The Home Technology Association (HTA) established a standard for home technology integration firms, offering certifications for top-qualified firms. It also created programs for trade partners and collaborated with trade associations to bridge the design and collaboration gap.
The Home Technology Association (HTA) has updated its Technology Budget Calculator to include architectural lighting fixtures. The calculator now offers budget ranges for lighting, controls, shades, and networks, and features an improved user interface with customizable colors and better email report formatting.
This update helps homeowners, architects, and designers understand the costs associated with advanced lighting solutions, providing a clear starting point for budget discussions and reducing sticker shock. It also prequalifies clients, streamlines the proposal process, and enhances sales operations for integrators.
The Home Technology Association (HTA) is excited to announce a significant update to its industry-leading Technology Budget Calculator. This powerful tool, already used by many top home technology integrators, design and build professionals, and manufacturers, helps prospective clients understand realistic installed cost budget ranges for their home technology projects. Instead of asking homeowners their budget – which often leads to uncertainty and confusion – the HTA Technology Budget Calculator provides a clear, informed starting point for discussions.
New Features and Enhancements
The newly updated HTA Technology Budget Calculator brings several key enhancements, most notably the addition of lighting fixtures. With the expert input of industry professionals Patrick Laidlaw of AiSPiRE/WAC, Mike Libman of DMF, and David Warfel of Light Can Help You, the tool now includes architectural lighting fixtures. This ensures that homeowners, architects, interior designers, and builders are aware of the advanced lighting solutions that can impact the look, feel, ambiance, and wellness of their homes. It also informs them that home technology integrators are a resource for lighting fixtures, which most are unaware of. As part of this upgrade, the HTA also created a consumer-friendly glossary of key lighting terms that can be found here: https://htacertified.org/app/lighting-terms.
“The cost of good lighting is the top question clients ask, and HTA’s updated budgeting tool provides an important first step towards real answers,” said David Warfel, founding designer at Light Can Help You. “Little matters more to clients than their budget; the new lighting section in the HTA Budget Calculator is a great tool to get the conversation started. In addition to providing budget ranges for fixtures, controls, and shades, the calculator cleverly introduces the concept of performance fixtures and advanced color technologies. This should enable better conversations from the beginning when it comes to lighting.”
Partners May Embed the HTA Budget Calculator
The following entities can embed the budget calculator on their websites with a unique embed code: HTA Certified integrators, HTA Supporting Brand members, rep firms, and related industry associations. Notably, the NAHB (National Association of Home Builders) has already embedded the HTA budget calculator in the members-only knowledge section of its website.
Comprehensive Update List
- Lighting Fixtures: Provides basic information and budget ranges to start conversations on this complex topic.
- Networks / Wi-Fi Updates: Added a new “Professional” category between “Consumer-grade” and “Enterprise-grade.”
- Emphasis on Lighting and Shades: These topics have been moved near the top of the calculator.
- Emailed Reports: Improved formatting for emailed budget results.
- Embedded Calculator Color Matching: Customizable header color to match the target website’s color theme.
Benefits of the HTA Technology Budget Calculator
The HTA Technology Budget Calculator addresses several critical challenges home technology integrators and their clients face. Many prospective clients experience sticker shock due to a lack of awareness about realistic technology costs, often leading them to shop around. The HTA Technology Budget Calculator helps set realistic expectations from the start, reducing this issue. Asking clients for their budget is often uncomfortable for the client and unproductive; the HTA Technology Budget Calculator provides a more effective way to determine budget ranges through a simple, client-driven process. By prequalifying clients, the calculator saves time and reduces the need for extensive value engineering of proposals. It is also a valuable tool for architects, builders, and designers, helping them gather necessary information and provide accurate estimates to their clients. Integrators using the HTA budget calculator benefit from higher sales closing ratios and more efficient sales operations.
“From the moment the Custom Integration channel started recognizing the lighting category, the most common question from Integrators—and clients, to them-was how much does good lighting cost? This question has now been addressed simply with the Lighting Budget Calculator by HTA”, says Patrick Laidlaw, Director of Business Development-Integration at AiSPiRE & WAC Lighting. “The calculator is easy to use and informative as it defines the differences between four levels of lighting, from best to worst. Clients simply put in the percentage of their home they would like of each level, and it calculates estimated lighting cost ranges right before their eyes. It also expedites the discussions of lighting in the home as part of the technology package”.
