Harrison Law Group - April 2021

Harrison Law Group - April 2021

April 2021 The Contractor’s Advantage

HarrisonLawGroup.com (410) 832-0000 [email protected]

Power in Literacy!

between. It takes place in many different locales and explores many different situations.

If you’ve been following this newsletter for any length of time, you know I love to read. Books have long been a big part of my life and my family’s life. There are so many different reasons to read, whether you read novels just for the enjoyment of them or you read for the express purpose of learning something. I’m not entirely sure why I do it, but there is one book in particular that I read just about every year: “Dune” by Frank Herbert. I tend to read it around the holidays, and it’s one book I find particularly enjoyable and fascinating. Many people consider it a classic, and I agree! Reading novels like “Dune” isn’t something I do frequently. My reading list tends to have more nonfiction books. But I still enjoy reading fiction because there are so many fiction books that capture truths that aren’t always easy to define or spell out in other mediums. One of my more recent favorites is “All That Man Is” by David Szalay. The book is a series of nine short stories that weave together into a greater, loose narrative. Each story captures a different time in a character’s life — men — through their teenage years, middle age, old age, and various points in

While I didn’t identify with every story or situation, the ones I did identify with really hit close to home. They captured truths from my own life and in contexts that I truly understood. Those instances serve as a reminder of the stories that are hidden away in books and how books connect people and bring our world a little closer together. Jumping off of that last point, books bring us together through their accounts of history. You can read a history book to gain context for events that are happening today. You can find patterns and repetition — and learn how to avoid past mistakes. We live in the Age of Information. If you combine books with the power of the internet, you can learn literally anything you want. That in and of itself is power. You have the entirety of human knowledge right at your fingertips. So, none of us have an excuse to not know something we may be interested in knowing! My daughter has gotten into the Harry Potter books, which she enjoys, but she’s also at that age where she wants to know more about anything and everything. As such, she’s taken to researching things on the internet. But as any parent knows, that comes with its own set of problems. You can ask virtually any question on the internet, and you’ll get an answer (or many answers). We’ll be keeping a close eye on her web browsing and helping her understand how to find the information she’s looking for.

My son, meanwhile, is just getting into reading, which is very exciting. He’s at that age where he’s just about to break into that great big world of books. My hope is that it takes him somewhere great!

-Jeremy Wyatt

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Those Relationships Are Still Valuable! Don’t Write Off Clients Who Have Left

We’ve all had clients ghost us before. Without warning, they stop responding to calls and emails. Eventually, you learn the truth: They no longer need your services. While it’s certainly not an ideal end to a client relationship, it happens. But, in the wake of their departure, what can you do?

Make a client departure amicable. When your product isn’t in your client’s budget anymore, or they’re no longer in need of your product, admittedly, you can’t do much to prevent that from happening. However, even when clients leave, you can still do everything you can to make the departure amicable. • Don’t burn the bridge. Sometimes, messy departures (such as firing a client) are inevitable. In most cases, however, you should leave the door open and prepare to welcome your departing client back, in case their situation changes. • Respect their decision to leave. Don’t make it hard for the client to leave. If they have a contract with you, follow the terms laid out in the contract. A split where mutual respect is involved will make them more willing to return if they need your product or service again.

Why do clients leave? Before answering that question, we have to first understand the reasons clients change their minds about doing business with you:

• Your product or service isn’t in the budget anymore. They’ve crunched the numbers, and there’s just no room. This reason is pretty common in the first quarter of the year when businesses are evaluating their books. • They no longer find your product or service valuable. Your client has determined they don’t get a good return on investment (ROI) from doing business with you. • They’ve moved on. It’s possible they’ve reached a point in their business where they no longer need your product or service. • Their trust in you has waned. Maybe you made a mistake, like forgetting to add them to a mailing list or not informing them about a promotion. Maybe you never created a solid relationship with the client in the first place. • Your competition stole them away. If one of your competitors was offering a better deal, whether it was a better price, better service, or better marketing, then maybe your client took notice and jumped ship.

So, what can you do about it?

