Standing Out in Ohio Podcast
Listen and learn how some stand out from competition and gain market share. Information helpful to agents and buyers. Conversations with professionals and entrepreneurs regarding their stories and what makes their companies and themselves stand out and gain competitive advantages. Listen to stories from Ohio real estate agents and related businesses to help you know how to improve and who to consider using for yourself or friends. Created by the owners of a highly rated home inspection company in Ohio and the Winners of Best Home Inspection Company in the Midwest https://homeinspectionsinohio.com/
Standing Out in Ohio Podcast
The Three-Peat: Habitation Investigation Wins Best in Midwest Again
Award-winning excellence doesn't happen by accident. After receiving the news that Habitation Investigation had earned the prestigious "Best in the Midwest" award for the third consecutive year, we decided to peel back the curtain and share what makes our home inspection company different from the competition.
This episode explores the factors that contribute to our continued success, from our customer-first approach to our ethical business practices. With over 1,700 Google reviews and a stellar 4.9-star rating, we've built a reputation on clear communication, thorough inspections, and reports that set the standard for the industry. Our team shares how we've grown from our humble beginnings in 2002 to become one of Ohio's premier inspection companies, expanding our services based directly on client requests rather than arbitrary business decisions.
We tackle a particularly important topic for homeowners: privacy protection. Unlike many inspection companies that generate revenue by selling client information to third parties, we maintain strict privacy standards. Our single partnership with ADT is completely optional for clients and directs benefits to charities rather than our bottom line. We also discuss the value of maintenance inspections every 3-5 years and regular radon testing—services that can save homeowners thousands by catching small issues before they become expensive problems.
What truly sets an inspection company apart isn't fancy technology or marketing gimmicks—it's having inspectors who genuinely care about their clients and communicate clearly without fear-mongering. Whether you're a homeowner, real estate professional, or aspiring entrepreneur, this episode offers valuable insights into building a service business based on integrity, customer care, and consistent quality. Ready to learn what makes a home inspection company worthy of multiple industry awards? Listen now and discover how excellence becomes a habit.
To learn more about Habitation Investigation, the Three-time Winner of the Best Home Inspection Company in the Midwest Plus the Winner of Consumer Choice Award for Columbus Ohio visit Home Inspection Columbus Ohio - Habitation Investigation (homeinspectionsinohio.com)
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Welcome to the Standing Out in Ohio podcast, where we discuss topics, upcoming events, news and predictions with real estate professionals and entrepreneurs. Listen and learn what makes their companies and themselves stand out and gain advantages over the competition and gain market share. Subscribe for the latest news and discussion on what it takes to stand out from the crowd. Now here's your host, jim.
Speaker 2:Hey everybody, Welcome to the Standing Out and Out podcast. This is Jim, and with me, of course, is Laura, the office goddess.
Speaker 3:Hello everyone.
Speaker 2:So we got some good news to announce, but you know what? First, let's listen to this.
Speaker 4:Habitation investigation is the way to go for a home inspection in Ohio. Trusted licensed home inspectors for your needs. From radon to mold to warranties For a great home inspection, you really can't go wrong. All right, laura.
Speaker 2:So good news. It's always good to know that you get some verification from some third party that you're doing things.
Speaker 4:Right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you're doing things well, correct and it's appreciated. So what was it that we won a couple months ago?
Speaker 3:We won the Consumer's Choice Award.
Speaker 2:When did they tell us that Was that October?
Speaker 3:At the end of the year, november, yeah, something like that.
Speaker 2:So we won for the category of home inspections For the Columbus market For 2025. Yes, which is nice, very nice. So we got that. But we got something, were we told, maybe two weeks ago, maybe a month ago, yeah, something like that. So what was that?
Speaker 3:So we won best in the Midwest third time in a row. So the first year we won was for 22. The second was for 23, 24. And this one is for 25, 26.
Speaker 2:So they kind of started combining the years a little bit. Maybe it's like half this year, half another year, yeah.
