How do you rank? Find out with the CODB Survey

March 10, 2011 – Canadian rental operators can learn how they compare with their peers throughout Canada and the United States, discover strategies for improvement and even become eligible to win cash and other prizes by participating in the Cost of Doing Business (CODB) Survey from the American Rental Association (ARA).

For years, Phil Morand, owner of Riverside Rental in Tecumseh, Ontario, has been participating in this survey, which is a service for the joint membership of ARA and the Canadian Rental Association (CRA), because it is the first step toward providing him with “an opportunity to see where I place among others in the industry” and to see how his company is “shaping up in regards to the age of my equipment, productivity of my equipment and my employee costs,” he says.

Lea-Ann Suzor, CERP, general manager of Festival Tent & Party Rentals in Maidstone, Ontario, also has been participating for many years because the resulting Cost of Doing Business Report — the financial benchmarking guide for the rental industry that is compiled from the survey data by Business Resource Services/Profit Planning Group — offers her valuable information.

“We’re a party rental store that is locally owned and operated. Receiving the Cost of Doing Business Report gives me something to gauge our progress against and see if there are trends across the country. It gives me a benchmark,” she says.

ARA-member rental businesses can participate in the survey by completing the hard-copy version or the online Excel version that is available to download from www.profitplanninggroup.com/surveys.
Those who return the completed survey by April 15:

• receive a free copy of the CODB Report – a $325 value
  
• are entered into the grand prize drawing for a free trip to The Rental Show 2012 – three nights’ hotel stay, airfare and full registration (prize package worth up to $1,000). There also is a separate prize drawing for $500 for those who complete the survey via the Excel file.
• have the option of purchasing a Company Consulting Report. This customized report compares the company to its peers and the most profitable companies in its grouping and provides insight into key areas of operation that may require additional management focus.
  
• become part of the CRA contest: The local association with the highest percentage of increased participation over the 2008-2009 survey wins $500.

For more information about the survey, go to www.ARArental.org/go/CODB or call 800-334-2177.