Take control of the situation. When a client leaves, you may feel powerless. Always remember, however, that you have control over several things. It’s up to you to build trust with your clients, fix mistakes when you make them, and offer competitive prices and customer service to prevent them from going to a competitor. You should always track the reasons for client departures to discover harmful trends that could be driving clients away from your business; that way, you can correct them.

Even if a client leaves, it’s still worth fostering a relationship with them. One day, they might need your services again and come back. And, even if they never come back, they could be a great referral source.

A client’s departure is rarely the end of a relationship — in fact, it could just as easily be a new beginning.

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HAVE A Laugh

In the U.S., the 100-year history of nonalcoholic (NA) beer is closely linked to Prohibition and the adoption of the 18th Amendment in 1919. It was illegal to sell, transport, or consume alcoholic beverages, which were defined as any drink with more than 0.5% ABV, or alcohol by volume. Beer with less than 0.5% ABV was considered nonalcoholic and could be consumed, if not enjoyed, by teetotalers. That standard has informed a new and growing wave of NA beer in the U.S., which pulled in about $100 million in 2018. Sales of NA beer worldwide, however, are projected to jump to almost $6 billion by 2023. Millennials drink less than their Gen Z and baby boomer counterparts, and periods of giving up booze, like Sober October and Dry January, are becoming more popular in general. If you want to see what all the buzz is about without getting buzzed, crack open an NA beer from your favorite local bottle shop. More Than 100 Years of Nonalcoholic Beer And Why It’s Making a Comeback

How to Get From ‘Zero to One’ Create and Nurture Original Business Ideas

originality even led Mark Twain to once say “There is no such thing as a new idea. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope.”

“What important truth do very few people agree with you on?”

That’s entrepreneur and author Peter Thiel’s favorite interview question. To Thiel, a person’s answer to that question provides insight into whether they’ll be able to find success as an entrepreneur. Ideally, if you can answer with something like “Most people believe in X, but the truth is the opposite of X,” then you’re well on your way from zero to one and creating an original business idea. That’s what Thiel explores in his book “Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future.” “Zero to One” is all about coming up with and nurturing unique ideas, which are the foundation of game-changing businesses. As a co-founder and investor in a number of companies that have changed the business landscape, Thiel has some authority on this subject. He co-founded Cofinity (which later became PayPal) and invested in startups like Facebook, SpaceX, Lyft, and Airbnb whose ideas were so novel at the start that they were perceived as risky by many. Throughout the book, Thiel shares his wealth of knowledge garnered from a long, successful career of recognizing and acting on original ideas. According to him, and anyone else who has ever tried creating something wholly unique, developing an original idea is no easy task. The difficulty of

But in “Zero to One,” Thiel proves that coming up with original ideas is possible, and he provides readers with helpful tips and lessons for how to get there. One such lesson: Stop trying to be the next Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg because “if you’re copying these guys, you aren’t learning from them.” Thiel uses his favorite interview question to try to identify original thinkers. These are the people who take their businesses from zero to

one because they looked at past successes and thought, “I can do it differently, and I can do it better.” If you want to be in that group, then reading Thiel’s advice in “Zero to One” is a great place to start.

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Jeremy Wyatt [email protected] HarrisonLawGroup.com (410) 832-0000

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Inside This Edition

1. 2. 3.

There’s Incredible Power Hidden Within Books

The Value of Relationships With Past Clients

Nonalcoholic Beer, Then and Now ‘Zero to One’: A Book Review

4.

How to Craft the Perfect Follow-Up Email

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Level With Me: Inaccurate Plans and Specifications? Who Is Really Liable?

Craft the Perfect Follow-Up Email The (Not So) Secret Recipe

When it comes to securing leads, the follow-up email is hard to beat. One study found that a 12% response rate from two emails increases to 15%–16% with a third email. If you play your cards right, the success of your email marketing could, in large part, depend on your follow-up emails. So, how do you create ones that maximize positive responses from leads? Know your goals. You should have a clear idea of what you want to accomplish with your email campaign. Which metrics are most important to you? The number of times recipients open your follow- up email? That they click a link in the text? That they reply? Maybe tracking total conversions resulting from follow-up emails is important to you. Whatever the case, knowing your goals is a good first step.

