BPI Marketing Corner
Elevator Pitch for BPI Certified Professionals
By Hannah C. Wood, BPI
Some BPI Certified Professionals and BPI GoldStar Contractors have told us that they need help with their "elevator pitch." (An elevator pitch is a quick way to easily explain yourself/your services to prospective clients.)
Over the past months, we have drafted multiple iterations of a sample pitch - from 60 seconds (too long!) to one that is just shy of 30 seconds. We think we're getting there! What do you think?
Try it out and then send me your feedback.
Intro:
"You know how you see a specialist doctor for complex health issues? Well, I'm a specialist for your home's issues."
If they want to hear more...
Elevator pitch:
"I am a building specialist certified by the Building Performance Institute. I assess and solve problems that affect the comfort, health, and safety of your home. First, I will listen to the concerns you have with your home. Then, I will look for the causes of the problems. I'll complete an energy audit/[other service] and do diagnostic tests using various tools I have. I will then provide you with a prioritized action plan for my findings. These recommended improvements should help resolve your home's issues." ~28 seconds
If the above doesn't work for you, what does help you explain your BPI certification and services offered?
Once we hear from you and incorporate your feedback, we'll post the final version on your Candidate Account/GoldStar Contractor Account.
Cheers,
Hannah C. Wood
BPI and Industry News
Building Performance News and Discussion
By BPI
BPI Client Relations and Operations Updates
- "Why Choose a BPI Certified Professional" document is now in your accounts: As an action item after the 2018 BPI Retreat prior to HPC New York, we created a handout that can be given to homeowners, explaining the benefits of working with someone with certifications over the alternative. This document can be found in the GSC Marketing Tools folder in the BPI GoldStar Contractor account and in the Documents for Marketing – Consumer Education folder in the BPI Certified Professional account. Feel free to use this document digitally (on your website, social media, or send to customers via email) or print.
- Energy Auditor (EA) and Quality Control Inspector (QCI) exam pilots: BPI, in conjunction with DOE and NREL, will be launching a pilot program tentatively scheduled for August of 2018 for the Energy Auditor (EA) and Quality Control Inspector (QCI) certifications. Participating in the pilot program is a great opportunity for you to help shape the new exams and provide immediate feedback on the pilot questions. Additional specific information will be available on the BPI website in the coming weeks. If you have questions in the meantime, please contact hepcertification@bpi.org.
- It's officially Atlantic hurricane season, which means it's time to consider building your post-disaster skills. Consider taking the online-only Healthy Home Evaluator exam at a BPI Test Center offering the exam. Learn how to ensure that homes are dry, safe, and healthy environments for families after disaster strikes.
- BPI GoldStar Contractors, Test Centers, and Proctors: As a reminder, if you've missed any of our live webinars, they have been recorded and placed in your accounts. Here, you can watch the webinars and earn CEUs at no charge.
- Do you want to receive updates on new jobs posted on BPI's Job Pages? Join this email list and we'll send you 1-2 emails per month with updates.
- Looking for CEUs? You can check out the current pre-approved CEU offerings (training, conferences, webinars, classes, etc.) by clicking here, or at any time by heading to bpi.org, clicking on the red "Login" button on the top navigation bar, scrolling down to "Testing and Continuing Education Accounts" and hitting the blue "Log In" button, and finally hitting "Find CEU Courses."
BPI Spotlight
June is National Healthy Homes Month
By HUD
Homes and health are inextricably linked together, reflect two of the most basic needs of a society, and serve as an indicator of the strength of the nation. To help families create healthier living conditions for themselves and their kids, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) hosts the third annual National Healthy Homes Month (NHHM) throughout June.
"During Healthy Homes Month, we're mobilizing the collective efforts of Federal, State and local health and housing professionals to protect families where they spend most of their time — in their home, because it's hard to be healthy when your home is making you sick," says Matt Ammon, Director of HUD's Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes.
This year's theme is Unlocking the Potential of America's Children: Check Your Home-Protect Your Family. The campaign focuses on protecting current and future generations of children from lead exposure from contaminated paint, dust, and soil. (Since 1993, HUD's lead hazard control grant programs have retrofitted more than 200,000 homes to make them lead-safe for lower income families in 45 states.) Protect our Kids! is a department-wide enforcement campaign, which aims to get landlords, and sellers of older homes, to fulfill their responsibilities to disclose lead-based paint hazards in their properties.
