Author: mwuc14

All Posts by mwuc14

Bristle While You Work: Paint Brush Bristles and Choosing the Right Brush for the Job 1

Tips and Tools

Standing in the paint brush aisle of any store, from big-box retail changes to local hardware shops, can be an overwhelming experience. Brushes made by different companies sit next to each other offering a seemingly never-ending combination of widths, handles, bristle-types, colors, and prices. Unless a mentor or more experienced colleague is nearby, inexperienced painters will often choose the brush that “looks” right for the job and fits into their budget. Exterior painting calls for a wide brush. Interior trim work calls for something a little thinner? Painting racing stripes on an automobile requires something significantly more narrow. Pick one that seems priced reasonably and get to work. Right?

Not even close.

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Anatomy of the Paint Brush: Choosing the Best Brushes for Your Professional Painting 2

Tips and Tools

Long before there were rollers and airbrushes, there was one tool that could be counted on by painters of all types: brushes. Despite the emergence of new tools that can cover a lot of area in a short amount of time, some work will always be best handled by a brush. Even those favoring paint automation and robotics admit that it would be silly to dismiss the technology responsible for the Mona Lisa and the Sistine Chapel! Different paint work requires different tools and despite the best efforts of technologists and scientists, paint brushes will always have a place in our sector.

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Seeing Through the Haze: Haze Meters in the Production Environment Reply

Chemistry Corner

Weekend painters take for granted that there is a difference between color and haze, sheen and gloss. But professional painters know that the final, dried appearance of a coating is determined not simply by choosing a color finish and getting to work. Different hazes and sheen can affect the final appearance and brilliance of a coating in the same way that different light sources and coating thickness can. Like a maestro conducting an orchestra full of instruments, paint chemists must manipulate and control a number of variables down to the molecular level. Not only are chemists responsible for creating the right paints once, but also for stabilizing them in a way that can be repeated over and over in a production environment.

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Tools of the Trade: Comparing Wet Film Thickness Gages for the Professional Painter 1

Additives & Instruments

If you have been painting professionally for very long, you have no doubt come across a wide range of thickness gages. From interchemical gages to dry-film thickness gages, measurement of coating thickness both during and after a job is critical to your success as a professional. But knowing that a variety of different film thickness gages exist doesn’t necessarily mean you know which one is right for you and your paint team.

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How to Use Social Media to Promote Your Painting Business 2

Marketing and Business for Paint Professionals • Tags: , , , , , , , ,

In the last two days, we have discussed the importance of creating and managing an online presence for your painting business. The most important part of your online identity is your website. Most potential clients will seek out your website prior to working with you, so it is important that what they find is a great representation of what you offer.

That said, there are a number of other tools available online that you can use to leverage your brand and reach even more potential clients. The tools below aren’t guaranteed to bring new business on their own, but together they can help establish your expertise and professionalism in a way that separates you from competitors that aren’t putting in the time and energy to cultivate a positive online reputation. The following services are all online, free to setup an account, and are a great way to engage with potential clients, as well as your professional community. As a note, I’ve provided links to help you get started with each service as well – it really is simple!

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Building a Website for your Paint Business: Effective Online Promotion for Professionals Reply

Marketing and Business for Paint Professionals

In our previous post on promoting your paint business online, we discussed online identity in broad terms. Today, we’ll discuss the building of your website, and tomorrow’s focus will be on social media.

Once upon a time, having a professional looking website was expensive and complicated. Now there are a number of free or low cost options that can help you create and maintain a website that features pictures of your work, details your skill set and offerings, and allows visitors to reach you easily. If you don’t know where to start, try WordPress, Microsoft Office 365, or GoDaddy for free or inexpensive and simple to use website options. You should be able to find a website provider for less than $10 a month that provides professional templates and an easy to use website editor so you can easily add content and make changes to the information you publish.

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Is Your Paint Business Online? The Power of Online Presence for Professional Painters 4

Marketing and Business for Paint Professionals

Businesses succeed or fail for a variety of reasons. However, most of those reasons come down to one thing and one thing only: is there enough revenue to allow the business to continue?  And since most businesses generate revenue from paying customers, it stands to reason that in most cases the math is easy to understand:

Enough customers = Success.

Not enough customers = Failure.

While there are outliers and exceptions in different industries, professional paintwork has a fairly standard success model. If you have enough paying clients and jobs then you can build a business. But if you go days or even weeks without work then you are well on your way to being out of business entirely.

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The Importance of Abrasion Testing in the Paint Manufacturing Process 1

Additives & Instruments

“Can you please make sure the paint will hold up to my young son’s enthusiasm?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, he throws the football inside…he rides his skateboard around the house…he is an eight year old boy, so I guess it’s to be expected. But our house always looks ‘lived in,’ and while I’m excited about this new paint in the living room and kitchen, I want to make sure it holds up well.”

The painter knew exactly what his client was talking about, and he was confident that the paint he was using would be more than tough enough to handle whatever a third grader could throw at it. Why was he so confident? Because the paint he was using had been chemically engineered not just for color and gloss, but also for hardness and damage resistance.

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How Thicker Paint Reduces Costs in Professional Painting Reply

Additives & Instruments

“It needs another coat. Don’t you think? Definitely needs another…”

Andrew’s voice trailed off.  He and his partner Edgar were reviewing an interior paint job they thought they had completed. They had painted dark walls with a primer and two coats of beige paint. Andrew trusted his eyes and they were telling him that even with the second coat, the previous color was coming through just enough that he couldn’t overlook it. Edgar knew they would be late for the next job, but his partner was right. They got back to work, added a third coat, and once the paint was dry, both they and their client were satisfied. But did it have to be this way? Was there another way that would have been less time consuming and would have kept them on track for the second job? As it turns out, there was.

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Four Marketing Efforts That Can Help Your Paint Business Stand Out in a Crowd 1

Marketing and Business for Paint Professionals • Tags: , , ,

Running a paint business and marketing your services can be quite a challenge. There are so many details to attend to, not just in finishing jobs, but also in landing new clients and making sure your entire enterprise is headed in the right direction.   But for all the complications in owning and operating a paint business, is there anything you would rather be doing?

Even if your paint business is your dream job, you still must face challenges inherent in all business operations. One of the most difficult issues at hand is distinguishing yourself from the competition in a meaningful way. Sure, you’d like to think that the quality of your work will set you apart from other painters. But that kind of reputation can take time to build up and pay dividends. Here are four ways to enhance your paint business and marketing efforts that have minimal cost but can provide huge dividends.

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