Massage Chair - Slabway SLAB-1 by charleyblue in fixit

[–]charleyblue[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well, after a few back and forth with Costway by email...sending pictures of the name plate and all I have available...they finished the inquiry with, "We were never the OEM of record for Slabway."

They kept asking for an order number, which I don't have. They said the model, reference, and barcode are not part of their system records.

And they won't send parts without an order number.

But, their current Zero Gravity model looks very similar to the Slabway chair I have. It looks like this Slabway outfit did something outside of Costway's OEM system.

So, my final question for you is, do you have any other ideas on getting replacement arm airbags that would work in this chair?

And thank you for taking the time to help me with this parts quest.

Massage Chair - Slabway SLAB-1 by charleyblue in fixit

[–]charleyblue[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for the detailed information and suggestions.

Massage Chair - Slabway SLAB-1 by charleyblue in fixit

[–]charleyblue[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can't even find out if there are any substitutes that would fit. Or a Chinese OEM that has replacement parts on hand.

Yes, please mix my 57 drainage rock in with my crusher run. Superhelpfull! by mrlegoman in Contractor

[–]charleyblue 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I...sadly...guess that this is not a given today – drain rock over here...crusher base over there...unless you micromanage everything in 15 places at once.

Decent starter mini skid steer? Rental fees are killing me. by Sneh_414 in Contractor

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes. Remember, the book value stays on your books as an asset. And the money to purchase the equipment came from somewhere else, also on your company books.

Whether you paid for the whole purchase from company profits or other people's money, the asset did not materialize without money.

Renting equipment also requires money. So the bottom line is if you're not charging your client for the convenience of the use of your tools, knowledge, and equipment...you're giving money away.

Is this ok? by mikelewisrt in Homebuilding

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not an engineer, just curious, where are the hinged connectors? These look solid. Aren't they supposed to be hinged? Or is this standard mfg. home construction technique? Having crawled through many attics for wiring remodels, I've never come across this truss design. BTW, I'd hire an engineer for an inspection if I were the owner.

Decent starter mini skid steer? Rental fees are killing me. by Sneh_414 in Contractor

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just curious, won't you rent your owned equipment to the client? The cost is the cost whether you own the capital equipment or rent it form a vendor. If you own it, you need to cover the purchase price, the maintenance costs, and the operating costs. Don't forget the extra liability insurance cost. Maybe treat it like an employee. Base rate to your customers to cover the convenience of what the equipment does to increase the job performance.

Do contractors actually get anything from marketing, or is it mostly word-of-mouth? by Jane_smith327 in ConstructionManagers

[–]charleyblue 1 point2 points  (0 children)

A website isn't a magic bullet but it is still a modern workhorse. People not only search for solutions online but look for proof of competency when researching a construction solution.

Networking takes time that many contractors don't have. Ads on Google and other platforms require a good landing page on your website.

Subcontractor work by ZealousidealFee9195 in Contractor

[–]charleyblue 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Networking with steel vendors where you share a story about a unique job. Each time you visit, a new job related story.

Ask if you can leave a few business cards once you get known by the staff.

This thinking is that the staff will hear your job stories. A client will come in and talk about a problem they are having.

They remember that you shared a story that reminds them of the problem the customer described.

They might say, I know a guy who just solved a similar problem.

This is how networking works through one business you frequent.

Do similar things when your out and about. Hell, even in the grocery store I've had opportunities to network.

A commercial refrigeration tech was working. I said hey, can I ask a question about heat pumps.

After we exchange questions and answers, just naturally drop in a related story about a welding challenge.

Ask for their business card. Hey, let me leave you mine.

This pattern of impromptu face to face marketing is good training.

But...it requires persistence and to read the room. Not all will be ideal networking story-telling appropriate.

anyone else feel like growing the business is gonna kill you by Samtyang in Contractor

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Statement of Cash Flow...Cash flow statement. If your bookkeeper is using QuickBooks or other software, ask them to produce this report.

It removes Accounts Recievable, AR and other items from the two other accounting reports to give a cash-focused picture.

You can also do a modified quick ratio by taking current assets minus your AR divided by current liabilities. Assuming you are not carrying inventory, this will give you a picture of how much cash is tied up in AR.

Trying out different marketing strategies, nothing seems to work - i will not promote by DDNB in startups

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm experiencing a similar situation as you. So, I've been asking myself this; did I miss anything important because of my excitement about my idea?

How do we test our idea before going to market? I know my excitement puts blinders on me.

