are working harder… read more
In today’s fast-paced and stressful business environment it is easy to forget civility. Many of us lose our civility when someone disagrees with our position in business, politics, religion and just about every other aspect of life. If you accidentally pull in front of someone on the freeway or another street in our cities… read more
I have heard over the past decade that raising service rates or increasing the hourly repair rate was very difficult due to a poor economy. Well, the economy is humming. People are back to work in record numbers. Wages are growing at a respectable rate. The stock market has increased wealth in this country by… read more
It appears every day some new technology comes into being, and pool service companies owners bemoan the creation of this new technology and the advancements for the industry. This is nothing new. This has been happening as far back as I can remember, and this way of thinking is not specific to the pool service… read more
Many years ago I was giving a seminar at the Pool Industry Expo in Monterey, California when one of the attendees made a comment that gave me a window into the mind of some of the pool service techs in our industry. His comment came when I was explaining the three basic services: chemical service,… read more
