The Contractor's Business Coach

If this is your first exposure to Gruenberg and Roberts, we suggest you start by listening to an audio interview our editor conducted with Roberts at the 2007 National Pavement Exposition. You will also want to check out their company blog.

Chances are, you'll gain many new ideas and insights by taking a look at the series of articles, below, that Roberts and Gruenberg have made available to WorldSweeper.com readers. All of the articles have been reviewed and, if necessary, adapted to fit the needs of sweeping contractors by WorldSweeper.com's editor, Ranger Kidwell-Ross. New articles will be added as applicable material comes available.

Roberts and Gruenberg have also developed a brief video that outlines the Top Ten Mistakes that Contractors Make. You may view the video by using the link shown to the right.

More information about Ron Roberts and Guy Gruenberg is available on his website, FilthyRichContractor.com.

The Chess Match That Is Contracting

• Ron Roberts reflects on how chess games made him realize how close chess resembles the contracting business. Although the analogies in this article best relate to construction sweeping, they provide valuable insight into a number of types of business activities. .

Your Unique Value Proposition – It's What Makes You Stand Out From the Crowd

• Whether you sell to clients directly or you sell to general contractors, it is imperative that you understand the unique value you offer and communicate it clearly, concisely, and persuasively. You do so with a Unique Value Proposition (UVP).

Accountability - It's Not Optional

• One of the most frustrating parts of running a business is the never ending battle with employees. Some never seem to do what you need them to do. They are either working slow, working on the wrong things, or doing things the wrong way.

A Mid-year Progress Check ... Are You Halfway to Your Goals?

• If your fiscal year is January through December, you are about half-way through the year. Even if your fiscal time period has different starting and ending points the year is technically just about half over.

Getting Your Strategy On

• With so many ways to build strategy and track progress in your company, there's no reason to delay.

Business Operation Basics During an Economic Downturn

• This article offers some great ideas about weathering an economic downturn.

Systems that Control the Financial Health of Your Business

• This article covers the financial control that is absolutely necessary to get and stay profitable.

Delegation: How To Stop Those Annoying Employee Phone Calls and Have a More Productive Company

• There are many business advantages to delegating like a goose instead of a buffalo.

Can A 1% Gross Margin Increase Really Save You 2,000 Man-Hours?

• Your ability to increase your gross margin by increasing income -- instead of focusing on reducing costs -- is substantial.

How Safe Is Your Income If You Get Injured and Can't Work?

• When your income is dependent on your availability, your income is never fully safe. Your wealth is threatened. Your happiness is threatened.

Help Wanted Ads That Draw In Great Prospects -- and Where to Place Them

• There's only one reliable place to get them: STEAL THEM FROM THE COMPETITION. The beauty of stealing your competition's employees is you kill two birds with one stone. You strengthen your company and weaken theirs.

Managing Your Sweeping Business By The Numbers

• Do you know how many leads you need coming in weekly to hit your year-end income target? Do you know how big a staff you need to handle the paperwork associated with you proposals and projects? When you manage by the numbers, you will.

Practice Makes Perfect - Especially With Conversations

• If you want to maximize your results and not get caught offguard, then practice all sides of an important conversation before it takes place.

Freeing Up Your Time – A Staffing Solution

• Do you know what every small business owner struggles with? Time.
  Time to work on the business. Time to spend on tasks that make money. Time to meet with valued customers. Here's how to free up more of it.

Marketing Ideas That Work

• To generate the volume of quality leads your business needs to achieve your sales goals, you need marketing systems for seven basic areas. Today, we cover what these are and how to fully utilize them.

Make Your Crews Fix Their Own Interpersonal Conflicts

• You've got a headache on your hands because two of your best employees can't get along. What should you do?

Branding Your Company - Building Value Into Its Name

• The term is familiar to us all: BRANDING. But what does it mean and, more importantly, why should you care?

Entering the Information Age: The New Secret to Success is Attention Management

• For the last ten years the media have been making it clear that we are in the Information Age. Here's the 'new news:' We are no longer in the Information Age. We've already passed through it! Welcome to the Attention Age.

Addressing the Challenge of Finding Good Help

• Here are some great tips on 'out of the box' thinking that will help you find good workers at every skill level.

Empowerment + Training = Leadership = Profitable Growth

• You cannot personally oversee everyone who works for you. The rough rule of thumb has always been seven employees per leader. It then follows that for your company to grow beyond seven employees, you will need to recruit, develop and empower leaders. (also located in our 'Growing Your Business' section)

The Systems You Need to Drive Your Company's Success

• You need to know why and how you do the things you do in your business. Then, you need to be able to replicate them -- even with personnel changes -- month by month and year by year. (added to our 'Management Tools' area in April of 2007.)

Using Email and Attachments to Best Advantage

• Acrobat Reader is free. Everyone has it on their computer. Take advantage of that fact when you communicate with others. (added to our 'Management Tools' area in July of 2007.)

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