Speaker 3:I don't know, that's just so. We won third time in a row. So, they go off. How did?
Speaker 2:they determine this.
Speaker 3:So the Consumer's Choice Award uses AI to go through all of the websites for that area with whatever company they're looking for. So in our case it was home inspection. So they look for services, they look for reviews, they look for longevity and all of that stuff, which is very similar to what the best in the Midwest did too.
Speaker 2:Okay, so we get lots of reviews. That's for sure. Right? I'm looking right now. Right now it says we have 1,726 Google reviews and we have a 4.9, which is good. That's good. A lot of companies. If you get four or five, you're thought of being pretty decent. But yeah, so that is good. I like when they take pictures pictures they took a car or check it out.
Speaker 3:Check it out the furnace, the the fire gas fireplace?
Speaker 2:yep, and we definitely have. You know our systems to make some down. Um, so what? What do you think is really contributor? Are being able to win this three years in a row, or even at all? It it's not. I mean, we've been around since 2002. You came aboard like 2007 because I had no time, because I was still working third shift. You were still working third shift, third shift got a factory which sucks ass. But if anybody ever, if you're trying to get your real estate career or home inspection going and you're working third shift, it's possible, but it is going to really, yeah, you're going to be very seat deprived and not be the I don't know your happy, normal self. You're going to be really tired and worn out. But we did that. I worked third shift and then during the day I did the inspections, marketing report writing, everything goes along with that. But some of the things we've done is I know we've always constantly made improvements as needs come up. You want to describe how that kind of happens. So I think there's a couple things.
Speaker 3:You want to describe how that kind of happens. So I think there's a couple things. First of all, most of the services that we offer now have all been because we've had clients that have said we need help Can you figure out how to do this for us? And so we have added a lot because of client requests, and so we're probably one of the few legitimate one-stop shops in the state. Yeah, our inspectors this isn't just a let's go to work and collect a paycheck. Our inspectors genuinely care about the clients. They care about educating them, about doing a good job, about teaching them about their house, and it's you know, very matter of fact, how they talk to them. They don't try to, you know, scare them or whatever they just here's the information. You do with it what you will.
Speaker 2:And then and that's important to note that we're not there to Fear monger, yeah, to fear monger. Make a mountain out of a molehill of an issue, because every house has issues, brand new ones especially, have issues which seemed. I'm still amazed how it surprises people that the house is not going to be perfect if it's brand new or it's still built by people and it's still built by people and and materials sometimes just break.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I can't remember what it was, I think it was like five percent of the GFCI outlets fail Brand new, they're not working right, so they all need tested. Yeah, but we always, if there's something that pops up like oh, that was like. My first thought is report. There's something that's confusing to the home buyer or the agent. I'm going to look at that comment and see if it can be clarified a little bit better. So at this point we don't get too many questions about the report.
Speaker 4:It's very it's.
Speaker 2:It's it's very clear. I like how it's organized organized we we used to get lots of compliments about the organization of the report because it was I don't know.
Speaker 3:I think now everybody's used to our report is organized and how we have it, because we've been doing it so long that they just kind of expect it yes, I think it's actually to the point where, if they see a report that's not ours, it's confusing because most people have worked with ours for so long and they know how clear and concise it is that other reports just don't have the same quality.
Speaker 2:Yep, and there's always a summary report with it, yep, so I'm looking at our reviews. We have one bad review. It was the last month or so maybe and you got to take it with a grain of salt, but here I'll just read it. Yeah, it says super impressed with the extent of the whole inspection and the process that Bobby Bobby Joe that's one of our inspectors did on her work and this rate is not to reflect her work at all work and this rate is not to reflect her work at all. However, the company and it says, after charging over 500, sells your information to other companies for security upgrades to your new home, and it goes on. If I want some of the contact for certainly server, they'll do it on them on their own behalf. They do not appreciate unsolicited call, email, the text messages because they sold my information off to other businesses. Not true, not true. We do not sell this stuff. There are companies and we know these companies. They will give away the homebuyer's information.
