Paul Klassen; GM of Pinnacle Group Renovations has developed, and is in the process of patenting a new business initiative aimed at providing custom staging for Homeowners and Realtors alike! StageitSOLD™ is a revolutionary new approach to supporting the way Realtors and Homeowners manage the selling and purchasing of residential properties.
This ground-breaking initiative is designed to assist Realtors in closing more sales, creating a marketing niche for their Clients, as well as an aid to Clients in selling their existing home. StageitSOLD™ also aids Clients in purchasing a property with the ‘hidden potential’ to become their ‘Dream Home’.
All of us are familiar with traditional staging; StageitSOLD™ simply takes that process to an entirely new level. The premise is simple; we assist Realtors and Homeowners in two very distinct and unique ways:
For the Selling Realtor… & Client looking to purchase their ideal property:
We help ensure Clients/Buyers don’t walk away from an ideal listing just because the home is dated; perhaps simply needing a new kitchen or possibly a whole-home makeover. We act as a consulting arm to stage the listing in StageitSOLD™ fashion by meeting with both the Realtor and Client at the property of interest. By simply giving us a call; one of our consultants will meet at the property; collaborate on the vision the purchasing Client wishes for the property; we then provide a preliminary renovation proposal on the spot. In many cases in our own experience, the Client purchases a mature property with the intent of a complete renovation update. With the ability to see the hidden potential, the Client has purchased their ideal home; the Selling Realtor has found the ideal property for the Buyer; and our parent company; Pinnacle Group, provides the custom renovation …truly a Win for all parties!
For the Listing Realtor…& Client wishing to sell their home:
We will completely stage an entire estate property that has great ‘bones’ but perhaps has not been updated in years and is stuck in an era with less than fond memories. We will either provide a DVD showing a feature property of what has been done for other homeowners, or we will create a distinctive design in fabulous 3D showing what this property could look like in its transformed glory! We arrange setup on a flat-screen TV at the Open House to show visiting buyers how this home could be transformed. We assist the Listing Realtor in creating a niche for marketing their listings, as well as assist in bringing in a higher price for the selling Client. The Client is able to sell their property based on the 3D transformation; our parent company; Pinnacle Group, has the potential for another renovation; the Listing Realtor has sold the property, and the family selling their home achieves a quicker sale turnaround, not to mention the potential of a higher selling price! Another Win for all parties!
We encourage all Realtors to offer this enhanced marketing opportunity and purchasing flexibility to all their clients. We also encourage all clients looking to list their home or those looking to find their ideal property to ask their Realtor to incorporate this unique and highly effective marketing tool.
StageitSOLD™ has several phases of development, including news on a unique mortgage-staging offering by our friends at BMO™; stay tuned as we unveil additional elements of this exciting initiative!
In stride with full disclosure policy with RECA (Real Estate Council of Alberta); StageitSOLD™ pays a referral fee to the Realtor/Brokerage should the Client choose to renovate their newly purchased property.
There’s a new face around the Pinnacle Group these days! Recently we had a fantastic new member added to our Construction Team; Jonathan Tyrrell has joined us as Site Supervisor!
Jonathan comes to Pinnacle with a bit of background in residential renovations; he started and managed a small renovation company after graduating from the University of Alberta. He ran this business for a few years before he and his wife relocated to Calgary. Since moving to Calgary, he has been employed by Nu-Way Floor Fashions as their Quality Control Coordinator. During this time he proved himself to be a hard and motivated worker – he so impressed his colleagues that his hire with Pinnacle was a direct referral from a previous Nu-Way co-worker! Since joining our Team, Jonathan has shone as an honest, dependable and extremely personable addition; we are thrilled to have him on board with Pinnacle and look forward to an exciting future together!
Luke Boyer
An additional change within the Team is the furthering education of our current Site Assistant, Luke Boyer. Luke has decided to pursue a Journeyman Carpentry ticket at SAIT, and has recently completed his 1st term with an impressive academic record of nothing below 80%! We are very proud of Luke and the effort he has put into pursuing this career; we look forward to the continuation of it in the near future!
