Geez John, I would hate to know what you think qualifies as “bad” advertising.
Good question for Nick. To the best of my somewhat limited knowledge I don’t believe it is ever enforced or there is any mechanism for doing that. I believe the Chinese call it a paper tiger
I agree!
Years ago Charlie Goodyear said when they are talking about me they are advertising me .
Looks like it worked for him .
His company is still going making a lot of Goodyear tires.
Roy Cooke I have 8 Goodyear snow tires on my cars
Didn’t they just shut the Goodyear plant in Kitchener down?
People hear something over and over, good or bad, right or wrong, they start believeing it over time. So I guess it really matters what they are saying about you, and not just that they are talking about you.
Alot of people talked about Ghandi, but alot of people talked about Hitler as well.
Get it?
Nick ,
I support you to correct the Global TV ,it was not fair for the rest of NACHI members. some one behind that ?
I try very hard to pass my on line exam prior to renew my membership, check my records!
My friend is an inspector from BCIT , he could not pass our exam yet,and he still on jobs ,and carry no E &O and also is a Realtor , so what the Real Estate council in BC can do about it,lots BCIT asttbc was on TV talk about how bad their trade person about year ago, some one check it out on BCTV.
This is one instance of what happens when the inspector does not do his job. http://www.canlii.ca/ab/cas/abpc/2000/2000abpc90.html
The problem that we face is the use of multiple choice test questions to test the knowledge and understanding of inspectors. This type of test is fairly simple to measure the skill of a home inspector as it asks closed questions and does not investigate the ability of the individual to form new knowledge based on theory and practice. This is not surprising because in a multiple choice tests you should ask a question and then limit the answer to one correct response.
A multiple choice test should consist of the following elements:
The Stem - This is the question that you ask the student
The distracters - These are plausible answers which are all incorrect
The answer – One and only one correct answer, which should be arrived at through careful thought
It the answers are “give-aways” or easy to guess, and can be determined by process of elimination rather than by knowledge and understanding the tests will not really be valid.
I’m not certain that the tests have actually been validated. In order to validate a test, it must be given to people who have the knowledge that the test is supposed to assess as well as a sample who have no knowledge of the subject at all. If a high percentage of the “unknowledgeable” test takers get the test item correct, that test item is invalid. Do we do this with our tests?
Home inspection is not a simple task and involves multiple skills and knowledge. A multiple choice test is totally inadequate in testing our skills and knowledge. That being said, so was the state test that I took. It, too was multiple choice and in no way tested my true understanding of the subject.
We can solve this problem in a heartbeat. But are we willing to take up the challenge? To be frank, unless we do we will get more and more bad press such as we see with this news report.
Mark Elliott BSc Engineering, MA Distance Education, Professional Home Inspector
November is “sweeps month” for television advertisers. This kind of stuff sells. We get it every May and November.
As long as the fact remains that most home inspectors belong to NO association at all, no one can point at any association as being the root of any problem.
NACHI is here to stay and there are plenty of NACHI members who attend their ASHI meetings and knock NACHI, because it is the expected behavior, but then depend upon the NACHI find-an-inspector indexes to keep their calendars full.
The real truth is that these programs hurt all home inspectors. Consumers are not shopping by acronym. These broadcasts tend to darken the confidence in our profession as a whole and it is sad that ASHI promotes them.
Every month is sweeps month for Nick 
The more publicity, good or bad, is just fine.
Nick turned a simple idea into a global organization with over 9200 members. He developed what is the largest home inspector association in the world in a climate that was dominated by ASHI and where an alternative to ASHI thinking was nonexistant. His idea has made a whole lot of money for a whole lot of people.
When you have done that well, and are confident enough in your accomplishments to put your real name next to your criticisms, your thoughts might be worthy of consideration.
Until then, Jason, you’re just another cold, hungry waif with his face pressed up against the window of the restaraunt watching NACHI members enjoying their feast.
Did I touch a nerve?
I’m not hiding from anyone, my real name is Jason and anyone here from years ago ( I know, not many last that long, unless you’re selling something) know who I am.
You’re right Nick has done a hell of a job, no argument there.
But there is a lot less behind the curtain then he would lead you to believe, that is obvious to alot of people. You don’t have to dig very deep.
I remember you.
Are you still a home inspector?
This poorly orchestrated investigative reporting tarnished the Canadian Associations more than any American Association. Lets take a look at the message that was conveyed.
- Canadian Home Inspectors are not licensed/regulated.
- Canadian Home Inspection Associations are not regulated.
- Canadian Home Inspection Associations are non existent or effective.
- By showing the “on-line” examination of NACHI (an American based association) they showed at least some type of qualification standard. No other qualification from any Canadian associations were mentioned.
What is amiss here is the targeted audience. Who was this meant to educate or inform. Someone such as yourself, Jason, are going to remember the report because you are involved. You know the players and their acronyms. But to “Happy Harry future Homeowner” this went in one ear and out the other. Go ahead and do your own little investigation. Do a short survey of the little area that this report was released to. Ask any of them to recite for you the following:
- What was the name and business of the Home Inspector that was interviewed?
- Who did the interview of the Inspector?
- What was the name of the Canadian Association mentioned?
- What was the acronym of the Canadian Association mentioned?
- What was the name of the American Association mentioned?
- What was the acronym of the American Association mentioned?
- What was the website that was shown and what was the url?
- Which of the following key words do you remember from the report?[LIST]
- Certified
- Licensed
- Other
[/LIST]Yes, this was good for NACHI, and in fact looked poorly on the others. Every time these investigative reports run, NACHI takes a step forward. The average viewer of these reports will remember basically one thing from these reports, “Certified”.
So you see, Jason, this report was important to you. But to the average consumer, it was just another investigative report that was of interest to a very limited or select few. Those few being individuals in the market for propertys today.
It’s a huge mistake to dwell on associations in these reports. Associations do not make the inspector. The inspectors individual qualifications, education and experience are of more interest to consumers. The inspector featured missed the boat big time in this report. He never touted on his own experiences or qualifications. He placed himself in the mix of those that were being targeted.
I would strongly suggest that all take a long hard look at their advertising techniques and begin to strengthen your brochures, etc. and take advantage of sensationalism reporting such as this. Tout your training and qualifications, and raise your prices. Sell yourself, not an association.
Again, thanks for the free air time. Each and everytime that NACHI is mentioned results in increased membership. Curiosity of the inspectors that viewed the report will drive them to our website. Once here and they get engrossed in the benefits, etc. there is no turning back. Let me steal a line -
NACHI ROCKS!!!
But no one mentioned Nachi in the news report. The only time I saw Nachi and it wasn’t very clear was when the reporter was at the computer screen and the Nachi logo was on the screen.
Ted Gilmore screwed up real good eh? Is Norm Bushman Ted Gilmore?
Yes, they did.
Funny OAHI sent me a letter reporting me to ASTTBC for using CHI. Never did hear anything further from OAHI or ASTTBC I think OAHI got caught with their pants down and are full of hot air!
CHI may not be legal in BC, but it is in Ontario as OAHI is not prepared to do anything!
You sure talk like you are an expert. Your theories don’t have much credence considering there is no evidence to support your assumptions. Your arguements would not stand up in a court without evidence.
Dave, I thought you weren’t fully certified, you are only an Assoc. and have been for over 8 long years.
I am still waiting for you to compare apples to apples. As for Doctors and lawyers being qualified that is a restricted profession which requires practionioners to be licenced.