Speaker 3:For discounts on their scheduler For discounts on their scheduling system.
Speaker 2:yes, so they get paid in other ways. They may not get cash directly, but some of them do. I know a couple gets money every single time somebody sells a security system. We do not get that money. What we do, Actually, I can put it down here. So here's my response to this one. You want to read it, Laura.
Speaker 3:Thank you for your feedback. We are glad to hear you were impressed with Bobby Joe's work during the home inspection. However, we take your concerns about privacy and unsolicited communications very seriously. We do not sell personal information or exchange it for discounts, like many other home inspection companies do discounts, like many other home inspection companies do. Any benefit from a client getting a security system actually goes towards charities such as Vitamin Angels that supplies nutritional supplements to pregnant women, children and infants. One year we donated enough to help approximately 12,000 infants. We will investigate this matter further, as you should have had a way to opt out. Your experience is important and we appreciate you bringing it to our attention. There are two emails set up in our system because they have a way to opt out.
Speaker 2:It's also an agreement.
Speaker 3:It's also in the agreement that they have that ability to have ADT get their information. That's the only company that in any way, shape or form, is affiliated with us. We do not sell the information and if they do get an alarm system it goes to vitamin angels and to a um, Champaign County animal welfare league. Yes, and it splits between the two of them.
Speaker 2:Yep. So, and I I don't know the exact numbers because I really don't, I'm not we don't get the checks, we don't get the check, I don't know.
Speaker 3:I could potentially you know send an email and say, hey, how many did we do last year, how many this year it's been a couple thousand dollars.
Speaker 2:It's been a couple thousand $4,000 a year maybe go toward those charities. I don't know, it's just a guess. But we do not sell.
Speaker 3:Like we have been very, very, very adamant about that. We do nothing with any of those companies that will actually sell your information. We do not sell your information, it does not go from us and if somebody has gotten something, just so that you know, a real estate transaction is a matter of public record and it does not have to come from the home inspection. Like when we moved to our house, like we built our house, we started to get all kinds of crazy crap and I'm like my God Wow.
Speaker 3:Like people were coming out of the woodwork trying to sell us home insurance and this and that and so on, and we didn't even take a loan out and we didn't know If we took a loan out there's even more documents.
Speaker 2:Because the banks are going hey we have these companies that you might benefit from.
Speaker 3:It's the beauty of the digital age and everything is out there for everyone to see and everyone to find, and it genuinely sucks and I totally agree, because if it were my info, I'd be pissed, which is why we don't do it. We treat our clients how we want to be treated and how we want our information and there are some scheduling systems that are designed mainly for home inspectors, that they give discounts.
Speaker 2:They give discounts. So they give discounts to the home inspection company for using their system. In exchange, that scheduling system, parent company or co-owner of that company, will take that information, the contact information for the clients and market to them information for the clients they sell it and market to them yeah they.
Speaker 3:And then they sell it like they'll they'll do so much marketing, and then it gets sold to another company down the road, which is where the majority of that company's income stream comes from we do not do that.
Speaker 2:We do not do that we are not affiliated with them.
Speaker 3:We have never been affiliated with them and we never will be.
Speaker 2:But the reason I want to show that is like we have legit five-star reviews all over the place and we get some bad ones as well.
Speaker 3:You can't make everybody happy. I mean, this is not.
Speaker 2:It's a good review on the inspection process. They misunderstood as to where, as if, their stuff gets sold. They misunderstood as to where as if their stuff gets sold.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and even in the email that goes out from us, like on our initial email and stuff like that, I say we have a partnership with ADT. Just let them know. If you're not interested, I'm supposed to review there's another picture of Carl.
Speaker 2:Yeah right, Carl, that could be a neat little contest. You get a review of your picture on it.
Speaker 3:Maybe we'll do that.
Speaker 2:There's another one with Carl, but he's not in the picture.
