This summer on the SuretyBonds.com blog, we’re spotlighting small businesses that found the bonds they needed with SuretyBonds.com. The SuretyBonds.com Small Business Spotlight series will focus on small businesses across industries and the best practices that have helped them succeed.
With over 20 years of carpentry experience, John McNulty turned a skill he learned from his family into a successful company. McNulty owns RedBear Remodeling in Munster, Indiana. RedBear Remodeling provides a wide range of home improvement services to homeowners in the Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana region. While working in home improvement rather than commercial contracting, RedBear Remodeling has found success by establishing strong relationships with its customers.
As a homeowner, hiring a contractor for remodeling or other services can be a difficult process. There is no “try before you buy” option for contractors, which makes hiring that much harder. This leads many customers to rely on the recommendations of friends, family members and online research when they’re deciding who to trust to work on their home.
McNulty has found that forming relationships with the homeowners his company works with is a crucial part of effectively running his business. Showing up to meetings in a professional manner and finding common ground with customers helps McNulty form connections that continually propel RedBear Remodeling forward. McNulty also ensures that those he hires to work alongside him have the skills to foster customer relationships. This practice sets the company up for positive reviews and referrals from former clients.
“Developing a relationship [with the customer] gives you that much more of a chance to get the job,” says McNulty.
When it comes down to the mechanics of running RedBear Remodeling, McNulty utilizes different online tools for processes that are often tricky for small business owners. To form the LLC for the company, McNulty used LegalZoom. When RedBear Remodeling needed an Indiana contractor bond to get licensed, SuretyBonds.com provided the bond instantly, all he had to do was wait for his local licensing office to reopen amid COVID-19 precautions.
Moving forward with RedBear Remodeling, McNulty hopes to continue to grow as a prominent business in the Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana community.