Author: Clive Gillett

Why Your Choice is Powerful

Posted on | by Clive Gillett

It may seem like a minor detail that America’s Preferred Home Warranty (APHW) offers customers the ability to choose their own contractor for covered repairs—maybe something of a bonus. What most people do not realize, however, is the actual amount of power they are giving up without it.

  • CONTROL OVER THE PROCESS
    • You make the appointment to suit your convenience. No waiting on the warranty company to contact their contractor, after which the contractor calls and to set the appointment with you.
    • You choose who you are comfortable with. This matters, because this is someone who will be working around your home and family—it should be someone you trust.
    • You choose how you want your repairs completed. If you see a great deal on a better version of the item you need replaced, you can use your approved claim money toward the upgraded system. That’s buying power!
  • CONTROL OVER YOUR COSTS
    • Once we receive your contractor’s diagnosis, we will give you and your contractor an immediate decision about coverage before any work is done. This allows you to decide how to proceed, and possibly negotiate with your contractor for an upgrade.
    • Replacements are not restricted to a warehouse with discount parts. If, for example, you need a new washer, based on our decision, you can decide what size or brand of machine you use your reimbursement toward.
  • CONTROL HOW REIMBURSEMENTS ARE PROCESSED
    • Pay in full and be reimbursed by check in the mail, or we can pay the contractor over the phone, so you do not have to wait. When your air conditioner is out and you have a humid 95 degrees outside, you want that A/C—pronto. Our payment options allow your contractor to get right to work and get you cooled off!

Choice is paramount, so do not give it up—it could very well make the difference between a bad experience and a good one.

Feel the Breeze, Not the Bank

Posted on | by Clive Gillett

Given the choice to spend or save, I might choose ‘spend’ for something tangible, like a candle or some new tunes. But when it comes to paying the electric bill, it’s ‘save’ all the way… right up until I feel like the humidity is trying to kill me. So, what am I supposed to do when the temperature rises, and my A/C is all that keeps my faux-leather chair from ripping the skin off my legs? Pick up a few penny-pinching ideas, that’s what.

Feel the Breeze, Literally

A ceiling fan or standing fan can make a room feel up to 10 degrees cooler just by moving the air around, and they use a LOT less energy than a central HVAC system. So instead of lowering the temp, try running the fan for a bit.

Keep It Inside

This is the one time your mother would tell you NOT to share, i.e., stop your air-conditioned chill from leaving the house and cooling down the neighborhood. Check all windows for leaks and use caulk or weather stripping to seal holes. If you’re not sure where the leaks might be, your local energy provider likely offers a home energy audit, just take a look at their website.

Clear the Thermostat

If your thermostat is next to a warm appliance or in a beam of sunlight, it’s going to register that extra heat as a reason to get your A/C running again. Make sure it’s located someplace where the temperature won’t fluctuate due to its surroundings.

Keep It Green,
But Not Greenhouse

Sunshine beaming into your windows has kind of a greenhouse effect. Keeping your shades drawn or lowered during the day can help keep your home cooler without having to lower the temperature of the thermostat.

Raise It Up

Professionals in the HVAC industry state that keeping your A/C on a low temperature all day forces it to keep kicking on for shorter spells. Set the temperature higher while you’re away, and also at night when the sun isn’t out. Reduce it back to your comfort level when you’re up and about in the evening. Yes, your A/C will run continuously for a bit to cool things down, but it uses less energy to do this than it would to run frequently all day long.

These are some handy tricks to keeping the bills down, but don’t forget the most important one, which is to properly maintain your A/C unit. A well-maintained machine will last longer, true, but it will also run more efficiently, saving you a buck or twenty.

Happy cooling!

APHW Welcomes HS Student for Job Shadow

Posted on | by Clive Gillett

Breonna Binschus, a junior at Columbia Central High School in Brooklyn, Michigan, visited America’s Preferred Home Warranty (APHW) Thursday, April 19, to spend the day job shadowing with the Marketing Department. Her visit was coordinated through Salida San Miguel, the program coordinator for Junior Achievement of the Michigan Edge, and the 2018 Spring Job Shadow Program.