Find the ideal number of follow-ups. Obviously, not following up at all is a recipe for abandoning several potential leads. However, sending too many follow-ups can leave potential leads annoyed and unwilling to look into your business. According to several studies, the ideal number of follow-up emails is no less than three, but no more than seven. Time your follow-ups right. You don’t want to space your emails so far apart that leads forget about you, but you also don’t want to spam their email box so often that they get annoyed. A good rule of thumb is to wait at least 48 hours before sending a follow-up email after the initial email. After that, wait 2–4 days before sending another. Craft appealing content. This point is worth its own article, but briefly put, your follow- up email content is incredibly important. Create a subject line that will grab readers’ attention. Then, be polite, direct, friendly, and personable in each email. As you send out more follow-ups, become more specific about the deal you’re offering and make it more enticing. Above all, you should constantly tweak your follow-up content and overall strategy as you gain new information. As you continue to create follow-up emails, you’ll learn what works best.

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Level With

Me By JeremyWyatt

Inaccurate Plans and Specifications? Who Is Really Liable?

experience and the cases I’ve worked on, the answer tends to be a no.

In construction, any project of any size requires plans and specifications. You don’t build without plans. The plans are drawn up by project engineers, then delivered to the project manager, who works with the general contractor (this is the person who hires other contractors). After all of that takes place, the project begins and each contractor does their part. This seems like a fairly straightforward sequence of events, but as many contractors know, it’s rarely that simple. In recent months, I’ve been working on cases dealing with issues related to the plans or specifications of the project. These issues include inaccuracies and errors that may not be identified until a contractor is physically working on that part of the project. Even then, it might not be noticed. One question many contractors have is: If there is an issue with the design of the project — the plan is incorrect or the specs are off — am I liable? Is it my fault?

The Spearin Doctrine

Why? A large part of it comes down to the Spearin Doctrine. This doctrine is based on a 100-year-old U.S. Supreme Court case: United States v. Spearin . It deals with implied warranties as they related to the plans and specification delivered to the general contractor and then contractors. If you’re a contractor, you are entitled to rely on the plans and specs as they are delivered to you. If you follow them to the letter, your work is legally acceptable. By handing the plans and specs to the general contractor and contractors, the owner of the project has made an implied warranty that those plans are correct. In many cases, the plans and specs contain an error. When someone spots it, this can trigger delays and additional costs throughout the scope of the project. People need to get paid. What the owner cannot do is tell the contractors that they are responsible for any errors or delays.

The answer is no.

Or in most cases, it will be no. Any construction- related case will have unique attributes, but from my

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... continued from Front

The bottom line is that many contractors lose income because they believe they are required to fix these types of issues for project owners. They also are led to believe they must absorb any cost related to plan errors during construction.

The Blame Game

However, it’s not uncommon for project owners to place blame on contractors in an effort to reduce their own costs and delays on the project. But the Spearin Doctrine provides protection in these cases, and as a contractor, you may be in a position to recover costs when an issue or error related to the plans and specs is discovered. You do not have to absorb those costs. What happens if you work on a project only for an issue or defect to be discovered months or years later? This has happened. The owner of the project may come back to you and call you out on your warranty (many contractors offer standard 1-, 5-, or 10-year warranties on their work). The owner wants you to fix the work and deal with the cost of fixing it.

The truth is the complete opposite. In many instances, it’s the contractor who should be paid.

Have questions or issues related to a recent project? Do you believe your rights have been infringed upon? You can reach me at 410-842-0145

or by email at JWyatt@ HarrisonLawGroup.com. I’m happy to discuss any issues you may have experienced and help you determine your best next steps.

Know Your Rights

You may not be responsible for the fix. If the project is built correctly, according to the plans and specs (of course, this must be verified) — then it’s not on you to fix it.

-Jeremy Wyatt

[email protected]

www.HarrisonLawGroup.com

(410) 832-0000