Archive for September 2012
- Sep
- 20
Posted on September 20, 2012 by Nora DePalma
With the number of aging homeowners on the rise and multigenerational households becoming commonplace, American Standard Brands has established an online resource that showcases a number of safe and accessible product solutions designed to provide convenience for all lifestyles and life stages.
The website, http://www.americanstandard.com/safe-and-accessible, offers a complete range of home design and independent living solutions — from walk-in bathtubs, zero threshold showers and wheelchair-accessible lavatories — as well as resources from the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) Certified Aging in Place Specialists (CAPS) Program.
For more information on this new resource, view the complete press release for the Safe and Accessible Bathroom website or email us.
- Sep
- 19
Posted on September 19, 2012 by Nora DePalma
Home improvement is headed south, according to the 2012 Voice of the Consumer Report™, from Money Pit Media. This new report, featuring infographics created by O’Reilly-DePalma, reveals the latest in national home improvement trends and interests as homeowners strive to make the most of their precious property investments.
The home improvement statistics in the Voice of the Consumer are garnered from year-round audience interaction with The Money Pit syndicated home improvement radio show, MoneyPit.com, and The Money Pit’s presence on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. Since 2003, Money Pit Media has categorized and tracked more than 19,000 consumer home improvement questions received by phone, email and social media.
2012 Money Pit Media Voice of the Consumer Report from Tom Kraeutler
The annual results identify consumers’ priorities for projects and products, allowing The Money Pit cohosts Tom Kraeutler and Leslie Segrete to anticipate content interests and advertisers to deliver home improvement solutions to target customers. “We’re certainly seeing more consumers ask about bigger projects, especially beyond the basic repair questions, indicating more homeowner activity in remodeling,” said Tom Kraeutler, cohost and president of Money Pit Media.
The comprehensive 2012 Voice of the Consumer Report includes the following findings:
- Home improvement activity is ramping up in the Southeast, supporting other data showing that homes built during the first Sunbelt movement of the 1980s-90s are now in need of upgrades and updates.
- Outdoor living is a nationally leading category for discretionary remodeling investments, with the most project-related questions coming from consumers in the South.
- Multigenerational living is influencing home improvement plans. For instance, while interest in tricked-out garages decreased in 2012, one of the most popular articles on MoneyPit.com tells how to convert a garage to an extra room.
- Interest in mold detection and prevention is on the rise, with the number of queries from the West being 50% higher than the national average.
- Pinterest is the home base for home enthusiasts, emerging as the key driver of website traffic among Money Pit Media’s vibrant social properties.
- Men most often ask “how to do” a project, while women ask “how to fix” a project—which may not be a coincidence.
The complete 2012 Voice of the Consumer Report includes results on top project questions, popular product categories, regional trends, and seasonal home improvement interests and can be downloaded at no cost here: http://www.moneypitmedia.com/voice-of-the-consumer-report.html.
For more details about the Report and opportunities to leverage the full range of Money Pit Media platforms, please contact Warren Banholzer, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing, at 914-633-3555 or [email protected]
- Sep
- 18
Posted on September 18, 2012 by Nora DePalma
Navigating kitchen and bath design choices just became a whole lot easier, thanks to two new interactive “brochures” from American Standard Brands: the JADO/Porcher Design Guide and American Standard Designer’s Portfolio.
In the new design guides, users can click on product images and other hot links to easily access product information and specifications.
Created to improve the showroom selling experience for designers, dealers, and customers alike, the brochures allow designers to walk customers through the product showroom with a mobile device such as a tablet or iPad displaying the digital catalog. Users can connect to informative online videos — that play directly within the brochure — to guide them through features and benefits of particular product lines.
For more information on these new resources, view the complete press release for the digital design guides or email us.
- Sep
- 13
Posted on September 13, 2012 by Nora DePalma
Home improvement blogger Ron Hazelton recently put the ‘No Tools’ Toilet from American Standard to the test. Initially skeptical about the idea, Ron recorded his first installation of the toilet and found it easy to install using nothing more than what came in the box (although he did recommend an optional CD player as a helpful tool).
View Ron’s helpful instructional video about installing the No Tools Toilet over at his blog or visit www.americanstandard-us.comto learn more about the new line of easy to install toilets.
- Sep
- 12
Posted on September 12, 2012 by Nora DePalma
Offering elegant details and clean, transitional lines, the new Chapeau pedestal lavatory from Porcher beautifully coordinates with a wide range of bathroom decors.
The white 24-inch pedestal lavatory completes the Chapeau suite, including the Chapeau LXP line of luxury performance toilets, this basin has a beveled design that translates to the base of the pedestal and the toilet footprint. Available separately as a wall-hung option, or with a 36-inch Right Height pedestal for increased comfort and ease of use, the Chapeau lavatory offers the ultimate in design flexibility.
For more information on the new pedestal sink, view the complete press release for the Porcher Chapeau pedestal lavatory or email us.
- Sep
- 12
Posted on September 12, 2012 by Leslie Hart
The 2013 Coverings Trade Show will be held at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, GA.
Coverings, the ultimate tile + stone experience, has named O’Reilly-DePalma its agency of record for its next annual gathering, to be held April 29 – May 2, 2013, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. O’Reilly-DePalma will be responsible for all public relations efforts on behalf of the show, including pre-show, post-show and onsite media coverage; a VIP Press Tour for selected shelter and architectural media; and the creation of a publicity planner and press kit.
“We are delighted to welcome the O’Reilly-DePalma team, as we work to make North America’s largest tile and stone exposition an even bigger success in 2013, our first time ever in Atlanta,” says Elena Grant, Vice President of Marketing for National Trade Productions. NTP manages the entire event for Coverings, including registration, sales, marketing, PR, the show floor and special events.
Coverings 2012, held this past April in Orlando, saw attendance rise 19 percent over the previous year to more than 22,000 distributors, retailers, architects and designers, contractors, installers and fabricators.
O’Reilly/DePalma Principal Nora DePalma joins the KB Tribe Chat “Tweet-Up” at the 2012 Coverings Show.
The number of exhibitors also increased by 24 percent, while exhibit square footage was up 14 percent.
The O’Reilly-DePalma team is led by building products industry veterans Nora DePalma and Leslie Hart, each of whom bring more than 25 years of marketing and communications experience to the show.
For more information on Coverings 2013, contact Nora DePalma at 770.772.4726; nora.depalma@oreilly-depalma.com; or Leslie Hart at 212.989.4629; leslie.hart@oreilly-depalma.com. Or follow the Coverings blog, Pinterest page, Facebook page, Twitter feed or Linked In group.
- Sep
- 11
Posted on September 11, 2012 by Nora DePalma
Beginning this month, six school districts in New Jersey will offer a new career and technical education (CTE) program designed to teach high school students about the attributes and benefits of green buildings and develop potential career paths to support the building industry.
The new sustainability curriculum will allow students to use their own schools as teaching tools as they learn to identify areas where natural resources are being wasted and then create solutions to the problems they find.
The Green Program of Study for Sustainable Design, Construction, and Energy was created by the Green Education Foundation thanks to a generous grant from American Standard.
Jay Gould, CEO of American Standard commented, “American Standard is proud to support the schools in our home state of New Jersey with green building curriculum as they continue to lead the charge in sustainability education and green jobs training. As a New Jersey employer, we are delighted to raise the standard on educating our future generation of sustainable-focused professionals.”
New Jersey’s Green Program of Study for Sustainable Design, Construction, and Energy is a career and technical education (CTE) program developed by multiple statewide partners to ensure graduates have the 21st Century skills necessary to succeed in the emerging green economy.