While Breonna was skeptical at how interesting a home warranty company would be, she dressed to impress and arrived with a smile. “At first, I was like… a warranty company?” she remembered with a laugh. “Then I realized it has its own marketing department, and everyone in it does a different job.”

Her day started with a tour of the building, led by Marketing Manager Jeff Fett. Jeff told Breonna all about the history of APHW while he showed her around, including his development of their logo and brand over the years. “It was so much better than I expected,” Breonna said. “I really liked it!”

Next up was Marketing Systems Coordinator Heidi Vickers, who laid out the logistics side of APHW’s marketing program. Heidi was followed up by Copywriter Cara Baker, then Social Media Manager Dave Parham, and finally back to Jeff for a review of APHW’s printed marketing materials. The day culminated in a lunch discussing what she had learned.

Breonna was inquisitive throughout the day, asking questions about projects the Marketing Department had done in the past, how long they took, and how they were broken up into tasks. She already had quite a bit of marketing know-how from classes at the Jackson Area Career Center and through promotional projects for the school store, but her visit to APHW was still an eye-opening event. “I’ve learned a lot,” Breonna said. “Marketing is definitely something I want to get in to.”

She has dreams of starting off at Jackson College when she graduates high school, and from there the sky is the limit. She’s also interested in potentially coming back to APHW for an internship in the future. For now, however, Breonna is content to learn more about marketing from her favorite teacher, Andrew Haltom. “He’s taught me everything I know,” she said.

Becker’s Bread the Sweet Tooth’s Dream

Posted on | by Clive Gillett

“I’ll be baking 192 loaves in the next six days.”

Throughout south-eastern Michigan, Jeff Becker is known for his delicious Amish Friendship Bread. As an Area Sales Manager (ASM) for America’s Preferred Home Warranty (APHW), Jeff brings it with him wherever he goes. Agents love him for it, agencies and brokerages have come to expect it, and even his work associates constantly ask for it. “People seem to really appreciate it,” he said with a smile, “and enjoy it.”

The cinnamon-sugar confection may bring out the ‘best’ in people, but making it is no easy task. “It’s a 4-hour process from start to finish,” Jeff said. “I make 32 loaves each time, on 5 out of every 10 days on average—and I get up at 4 or 5 in the morning to do it.”

So why does he do it so often? The 4-hour baking process is just the tip of the iceberg. Each batch has to go through a 10-day fermentation process as well. Rather than doing one batch every 10 days, Jeff keeps bags of dough at different stages in the process. At any given time, he has three roasting pans with anywhere from 18 to 24 bags of dough, which he frequently has to tend to. It’s a crazy process, to be sure.

“Insane is a good word,” Jeff said with a chuckle. “It’s driven from my gratefulness, that’s what it really is.” Gratefulness for his success as an ASM, and for the professional relationships he’s built over the years. “Whether they do business with me or not, I take the bread with me every time, just as a way to say, ‘Thank you for your time.’”

In the near future, Jeff will be giving up his position as an ASM to become a National Field Sales Trainer for other ASMs at APHW. “I’m going to miss sales, but I’m also looking forward to the change, and anticipating my new role,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to grow.” Jeff is also very grateful for the team behind his growth, from management to admin to claims representatives to marketing. “Having such a great team behind me has truly been the secret to my success,” he said, adding that his wife has been a big part of that, too. “These people have helped me in ways I can’t even begin to explain.”

John Rockey, one of Jeff’s real estate agents, has been a fan of his Friendship Bread for years. “It’s an unexpected extra,” John said, “and everybody always clamors over it.” John is sorry to see Jeff go, but knows the change is a great opportunity for him. “It’s our loss, the company’s gain,” John said. “I’m thrilled for him, and I wish him only the best. If people listen to what he says and take it to heart, America’s Preferred Home Warranty will grow as a result, without a doubt.”

Jeff will likely still be making his bread, just not quite as often as he does now. It still makes an excellent gift, but the thanks it offers are what mean the most to Jeff.

“I should change the bread labels to say grateful instead of thankful,” he said. “Feeling thankful is a passive emotion. Being grateful is an action—it’s doing something to show how you feel.” And he is grateful for every single day.