Meeting your high expectations

by Clair D. Urbain

It was a treat reading through the hundreds of survey responses we received on our hand tool survey that appeared in the November/December issue of Contractor Tools and Supplies. We knew exactly when the magazine hit the street because the e-mailed responses to the survey filled up our in-boxes and the faxed responses made our fax machine hum.

We thank all who responded to the survey; you can read about the results by clicking here.

According to the respondents, tool performance is the No. 1 criteria in hand tool selection. And although brands were ranked lower, most respondents mentioned one brand or another to illustrate or explain what tool best exemplified performance to them.

The breadth of the types of tools mentioned as favorites was very wide. Ranging from a hammer handed down from father to son to an HP laptop computer, our readers’ devotion to their favorite tool was impressive.

While many brand names were mentioned, there were a few brands and types of tools that dominated the responses. We cover them briefly in this article.

The enthusiasm that contractors have for their tools shows how much the tools mean to them. After all, it’s impossible to drive a nail or measure up a space with just your hands.

It was also gratifying that readers put this magazine at the top of the list of valuable information resources. The score for Contractor Tools and Supplies was so close to the first answer, their tool distributor, they were a statistical tie.

That’s a good hand-in-hand combination. We work closely with scores of leading distributors across the country that provide this magazine to their customers and potential customers as a service. It’s their way to help them make better tool choices and provide superior service.

If the cover and back page of this magazine features a tool distributor, please thank them for your subscription, if you are so inclined. They like to know their efforts to get you top-notch tool and safety information is appreciated.

Reader responses to the hand tool survey as well as other readership surveys we conducted in 2004 lead us to believe we are on the right editorial track with this publication. But that’s not good enough.

If you have any tool safety, selection or use questions that would be of interest to you and our other readers, please don’t hesitate to pose them to us. We like to hear what’s challenging you on the jobsite and like it even better if we can help you meet or beat that challenge.

As you look through other stories in this issue, we hope you find some ideas that make you think of ways you can do your job better. We understand that your hand tools – and power tools, for that matter – are an extension of you and enable you to stretch your talents and build something useful. Similarly, we hope that Contractor Tools and Supplies continues to be one of your most valuable “hand tools” as you go about your job.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at 920-691-1218 or e-mail me at curbain@milomediapub.com. We appreciate the value readers place in our magazine and will strive to continue to meet your high expectations.

Published in the January/February 2005 issue of Contractor Tools and Supplies magazine.

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