At 60 years old, Jon Roberts and his wife, Lynne, of Arlington had just become empty nesters. When their children were at home, it had typically been their chore to gather and harvest firewood. Once they left, Roberts struggled with the task, which strained his back. An engineer by training, he got creative: He developed what he called the Hauler, a hook-and-handle design that allowed him to grab wood comfortably, so he wouldn’t wake up sore in the morning.
The Hauler made his life a little easier, but Roberts had no plans to make one for anybody else — until his son Austin came home in 2017 after eight years in the army.
Austin saw the contraption as a business opportunity. “I said ‘Dad, this is awesome!’” Austin said. “I told him we could probably make a side hustle out of it because people would use the heck out of this thing.”
And LogOX was born: What started out as a clever idea grew into a full-fledged wholesale business with more than two dozen accounts — including big retailers such as Walmart. The LogOX product offerings have since expanded; its online store includes dozens of ergonomic and accessible forestry tools. It’s still a small family business, though, with three full-time employees: Jon, Austin and Lynne.
When the Roberts family first started LogOX, they were unsure how to grow it. “We wanted people to find us and learn more about us,” Austin said.
They’d never started a business before and had so many questions but very little time to sit at a computer and do research. Austin reached out to an organization he knew and trusted — the Better Business Bureau. The local chapter serves eastern Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island and Vermont.
The BBB is a business-to-business service. It’s best known for its member accreditation program and for the way that its employees address customer concerns. But its members also have access to dozens of added benefits.
Every business that’s part of the BBB is assigned a customer care representative who works closely with members to make sure they get what they need — whether that’s a fresh new website, an eye-catching commercial or the latest news about regional networking events.
Nearly 500 Vermont businesses are accredited BBB members. Since 2019, LogOX has been one of them. It’s accredited by the BBB and has an A+ rating.
Nearly 500 Vermont businesses are accredited BBB members. These businesses are held accountable to respond to customer comments and complaints in a timely, ethical fashion. Since 2019, LogOX has been one of them. It’s accredited by the BBB and has an A+ rating.
“We’re not just great for Vermont businesses; we’re a great resource for people in general,” BBB Vermont chief marketing and sales officer Paula Fleming said. “We have a long history of promoting ethical business practices and being active in the Vermont community. We hold businesses to a high standard, which enhances their reputation and builds better trust.”
An organization of trustworthy businesses
In her role as the customer care manager for the BBB Vermont, Teisha Colacchio sees just about every kind of business. Only a portion of them meet the standards for accreditation.
“We really vet them to make sure they meet certain standards and criteria,” she said. “We want to make sure the BBB seal really means something when a business displays it on their website or at their shop. It shows they’re a trustworthy business and we’ve done our due diligence on regular background checks.”
However, Colacchio said, if you’re operating a trustworthy business that cares about the customer experience, accreditation is easy. All a business has to do is visit the website to apply for accreditation, and the business’ assigned customer care representative helps connect it with the resources to get started and can get it on a membership plan that suits its needs, depending on what kind of business it’s in.
There are three different membership plans to choose from: BBB Starter Plan, BBB+ Plan and BBB Max Plan. With each tier, members are eligible for more services. Costs start at $29 per month.
“Service is really personalized,” Colacchio explained. “Businesses work one-on-one with their representative, and they go through everything, from their marketing strategy to their online presence. We try and identify all of the ways we can help.”
For example, Austin Roberts of LogOX said that, as a cofounder of a small business, it can be hard to stay updated on new regulations or possible networking opportunities. He doesn’t always have time to search for that information himself, but the BBB keeps him regularly updated with the weekly newsletters Fleming sends.
Additionally, the video that the BBB made for LogOX, Austin said, was one of the best membership benefits of their BBB+ Plan. The BBB has a content creator who handles headshots, photography, personal branding and videography for its members. “It really tells our story and shows the tools in action,” he said.
Having the BBB seal, too, he said, is important. “It’s the gold standard for a business to be accredited with them. We’re proud to display the BBB logo on our website. There’s a lot of credibility there with that.”
Vermont Awards & Engraving of St. Albans has been a BBB-accredited business with an A+ rating for more than nine years, about a third of the time that Margi Swett has owned it, but she said being part of the BBB has made a real difference.
“I always respected the businesses that had the BBB logo on their door,” Swett said.
One of the most amazing benefits for Vermont Awards & Engraving, she said, has been that BBB members get a significant discount from UPS. “That more than covers the cost of membership because we do so much shipping,” she said with a laugh. An added bonus: “They help you get great publicity through their social media channels.”
Swett left the financial and nonprofit industry to buy the engraving business in 1996. She knew nothing about engraving at the time — she and her husband were just looking for something different. But Swett prides herself on being a fast learner and has since become an expert in the trade, while her husband took over the business side of the operation.
The company makes awards for businesses such as Performance Foodservice and Vermont Biz that want to recognize employees or local business leaders. Vermont Awards & Engraving also creates signage and gifts including clocks and paperweights. And it works with the Vermont Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired — incorporating braille is one of the company’s specialties.
Swett took over the business entirely a couple years ago, when her husband had to step down for health reasons. She now co-owns it with her daughter, Jessie Swétel, and employs seven other women — and one dog, Lila, who is in charge of office morale, she jokes. Swett values treating both her customers and employees well. It means a lot to her to be able to work with the BBB because the organization has the same values that she does.
“Working with the Better Business Bureau is a really public way of saying you have great customer service,” Swett said.
Swett utilizes the BBB’s services as a customer, too. A few years ago, she had a problem with some clothing she bought, and she went on the BBB website and saw the business had an F rating. “I wish I looked at the BBB website first,” she said. Now she regularly searches the BBB database ahead of time.
Building customer relationships
Laurie Goldsmith of Laurie’s Certified Construction in Colchester is another nontraditional Vermont business owner. After working for years as a medical secretary, Goldsmith started doing vinyl siding as a side gig for Bruce “Red” Elmore of Redi-Bilt Construction in South Burlington.
“I realized that I really liked working with my hands. The physical labor was hard, but it was fun and satisfying,” she said.
Due to severe scoliosis that she’s had since childhood, Goldsmith didn’t think that she could do the work long-term. Elmore was determined to keep Goldsmith around. He hired her to do the sales side of the business instead, keeping up with the books and doing other administrative tasks. He started bringing Goldsmith along to do estimates and taught her a lot about the trade.
Goldsmith has found customers through the BBB when people have reached out to her through her listing on the BBB’s website.
In 2008, after had Elmore passed away, Goldsmith started her own business: Laurie’s Certified Construction. She took what she learned from Elmore and added things, including design and 3D renderings. “I really enjoy the design and remodeling aspect,” she explained. One thing she didn’t change: Like Elmore, she became a member of the BBB.
“He was always big on reputation and credibility,” she said. “Through him I learned how valuable that was. So, once I started doing my own thing, I made sure to join.”
Laurie’s Certified Construction has been an accredited member since its inception, minus the six months it takes for a new business to be eligible for membership. The company has steadily maintained an A+ rating.
Goldsmith has found customers through the BBB when people have reached out to her from her listing on the BBB’s website. Generating new leads is the biggest draw for her, other than what BBB membership means for her reputation.
“Over the years, I’ve seen that it really does give customers more confidence with your business. To be a member, you have to meet a level of trustworthiness and have some integrity. That’s important to people,” she said.
This article was commissioned and paid for by Better Business Bureau in eastern Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island & Vermont.
