Tuesday, 19 March 2013 21:56

Watch PowerHouse SMART® Member Matt Wilke's spot on 190 North

Enjoyable dining at another fabulous LG Construction + Development Project!

"This place may have you thinking you've snagged a table at one of the city's elite private dining rooms, but don't let the name fool you--Tortoise Club is open to all! Doug Banks got a taste of this classy River North restaurant."

Published in Design Build Real Estate Events

Thursday, 22 March 2012 21:03

PowerHouse SMART® Member Richard Becker is on the cover of Chicago Architect.

We're featured on the March/April cover of Chicago Architect.
Click below to see video and read article.

Click above for Dennis Rodkin's short video describing this project.
Then read his article online which begins on page 26.

Published in PowerHouse SMART

Sunday, 11 March 2012 20:19

Dean MacMorris, Night Light Inc invites you to a design build networking event: April 26th

Hello,

I would like to invite you to a great networking event taking place on Thursday April 26^th. As an active member of ASID, ILASLA, AIA, LDA and ALA I have been involved with organizing this networking event that will be attended by members of all of these associations. I hope that you will see this as a convenient and enjoyable way to meet people in a relaxed setting and grow your network. If you do work with or want to do work with members in these associations we have made it easy to schmooze with them. All the work is done all you have to do is show up. I would be happy to introduce you to those that I know at the event.

I look forward to seeing you there,

Dean MacMorris, RLA; Night Light, Inc.; www.Nightlightinc.net

"For those who appreciate the difference"

CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS $20 PRE-REGISTERED OR $25 AT THE DOOR!

Published in Design Build Real Estate Events

Friday, 09 March 2012 22:25

McCormack+Etten Architects Celebrate 2 Decades of Design!

Congratulations to PowerHouse SMART members Ron McCormack and Ken Etten!

Published in Design Build Real Estate Events

Tuesday, 06 March 2012 12:56

PowerHouse SMART® Member published in the Herald.

Industry Insider: Sharron Kelley, Coldwell Banker and PowerHouse SMART® member tells us about the current real estate market.

Housing inventory in popular communities with top-notch schools is becoming scarce and in recent months prices throughout the area have finally been holding steady, said real estate agent Sharron Kelley of Coldwell Banker in Buffalo Grove. "If you want to buy a house, now is the time to do it."

Read the complete article at http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20120303/entlife/703039927/

Published in PowerHouse SMART

Tuesday, 28 February 2012 20:24

Curvelicious Kitchen Remodel Lives Large in a Small Space ~ Richard Sherer, Deep River Partners

PowerHouse SMART® Member has a Great article: Richard Sherer, Deep River Partners

Strategic Plan

As recently featured in M Magazine January 2012

The soft curves of the elliptical ceiling cutout and the shape of the banquette in this East Side Kitchen remodel create a sophisticated and relaxed atmosphere.

Published in PowerHouse SMART

Wednesday, 08 February 2012 21:58

Why Do You Love Your Job?

We love what we do at PowerHouse Advisors and PowerHouse SMART!

Please tell us why you love your job!:

1. Scroll down to write a comment by clicking in the add a comment area.

2. Vote/LIKE your favorite answer/comment.

The best answer wins a Shari's Berries Gift from PowerHouse!

Contest runs until April 1st!

Click back to February 2012 e news

Wendy S. Cohen

PowerHouse Advisors

PowerHouse SMART

Why Do You Love Your Job?

Published in Websites & Blogs

Wednesday, 08 February 2012 20:48

Another PowerHouse SMART Tool to Grow Your Business: Apple iPad 2

How do some of our PowerHouse SMART® networking and education members use their iPads to grow their business?

Here are some of the recommendations:

Darrell Katz, Impact Training Solutions:
Keynote - Apple's equivalent to PowerPoint. I build all my presentations in Keynote on my iPad and then present them from my iPad using either either the VGA (analog) connection or the HDMI (digital) connection.

iWork - allows documents (Microsoft, Apple or PDFs) to be shared on line. Clients can review and comment directly to the docs - their input and my updates are exchanged in real time. Great collaboration tool.

Print & Share - a cool app that enables the iPad to interface with any printer, wirelessly.

Penultimate - turns the iPad into a writing tablet to capture notes. Perfect app for times (such as a meeting) when using the iPad as a note pad and taking handwritten notes is more appropriate than tapping on the keyboard.

Pandora - the free music app is an indispensable tool for my management training workshops. I play music as participants arrive and during breaks. Pandora has unlimited music channels you can set up on the fly. I usually play classical music as people are gathering (calms their anxiety), jazz during morning breaks and rock or something Top 40 right after lunch.