There have been some exciting changes around the Pinnacle office recently! Two of our key Team Members have recently changed positions within our company, bringing their involvement in our process to a whole new level!
Barry Johnson, formerly our Production Manager, has taken on a new set of responsibilities to become our Operations Manager! Barry comes from a background heavily involved in customer relations; he was a partner in a retail chain for 10 years before becoming a Service Technician at Morrison Homes. After 6 years with Morrison he joined the Pinnacle Team and has been an integral part ever since! Since joining Pinnacle in 2006, he has been involved in the conception and implementation of numerous processes; as well as daily involvement with staff, clients and trade partners. His honesty, steady character and natural problem solving skills have made him an ideal candidate for upper management. Barry’s new role will see him stepping into the supervision of all areas of the company, and will give him an even greater ability to implement positive changes moving forward.
Jeff Moss, Renovation Consultant
Jeff Moss is moving from his current position of Site Supervisor to become our newest Renovation Consultant, and will be entering the fast-paced world of sales! Jeff formerly owned a residential painting company, and has extensive industry knowledge as well as outstanding charisma with staff and clients alike. After joining Pinnacle in 2008, Jeff immediately began shining as an incredible over-achiever and go-getter. Always going above & beyond to ensure our clients are thrilled with their completed renovation, Jeff has proved himself to be a natural people-person, and is sure to be a perfect fit in the Sales Team! Jeff’s new position will see him involved in fine-tuning our current processes, as well as collaborating to implement positive changes in the future.
Congratulations, Barry and Jeff on your exciting new positions! We look forward to your success in these new roles in the days ahead!
What a spectacular event! Pinnacle’s recent Evening to Remember at Jerome’s Appliance Gallery was a huge success; with 45 guests in attendance, it was a chance for both past revered clients as well as those new to the Pinnacle Family to mix, mingle and enjoy fantastic Hors d’oeuvres prepared by Executive Chef, Gregg Trimming.
Formerly Executive Chef of the Banff Springs Hotel, Gregg is a renowned culinary artist with a dynamic and engaging personality! The evening was filled with delicious appetizers prepared before our eyes; from beef stuffed pastry, to satay chicken with peanut sauce, to amazing mushroom bruschetta! Gregg also shared a ‘trick of the trade’ and held an informal demonstration on the correct method for cutting onions – who knew there was such a thing!
Besides enjoying the food and beverages, guests were also treated to demonstrations of Pinnacle’s new Web Based Software; everyone was in awe of the capabilities of this software and past customers said they would have loved to utilize this software on their projects.
As a climax to the evening, a draw was held for a dinner for 6 at Jerome’s Appliance Gallery, with Gregg preparing custom dishes for the occasion. The fortunate recipients of this fantastic prize were Tim & Elaine Godfrey, who were smiling ear to ear as they were presented with the certificate!
It was an incredible night filled with new connections made within the Pinnacle Community; educating guests about what Pinnacle and Jerome’s have to offer; but above all a fun, relaxed, and entertaining evening!
Over the past few months, Pinnacle Group has attained the services of a Professional Image Consultant, in order to give our staff the understanding and advantage of “Dressing for Success”. Leslie Davies is fun and energetic, with 17 years experience in the executive industry; recently she resigned from her executive position in order to concentrate full-time on Image Consulting.
Leslie’s focus of our first session was to impart the knowledge that conclusions are drawn within seconds of meeting us; the decision to trust us, judgement of our financial status, assumption of our educational level… all of these presumptions are drawn from a single first impression. Shockingly, statistics prove that the words we choose make up only 7% of the message we convey in a first impression. Our body language and tone of voice make up 38%, but how we look is by far the most influential factor at 55%!
Ensuring our first impression is a lasting one includes knowing how to dress for professional settings. Leslie gave us a number of tips to help create a powerful first impression:
Create a “column of colour” – take a similar colour through the centre of your body from head to toe to make you look cleaner, taller & leaner.
Professional clothing is typically in dark, bright or solid colours; navy blue, charcoal, black, pin-stripe, red.