Speaker 3:No, but, but that would still count. That's kind of funny though.
Speaker 2:Yeah, most reviews do not have pictures in them, but the three that have pictures are all Carl's and. Spectre's Carl's very photogenic yeah.
Speaker 3:Well, and let's be realistic.
Speaker 2:I'm not finding any more pictures.
Speaker 3:Carl can talk.
Speaker 2:Yeah, let's talk about all the inspectors. This may be one of the reasons why we won Best in the Midwest again is all our inspectors are very personable. They all have different personalities, of course, right, but they're friendly, they're customer service oriented.
Speaker 3:And they genuinely care, and I think that comes across Like they genuinely care about doing a good job. This isn't just let me come and collect a paycheck. It's another day, another dollar. It's oh cool. What am I going to do today? Who am I going to meet? What am I going to find? How am I going to help my client? And it's all that type of an attitude that makes the clients know that they're actually important of an attitude that makes the clients know that they're actually important.
Speaker 2:Yes, so I think that's about it for this one. We could talk about reviews. There's something popped in my head that we could talk about as well.
Speaker 3:Well, there's one more thing we forgot to mention. What's that? So we do have systems too.
Speaker 2:So when oh, that's from Midwest yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so we have Amy in the office. We have online scheduling because, let's face it, I can't answer the phone 24 seven. If I'm already doing stuff during the day, at nighttime it's getting a bit late. So you can go to our, our website, and you can schedule online. I get notification of that. I can put all that stuff through and get everything approved. We have so many systems in place. We have email that goes out automatically and it goes out to the buyer's agent, the listing agent, going hey, this was just scheduled for this date in this time. Heads up, it's going to be coming your way. So there's a lot of stuff that we have implemented in terms of being able to replicate things and take care of people.
Speaker 2:Well, we're starting to have clients who we did an inspection for years ago contact us and go hey, can you do a maintenance inspection for them Like every at minimum every five years is my first thought. But radon the EPA would recommend you get your house tested for radon every two years. If you have a system every two years, if not every three years.
Speaker 3:We have actually a couple of clients.
Speaker 2:You should pair that up every three years, have your radon level tested and have a home inspection to keep up on your stuff, because we see houses. That's a to keep up on your stuff. We've seen houses that's a very small hole in your roof or the flash or whatever. But because it's dragged on for 10 years now your roof is gone. Now you got some sheath that needs completely replaced when it first got bent. All right, here's a little dab of sealant. Seriously, it can be that little to fix.
Speaker 3:We have a couple of clients actually that have started scheduling regular maintenance inspections with us, like we've got several that are coming through and they're calling us every year or two to have us come out and look at stuff.
Speaker 2:It's customer-served, which is why we won.
Speaker 3:Best Midwest. Best Midwest and the Consumer's Choice.
Speaker 2:Three years in a row Consumer's Choice, the first year we won that. I don't know if they did it previous years or not. They have other services that they did in Columbus. I just don't know about the home inspection. Do not know that. Yeah, I don't know. Know we got a great team and it's it's growing. Yep found we're very picky on our people it's taking a couple years to find somebody which, yeah, we don't have a whole lot of turnover, which is good. A lot of people.
Speaker 3:Some expect me to turn them over so quick they lose every year, every six months to a year. Yeah i't know, I don't know what the issue is, that's something to look into during our mastermind meeting.
Speaker 2:But we are very selective and which is why we won Best of Midwest now three years in a row Yep Consumers Choice Awards and we'll see what the rest of the year holds out for us. All right, thank you, everybody.
Speaker 1:Bye, bye-bye you've been listening to the standing out in ohio podcast. Be sure to subscribe on spotify or google podcast to get new, fresh episodes. For more, please follow us on instagram, twitter and facebook, or visit the website of the best ohio home inspection company at home inspections inohiocom or jimtrothcom. That's J-I-M-T-R-O-T-H and click on podcast. No-transcript.