More from Darrell:
iPad without all the toys that go with it. Here are a few:

* Video Cable - connects the iPad to the VGA connection on an LCD projector. Used for projecting presentations: http://store.apple.com/us/product/MC552

* Digital Cable - basically the same as above, but allows the iPad to connect via an HDMI connection. Beyond showing presentations, this allows displaying anything on the iPad on a big screen. Apple calls this "mirroring." For instance, you can download a movie on the iPad and show it on a big flat screen TV in the board room, training room or your living room for everyone to watch: http://store.apple.com/us/product/MC953

* Keyboard - very useful if you're writing anything longer than a paragraph. Makes data input much faster and more accurate. There are several on the market - I have two; one is the Apple Keyboard which is excellent:
http://store.apple.com/us/product/MC184
the other is smaller and not quite as good, but docks nicely with the iPad for travel and fits well on the seat back table on a 767 to Seattle:
http://micgadget.com/13483/turn-your-ipad-2-into-a-macbook-air/

* Extra Power Supply - a reserve battery for times when you need extra juice; like at the end of the day and there's no time to plug into the wall at the airport before your flight leaves. Again there are several on the market; I have the Zaqq Sparq 2.0 and it can charge my iPad and my iPhone at the same time:
http://www.zagg.com/accessories/zaggsparq.php

I think if one's interest is consuming content (listening to music, surfing, reading books, playing game, etc) the iPad is perfect by itself. As you know, I use mine to create content (training programs, presentations, reports, spreadsheets, etc) and that's where the tools listed above really start to shine.

Rich Conklin, Grand Home Automation:
#1 Dropbox. This app is moving us away from the traditional network server – client system to cloud based storage. Now all the members of our team can collaborate on projects anywhere as long as they have an internet connection.
#2 Any good quality GPS app., from sales to service to installation it gets us there.
#3 Hootsuite, puts all of our social media in one place.
#4 GoodReader, Lets us view and present various documents (Excel, word, .pdf etc.)
#5 Since we are in the controls business any of the apps that let an iPad run our systems (Crestron, Lutron, Control 4)

Jim Oborny, 4 e card (Shared from his blog post):
Here are some apps that we use on our iPad.
Some are free and some cost a little.
Skype - Free
Dropbox - Free
Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring all your photos, docs, and videos anywhere.
Quickoffice Pro HD - $19.99
Create, Edit, Access & Share Microsoft® Office files. Buy Today & SAVE 20% Limited Time Sale!
Recent Updates: PowerPoint Editor, Create PDFs, Print files, Access Slideshare, Scribd,
Power Presenter from Alterme Inc. $1.99
This application is for Presentation. If you save the powerpoint as PDF file, this app will help you do the presentation on projector. If you can upload your file to a web site, it also can present that website for you. Allows you to show ppt, and has a whiteboard that you can email. Best $1.99
Note Plus $4.99
2010 Best App Ever nominated in both categories: Best Productivity and Most Innovative.
"The note-taking app you've been waiting for" - Mac|Life Magazine, January 2011
"This app brings an amazing experience to the iPad" - Appolicious.com.

These are some that we use and like alot. There are so many different apps for all different purposes.

If you have some personal recommendations on apps that you use for your business let us know!

Enjoy and share! Back to our 2012 e news.

Wendy Cohen, Founder

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Published in Growth & Business Development Strategy

Friday, 16 December 2011 22:18

Who is in the Luxury Home Builders Network Group on LinkedIn?

Membership in the Luxury Home Building Network is open to top builders, developers, architects, interior designers, cabinetry designers, landscape architects, and the high-end marketers from the best brands in the home segment (or those seriously considering entering the home arena) who understand that they can achieve greater results—and greater profits—through strategic networks.

Published in LinkedIn- Luxury Home Builders

Tuesday, 22 November 2011 17:57

Social Media Marketing Power Tools - 5 Hot Tips

Social media must be a component of your business growth strategy.
If you have not harnessed the power of social media, we can help: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

5 Hot Tips to Power Up Social Media Profiles
Building a new profile or updating? Here are quick tips that get results.

1. Make your bio personal & engaging; focus on interest & goals rather than products.
2. Add your picture. People want to relate to the person behind the profile or firm.
3. Encourage reviews and recommendations; they are more credible than advertising.
4. Shorten your Facebook Business Page URL; i.e. http:facebook.com/powerhouseadvisors.
5. Make your Facebook Page using keywords; i.e. PowerHouse Advisors: Luxury Marketing.

Best Regards,

Wendy Cohen

President of PowerHouse Advisors

Founder, PowerHouse SMART

Published in Marketing - Power Tips