Approachable colours are soft, pastel or muted colours.
Suits & structure pieces (jacket/blazer) are at the highest end of the “power pyramid”. Separates (not matched but complimentary top & bottom) are more approachable.
Fabrics with crisp, fine, texture have the most credibility. Coarse/soft/fluid fabrics are more approachable.
Patterns that are geometric (stripes/blocks) have the most credibility. Fluid patterns (paisley) are more approachable.
A 3rd piece is very important. You always have the option to take a layer off but you can’t put one on if you don’t come prepared. If you have a vest/cardigan/jacket on it can be removed to ‘dress down’.
We have enjoyed gaining a further understanding of how to Dress for Success, and we look forward to additional sessions with Leslie in the future!
Pinnacle will be launching another new initiative the beginning of April, designed to provide visiting guests a chance to view a renovation currently underway! We will be opening up a few homes under construction at varying stages in the renovation process, giving you an opportunity to tour the project! Our knowledgeable Renovation Consultants, as well as a number of our skilled Trade Partners will be on hand to answer your questions.
This mid-construction Tour gives you a chance to see all the newest building technologies, energy efficiency initiatives, and the latest construction methods which are all hidden ‘behind the drywall’ in a typical showhome. We’re opening up these homes for you to see all those trade ‘secrets’ before we close up the walls!
Come join us for a tour of one of our current projects; view before pictures and 3D plans of the renovation changes, enjoy complimentary Tim Horton’s coffee and donuts, and ask your various questions to members of our experienced Team!
Our first tour will be held Saturday April 9th, from 10:00am-3:00pm in Lake Bonavista. For address and directions please call our office at: 403-720-8789. We look forward to seeing you there…!
Pinnacle Group is very excited to announce the launch of a new software program within our company! Our new Web Based Software allows shared documentation between our staff, homeowners, and subcontractors for all aspects of a renovation project; keeping the information literally at everyone’s fingertips!
Accessible via personalized internet log-in, this software allows real-time 24/7 access to contracts, scheduling information, changes and notifications, selections, photos, warranty management, and much more. Each of our subcontractors & homeowners are able to stay involved in all aspects of the production process with streamlined internal documentation sharing. Subcontractors are able to view all schedules simultaneously to avoid potential conflicts, and our Production Manager is able to avoid scheduling the same contractor on multiple concurrent projects.
We are thrilled to see the potential for streamlining our procedures, and look forward to utilizing this software to its full capability!
It’s been a few days since Jim & Penny returned home from their week-long Mexican Riviera Cruise, but their excitement hasn’t waned yet! From excursions of snorkelling, desert dune buggies and the Puerto Vallarta Zip Line, to enjoying top class restaurants and taking in the live entertainment onboard, it was definitely a trip to remember.
The couple flew to Los Angeles to be ready to board the cruise March 5th. From there they sailed to Cabo San Lucas, & Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Each location was unique and exciting, and they had a few hours to explore the various attractions before boarding and setting sail to the next destination.
Jim’s favourite memory of the trip is the Puerto Vallarta Zip Line & Canopy Tour. Transportation to the Zip Line included Speed Boat, Swiss Army Jeeps and the backs of Mules, which gave them a chance to experience the beauty of Mexico’s back country! The Canopy Tour had 14 different stations which included experiences such as a breath-taking 200m Zip Line over an open canyon and rappelling down an enormous rock wall beside a beautiful waterfall; all at an elevation of 2000ft in the lush Sierra Madre Mountains!
Jim & Penny would like to thank Paul & Elaine for their incredible generosity in providing them with the opportunity to experience this trip of a lifetime. They are sincerely honoured to be part of the Pinnacle Trade Team & look forward to many more years of partnership!
Pinnacle Group takes great care in constructing the most comfortable, yet eco-friendly homes possible, which is why we partner with Calgary’s premier Trades and Suppliers, such as Accu-Temp Heating & Cooling Ltd.