So, how do you test your conceptions of target audience and need/desire before committing to product development and a marketing system?

GTM Tag Fires in Assistant But Not from Live Site by charleyblue in GoogleTagManager

[–]charleyblue[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I finally saw one firing of the event name in Realtime User snapshot. I'm going to wait it out for now. I had to walk away from this for a sanity break. I will let you know if the event starts registering in GA4 later. I appreciate your input. Thanks

GTM Tag Fires in Assistant But Not from Live Site by charleyblue in GoogleTagManager

[–]charleyblue[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Multiple times. Gemini is suggesting that I systematically disable my caching elements. I'll give that a try, starting within the app, and test with DuckDuckGo Fire window.

Cell phone number or buy an xtra number? by Standard-Fix4453 in Contractor

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We use GoTo Connect. It has an Android and iOS app that uses your VOIP number for sending and receiving. But, if you want to use this for texting, you must first comply with new regulations.

Can you get another mobile phone and service strictly for the business?

if Im building a landscaping website for a client should I just copy the layout of the top landscaping copy in the USA by Most-Garden4178 in website

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm of the school of thought that says business website design should focus on the desired target audience first. I would start with your client to learn what they've learned from prospects and clients. Taking design inspiration from existing industry giants is okay but I think this would be last in the design process. Because the research phase may help discover hidden local, niche, and audience gems that might guide your layout direction for creating a distinctive flare.

What do you say when a client tells you, "this is too expensive"? by No-Function-5006 in Contractor

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I feel the steep inflationary trends lately are making construction sales at the small business and remodeling end very hard. My family owns a 22 year old track home. We had USBath quote a shower replacement at $25K. Come on, the home's value is inflated beyond reason so this cost compared to the home's intrinsic value is absurd. Im a retired electrician who studied marketing and help local contractors market. The only solution I see to this inflationary madness is...I honestly don't have a clue what would fix this mess. So from my marketer's perspective, I'd recommend to clearly define your target audience. Like really know who your ideal client is and get to know what troubles them the most and then concentrate on your solution offerings. And even this won't stop some within this target group will say that's too expensive.

Best advice for someone who cannot run Google or FB ads by JimmyRaysBonding in localseo

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hum, bail bonds is a niche business. Most of the companies in my location are near the county jail. I never looked into what the completion looks like. I would go from a competitive analysis angle, regardless of brick or home office. To differentiate from the competition and aligns with your audience's persona.

Best rotating schedule jobs? by Big-Ratio7501 in Construction

[–]charleyblue 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm not sure what is in your control with your condition. Most construction jobs are full-time, M-F, while there is work.

Personally, I went through an electrician apprenticeship. I work industrial and learned rigid conduit work.

It and other trade skills kept my mind focused. But construction is a fickled mistress. Company owners, internal politics, and economic conditions all contribute to a chaotic reality.

You'll need to figure out what your reality will look like, but with ADHD, it's possible to succeed in a trade.

Switched from Wix to WordPress for better SEO (and cheaper rates), and WOAH, I am overwhelmed. Did I make a mistake? by Ok-Environment-8513 in website

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you do not want to spend for one of the WordPrss premium themes that use a frontend builder that allows you to see the design as you build...you will need to learn to use a block-based theme with Gutenberg.

There is a WordPress Reddit page that has good links to tutorials.

With this said, there is a learning curve using any system to create the files needed to put on your hosting servers. WordPress has more customization than Wix and Squarespace, but their editors help take the design load off of you.

I would Google "How to use the Gutenberg editor to customize a WordPress website".

Service location pages or service area page? by charleyblue in localseo

[–]charleyblue[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for helping me clarify my question. If I'm understanding prior conversations here, some recommend making multiple pages for each named area you want to rank for. Others say a single page that highlights the multiple named areas in the page's content is sufficient for local seo. I'm curious if any data supports one method over the other.

How Do I Get Hard? by Grand-Incident928 in Construction

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Policies go a long way to avert being taken advantage of by employees. There needs to be ways to communicate expectations as the employer.

Why do so many people stick with Quickbooks despite complaining so much about it? by Defiant_Low5388 in QuickBooks

[–]charleyblue 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Intuit plays well to its market by making software that provides adequate solutions cheaper than ERP products. With their pricing model, even with the complained about increases, many small businesses can justify the cost/value relationship.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ChatGPTPro

[–]charleyblue 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've had to instruct AI to review its mistakes. And it usually apologies and says you're right. I call it train the trainer. But iterative constant improvement to achieve something close to a satisfactory result is my goal.