News from the…Front Lines

Well here we are after our first round of renewals for the AUWC. Member renewals were right around 80%, and the entire BOD is very pleased with that number. We know there are things we could and should have done better in year one, and have already taken steps to iron out the wrinkles as we forge ahead. We have also added almost 20 new members since May.

Thanks to all of you who have renewed your membership, we appreciate your trust and confidence in us.

Many of the new members have heard about us from our "carpet bombing" of flyers campaign. We had 10,000 full color flyers printed, and our Associate Member suppliers graciously agreed to put one in all their outgoing packages. We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to all of the suppliers who agreed to help the AUWC by doing this, as there has already been a great return on investment with this program. As a side note to those same suppliers, if you're running low, please call me at 414-328-0195 and I'll ship you out some more.

At our March B.O.D. meeting, it was offered and passed that the AUWC would go to once per year registration renewal, that being June 1st of every year. This helps streamline the process for the Secretary, and makes it easier for members to know when their dues are coming up.

Along with our first ever renewal notices, the AUWC included a survey of members, so we could gauge their opinions as to what we are doing right, and what we could do better.

The overall consensus of AUWC members is that our Member's Only Forum is the place to go for answers to your questions on just about anything. Almost every survey that came back listed the Forum as the top AUWC benefit. With well over 11,000 posts in the forum already, you can see why.

Here are a few quotes from the member survey question, "What do you value most about AUWC Membership?

Barry Schmick, BMA Window Cleaning "Membership enthusiasm, B.O.D. participation on the forum."

Marc King, Marc's On the Glass "The knowledge base, the friendly encouragement, the chance to give back."

Mike Hatcher, Mike's Window Magic "Belonging to an organization that cares about the little guy."

Ruben V. Noceda, LaVista Window Washing Service "Great information on the Forum."

Bill McDonald, Crystal Clean Professional Window Service "Forum - access to professionals who can help solve problems."

Duncan Hill, DIEGO Window Clarity Professionals "The online Forum, because it's AWESOME!"

Tony Evans, A New View Window Cleaning "The free exchange of thoughts on everything from pricing to technique."

Mark Rice, M & P Window Washing, LLP "The listing on the AUWC Website."

Those are just some of the responses we received. While we had some definite growing pains in our first full year, I honestly believe that the AUWC is on a path to some really great things for this industry. Here's a few things in the works;

We had a HUGE Regional event in San Antonio, Texas on October 20th. BOD member Paul Gaston put together a Texas size regional, with a lot of AUWC member and non-member companies attending. The Legend himself, Jim Willingham from JRC and Shawn Gavin from Reach Higher Ground were there, and there were lots of free give away items from our great Associate Members and other suppliers. Thanks to Paul for doing all the heavy lifting for this event, and a big thank you to all the companies who donated items for door prizes.

If you want to help put on a future AUWC Regional, please contact any AUWC board member and we'll help get you set up. These don't have to be giant events, just a place for local window cleaners to hang out for a day and discuss the tricks of the trade.

We are laying the groundwork for an OSHA Alliance program. This co-operative effort between the AUWC and OSHA is going to be a huge undertaking, requiring a 3 year commitment from the AUWC, and the people running the OSHA Alliance program, but the benefits to the association and our members are potentially off the charts. This may end up being a joint AUWC/IWCA/OSHA venture.

We have implemented something pretty cool for our Associate members as well. Not to knock any other association, but it seems they are always looking for "swag" from the suppliers, manufacturers, and sales reps out there. Now, I will be the first to admit I love a well stocked goody bag, but the AUWC is going at this, as with everything else, a bit differently. We have started featuring our Associate Members on our web page, our Forum, and our search directory page, for free. As a thank you to the Associate Members, who believe in what we are building here, we're not going to them with our hands out for prizes every month -- we're giving back to them, with increased exposure for their companies.

Many of our members, in their surveys, mentioned that they would like to see some sort of group rates for life, health, and or liability insurance. I will say that I am looking into it, but we will need at least double the membership numbers we have now before we can be considered to have any real buying power. But we do hear you, and we will not let this just slip away. When the situation and time are right, we will hopefully be able to implement something.

We have Gary Mauer to thank once again for helping the AUWC formulate and publish an official position paper on the fabricating debris problem on today's tempered and heat strengthened glass. It is available for download at www.auwc.org. The AUWC was proud to recognize Gary for this and all of his other contributions to the industry at the Window Cleaning Network Picnic in July in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. This truly is the GO TO event of the summer, every year. Plan your 2008 last weekend in July trip now.

There is too much glass out there that is easily scratched these days. We suggest waivers for all window cleaning that requires a blade, whether it is construction cleaning or not. Educating clients is our best hope for protecting ourselves, and the AUWC is right out in front on this issue.

Gary also helped set up a meeting room at the Window Cleaning Network Picnic this year. We held our first official annual membership meeting and came away with a renewed sense of purpose and some great ideas from our members.

The AUWC Board of Directors has also passed by voice vote that the annual membership meeting will be held yearly in conjunction with the Window Cleaning Network Picnic. The central location of Wisconsin gives the most members the best chance to attend, and voice their opinions on the direction of the AUWC. We will, of course, continue to have our regular B.O.D. meetings via conference call, and are going to be posting agendas prior to these meetings. Again, every member is encouraged to attend these teleconferences.

We are building something great here, but in order for this to realize its full potential, we need member involvement. And I am not talking only about money. I am talking about helping others, serving on a committee, running a regional, sharing files for download in the member only area of the web site, and interacting on the forum. This can become the greatest association this industry has ever seen. But that's only going to happen if YOU help.

Stay Safe & Work Smart.