Accu-Temp, owned & operated by Nate Burlando, is an HVAC and Air Conditioning specialist, installing all furnaces, ductwork and air conditioning for Pinnacle projects. Continually on the search for improved technologies and products, Accu-Temp installs only the best in their industry. From ultra-high efficient furnaces & humidifiers, to a software program designed to perfectly calculate the ducting required for each individual home, every detail is covered.
Accu-Temp supplies and installs the ultra-high efficient York furnace in many Pinnacle projects; these furnaces are rated as 98% efficient, and are equipped with DC volt variable speed blower motors, which reduce electrical consumption by up to 80%! A high-efficiency furnace provides your home with ideal heating comfort while using less energy than other models. Along with each furnace, Accu-Temp installs user-friendly programmable thermostats which allow the temperature of the home to be set to various levels throughout the day, reducing the need for the furnace to run continuously and heat during the warm parts of the afternoon, or when no one is home. Water saving humidifiers are also installed for Pinnacle’s client family’s; the Honeywell by-pass flow-through high efficiency humidifier uses 35-50% less water than the typical drip style humidifier.
One of the most innovative items utilized by Accu-Temp is a software program that perfectly calculates the necessary heating & cooling requirements for each individual project. The architectural blueprints are loaded into the program, along with the R value of insulation in the walls & attic, the type of windows being installed, and the direction house is facing. The program knows the average daily temperature where the house is located; and based on this and all information entered, calculates the entire heating/cooling requirements; both the size of ductwork required & how many vents are needed for each room. In this way, the heat load & loss are perfectly calculated so the furnace, air conditioning & duct work can be properly sized to fit the house.
From a workmanship perspective; one glance at Accu-Temp’s furnace room says it all! Where many times the furnace room details are forgotten….Accu-Temp truly shows their pride of workmanship. From vertical flues and piping that is installed using a builder’s level, to wiring perfectly strung and attached to control modules, to carefully placed and fastened condensate drain lines…we sometimes think that Nate and his staff learned their trade at Kennedy Space Centre! Suffice it say; when Accu-Temp steps away from a newly installed furnace system, your furnace room may just be a room you bring your friends to…. and admire the masterful workmanship!
Additional to supplying and installing top-of the line products, Accu-Temp also helps Pinnacle’s customer’s quality for the Alberta Energy Rebate program; Pinnacle clients may receive as much as $500.00 back from the government for each of their new furnace purchases.
With so many benefits and attention to the smallest detail, Pinnacle is proud to endorse Accu-Temp as one of our premiere Trade partnerships! www.accu-temp.ca
This time of year elicits excitement & a flurry of activity as builders and renovators across the city finalize their entries for the Sales and Marketing (SAM) Awards. The SAM Awards are often viewed as the Oscars of the building community; understandably a lot of preparation goes into selecting the ‘award-worthy’ entries. Each builder/renovator carefully selects their best projects to showcase their company’s expertise; basements, bathrooms, additions, custom homes… there’s a category for them all.
This year Pinnacle has a number of projects we are especially proud of, and we’re in the final stages of compiling our photographs and project details for admission. Although it’s always an honour to showcase a silver goose as a winner of an award, competition is tight and there are typically numerous applicants in each category. Judges often have a difficult time choosing between the various entries, and to help make their job a little easier, last year an additional piece of information was required for each admission. Based on suggestions from the board of directors, as well as numerous Renomark members, client comments now accompany each renovation entry in order to give a truer reflection of the company in question. The better the customer experience, the more likely they will be to refer and positively review their renovator!
Pinnacle has always maintained referrals as our number one marketing tool; we passionately believe that a satisfied client is the best form of advertising available. We choose to endear our clients to us, and trust that they will refer their friends & family; 95% of them do, and they often even return again themselves!
We will be looking forward to attending the SAM Awards gala in April, and sincerely wish all participants in both the building and renovating entries the best of luck!
Paul Klassen; GM of Pinnacle Group Renovations has developed, and is in the process of patenting a new business initiative aimed at providing custom staging for Homeowners and Realtors alike! StageitSOLD™ is a revolutionary new approach to supporting the way Realtors and Homeowners manage the selling and purchasing of residential properties.
