welcome to the bd blog

That past couple of months have been very busy for us in part as a result of our attendance at the International Builder’s Show in Orlando and also because people in the industry are looking to put their best virtual foot forward and have liked what they have seen and heard about us.  So if you want to know what we’ve been up to, feel free to read on!

Several custom websites have launched in the past 45 days that we are very excited about!

Sheldon Robinson Custom Homes- www.TheCustomBuilder.com
A Dallas, Texas builder who needed a revamp of an existing site to bring forth the personality and exquisite detail of the custom homes they build.

Forty West Builders - www.FortyWest.com
We created a new logo and identity for Maryland based builder, Forty West in addition to their website to help them commemorate 30 years of building excellence!

John Paul Development - www.JohnPaulDevelopment.com
Connecticut builder, John Paul needed an online presence and a new logo to help brand his custom country homes and luxury townhouses online.

Nature Walk - www.DiscoverNatureWalk.com
A brand-new website for a fabulous brand-new community located in Vance, Alabama with affordable craftsman-style homes in a premium location next to a 40 acre par

Health Home by H&S Covenant Homes - www.KCHealthHome.com
Kansas City’s first-ever Clean Air Home now has a website to help kick off their grand opening during the KCHBA 2008 Spring Homes Tour.

In addition to some great website launches, we’ve been busy building relationships with new clients and preparing to launch the next round of websites as they near completion. We’ve been very busy not only with our Midwest clients but also nationwide. From website updates to building them from scratch here’s a sneak peek at some of the projects we have in the works:

Dallas, Texas: Dritschler Homes, Reata Homes, Choice Homes and most recently, American Legend Homes, Xite Homes and Grand Homes.

Fresno, California:  De Young Properties, Brentwood Homes

Kansas City: Sharp Homes, Daybreak Ridge, RidgeTree, AZ Custom Homes

Did we mention we’ve been busy?  Check our site often for a look at each of these sites as they launch. We’re so excited about the projects we are working on, we can’t wait to share them with you!

Since our business is focused on the real estate industry, it is very important to us to stay on top of what’s happening in the housing market. It’s often a point of discussion when we talk to various clients throughout the day. From a local perspective, we have been plagued by negative press for well over a year now-which is not only frustrating to us, but also to several of the area builders, developers and realtors we work with. It was refreshing to see our local newspaper, The Kansas City Star, dedicate an entire page and a half on Sunday to a round table discussion on the state of real estate in the Kansas City area. [Click here to view the article]

Granted, while it may not be all blue skies and fluffy white clouds in the local housing market, it’s certainly not gloom and doom either. Putting local market information and statistics out for the public to digest is the first step towards improving and balancing local perception. I’ve become used to seeing Kansas City lumped into what I think of as the “National Negative Housing News” category when it comes to media reports on television and in print. What the media has failed to do is identify the specific areas that are experiencing difficulty and separate the good markets from the bad. That’s what makes it twice as nice to see one local media outlet finally starting to take steps toward a more positive and proactive local view. Seeing and hearing positive housing news is a most welcome change.

“The secret of joy in work is contained in one word - excellence.
To know how to do something well is to enjoy it.” Pearl S. Buck

How many people can honestly say they look forward to going to work in the morning? (My hand is raised…me me me!) A day in the life of the members of the BD Team typically begins with me attempting to make a decent pot of coffee. Usually I do ok, but I’m a little nervous since my recent snafu in making a pot of super strong coffee (gourmet dark roast apparently doesn’t require quite as many scoops as the light stuff…). It was so strong apparently Spencer and Chad had to secretly water theirs down…Chad fessed up later. I had mine so masked with cream and sugar that it didn’t phase me a bit-until the caffiene hit me later. But I digress…there’s something comforting about starting out the day with that cup of coffee- the aroma wafting down the hall, taking the first sip and savoring the warmth especially in the cold of a kansas city winter. The familiarity of the routine is a nice counter to the not-so-routine days we usually have. As the coffee brews, all the members of the BD team roll into the office and we prepare to start the day after our morning production meetings, going over basketball games (big KU/K-State rivalry in our office!) and anything else interesting that might have happened since we last saw each other.

Every day seems to be different from the last which is great in our business since it keeps work from getting stale. There’s always something to do and while there are similarities on some levels, for the most part every task has it’s own unique slant. For instance this morning a new client came by and dropped of a very large decorative ceramic plate. They wanted to see what we thought of the colors and if that might work as a starting point for the colors their website will be based on. We were grateful that this particular client has exquisite taste and that the colors will look spectacular on her site- but what amazed us the most was that this client went out of their way to make sure that plate got to us so we could see it firsthand. That same client remarked that she was so excited to be working with us (the feeling is mutual!) which of course made us happy. We like it when people like us, it makes work so much more fun that way. And of course, when work is fun, we tend to look forward to coming to work everyday. Or at least I do…

Taking e-mail for granted is the norm… right? But what happens when it doesn’t work? Funny to think how we have grown to be so dependent on something that should be so simple and easy. Of course anything that breaks suddenly isn’t so easy anymore- whether it’s your dishwasher, your car or your e-mail. It makes you look at it in completely different light and wonder- now how do I fix it? It’s a fact that technology will occasionally break. Every so often, your e-mail might act up. But if you tend to look on the brighter side of life (which we do), you’ll rest easy knowing that despite the inconvenience of having technology break- there’s someone ready, willing and able to take care of it and fix it as quickly as is humanly possible. At Builder Designs, giving you peace of mind is part of what we do and part of what you should take for granted when you do business with us. We’re here when you need us and we’ll do everything we can to make sure you’re back up and running should something break. Ideally the technology you use won’t break- but if it does, you can count on us to help make it better!

The highlight of February was being able to participate in the 2008 International Builder’s Show in Orlando, Florida. Getting to meet so many potential new clients was definitely a thrill and the climate change between Kansas City (snow) and Orlando (sun) was a welcome change from what we’re used to. While it took a lot of hard work to prepare for the show, we managed to survive the long days and come out of it with a lot of great new clients whom we are looking forward to working with in the very near future. It was our first year in the trade show arena and hopefully the first of many to come. We’re used to doing a lot of work with people all over the US and the most fun I personally had was being able to actually meet clients in person whom I had only worked with on the phone or online. Always good to put a face with a name and even better to meet new people we can add to our growing client list!

Chip and Spencer did a great job getting the banners and everything set up in our booth while I kicked back, relaxed and took pictures. If you want to visit our virtual booth on the 2008 International Builder’s Show website click on this link: http://www.buildersshow.com/Exhibitors/VBooth.aspx?id=15362