Recently, when I needed a new set of tires for my Toyota Avalon, I got just what I wanted: no-nonsense customer service.

I called a tire shop and scheduled an appointment for the next day. When I arrived, the salesman waited on me right away and gave me a straightforward explanation of my options with no upselling. When I asked him to find out where the tires were manufactured (Consumer Reports had recommended against some brands made in China), he had the answer for me in a few minutes. Read more

Here at American Ratings Corporation, creators of the Diamond Certified Resource, we love social media. Why?

Consider small-town America. Fifty years ago, the community epicenter might have been the local diner—you’d stop in for a cup of coffee and stay for the fellowship. In today’s world, small-town America is online and community centers have gone digital. Whether you’re catching up with a friend from high school, scrolling through pictures of your niece’s wedding or wondering how to remove wine stains from your carpet, social media channels are the places to connect. Read more

Welcome to the Bay!

Since most of our readers are Bay Area residents, we spend a lot of time on this blog writing about domestic concerns like landscape design, plumbing and the Giants. But today, I get to write for a different audience. Have you recently bought a sweatshirt at Pier 39? Did you get stuck driving up Divisadero yesterday? Did last week’s earthquake wake you up? If so, then today I’m writing for you: our beloved Bay Area visitors.

American Ratings Corporation (ARC) is a local company that serves local consumers, and 80 percent of our staff members are Bay Area natives. Below, we share our favorite off-the-beaten-path places to visit and things to do. Read more

Remodels can add style, function, and safety by way of updating electrical and plumbing systems to current building codes. Not only can this enhance your enjoyment of your home, it can also add value to your house upon resale. The most popular rooms to remodel are kitchens and bathrooms—they’re the most used rooms in the house and the spaces where we interface the most with materials, so they require the most planning and attention to detail. It’s your designer’s job to take the information you provide and develop a plan that targets your needs and budget.

Serious customers prepare for satisfaction.
Here’s a simple formula: if you get what you want, you’ll be satisfied. Read more

Over the course of the past year, American Ratings Corporation (ARC) has been looking for more ways to become involved with our community in Marin County. This summer, we’ve had the opportunity to host an intern from the Marin County School to Career Partnership program. The program helps high school students (and new graduates) develop on-the-job, real world skills by connecting them with local businesses. For the past five weeks, Ryan Tooker has been working with ARC’s Digital Team, analyzing media data, assisting with production and going on video shoots. He has also shadowed in our Ratings Department, witnessing firsthand how a company qualifies to become Diamond Certified. It’s been such a pleasure to have Ryan around. Read more

It’s often said that a person’s home is their castle, but try telling that to a burglar—not to mention the fact that our modern edifices lack the thick stone walls, turrets and drawbridges that secured those specimens of medieval architecture from intrusion. That’s why ensuring security in modern homes takes a lot more than a pot of boiling oil…or, more pertinent, a standard front door deadbolt. Read on to learn a few essential aspects of home protection.

Get a lock on things. While any exterior door should have a lock, simply having one isn’t enough. The reality is that most standard locks do little to deter burglars, who are able to circumvent subpar hardware by lock-picking or simply kicking in the door. Read more

When planning to replace the window screens in their homes, most people don’t realize the full extent of their options. With the increasing specialization of the window covering industry, various products are now available to suit homeowners’ individual preferences. In the following tip sheet, James Hislop of Wesco Screen Company Inc. briefly lists some popular choices. Read more