Check out more of HUD's NHHM resources:
- HUD's website: Learn more about National Healthy Homes Month 2018 and upcoming events
- Digital toolkit: A specially designed toolkit has been developed for professional audiences (like you!), so that you/they can reach out to the residents and other stakeholders they serve.
- The National Lead Information Center (1-800-424-LEAD): Call this toll-free number for more information on lead, when you need it.
- HUD's Healthy Homes App: Get tips on potentially serious health and safety problems in the home and the steps to take to protect your home and family. Available via Apple iTunes and Google Play.
You can also register to attend the three remaining webinars related to healthy homes in America:
- June 18, 2018 at 2:00-3:00 pm EDT: Healthy Homes Youth App
Presenter: Gina Peek, USDA NIFA Healthy Homes Partnership - June 20, 2018 at 2:00-3:00 pm EDT: Protect Your Homes -The Top 5 Wind, Flood, and Fire Damage Defenses
Presenter: Claudette Hanks Reichel, Ed.D, LSU AgCenter, La. Extension service Housing Specialist, Director of LaHouse Resource Center, USDA NIFA, Healthy Homes Partnership - June 27, 2018 at 1:00-2:00 pm EDT: Hoarding
Presenter: Dion Lerman, Penn State, PA IPM Program, Philadelphia Hoarding Task Force, Pennsylvania State University State IPM Program, Trainer in the Healthy Homes Training Center Network
NHHM will conclude with the National Healthy Homes Conference, held in conjunction with the National Environmental Health Association’s Annual Educational Conference, June 25-28, in Anaheim, California. At the conference, BPI CEO, Larry Zarker, will speak about "The Growing National Network of Certified Healthy Home Evaluators" from 2:00 - 2:50 PM on Wednesday, June 27th.
About the Author
HUD's mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. HUD is working to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers; meet the need for quality affordable rental homes; utilize housing as a platform for improving quality of life; build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination, and transform the way HUD does business.
Stump the Chump
Let's Play Stump the Chump!
By Quinn Korzeniecki, BPI
Last month's stumper was tricky, but Matt Jones, Project Manager at TRC Energy Services, had the best answer.
As a reminder, an apartment renter was having issues with his Williams model gravity wall furnace constantly cutting out. The heater was judged to be too sooty with a high yellow flame by the local utility, so the gas was disconnected. The landlord sent out an HVAC tech to clean the furnace, but the issue persisted. Another tech recommended upgrading the thermostat, which also didn't help. What is causing the heater to cut out?
Matt says, "The Williams furnace is likely shutting off due to its spill switch being tripped. The spill switch uses a thermocouple to shut the furnace off if the temperature in the draft diverter gets too high, which is an indication that the furnace is spilling or not drafting properly. The spill switch may be faulty, but that is unlikely. Wall furnaces are quite sensitive to building pressure dynamics and may spill if operating conditions are not ideal. In small apartments, frequent causes of wall furnace spillage include oversized equipment, blocked make up air vents, continuously-running exhaust fans, or simply a tight dwelling unit."
The renter brought in the second HVAC tech again and he changed the flue safety switch and the pilot generator. Now it works!
Thank you to everyone who submitted a response.
What's the weirdest home issue you encountered and had to solve?
You've all encountered "cob jobs" and/or issues that wouldn't be glaringly obvious to the untrained eye, and have had to fix those issues. Send in your story to qkorzeniecki@bpi.org and you could earn 2 BPI CEUs - easiest CEUs ever!
For inspiration, check out this spoof video on "A Day in the Life of a Building Performance Inspector," with Corbett Lunsford:
Send In a Stumper and Earn 2 BPI CEUs!
The Stump the Chump segment in BPI’s newsletter is the most popular part of the monthly publication. If you submit a Stumper, you'll get: an opportunity to share your technical knowledge, free individual and company advertising with a link to your company website, and 2 BPI CEUs. For more information, please contact marketing@bpi.org.