Home Center Merchant

Bill Fishman

Bill Fishman & Affiliales

1 1 650 lberia^Pla99. -- c,ories carried by home centers and San Diego' ca' 92128 Building material <lealers is a mixed bag ll VERY successful mag,azine pub- lisher once told me that the first lesson he was taught in the publishing business was "subscriptions are sold one-at-a-time!" I think of that often and frequently apply it to situations in the lumber and building material business.

This is a lesson that has even more meaning when trying to sell big users.

As a consultant I am challenged to increase the sales volume for a retail lumberyard. Typically, | first strive to expand the d-i-y business by:

(l) Selling more of the existing assortments

(2) Expanding the geographic pull

(3) Increasing the merchandise selection to enlarge the size of each ticket

Then I advise my client to solicit new business from the professionals!

The professional user of product cate- including: o Purchasing agents at large & small industrial companies o Property managers a Contraclors o Commercial offices

. Sign companies o Architects o E,tc.

The second best way to get a message to these prospective customers is by direct mail. In many markets mailing list houses can isolate these businesses by SIC codes.

The best way to make contact with these big users is by phone. When I moderate focus groups of professionals, I ask two questions that almost always get a "No" answer: "Did you ever get a phone call lrom any dealer asking you to allow him to be your lumber and building material supplier?" and "Would you object if you did get such a call?"

The sccond "No" is usually followed with a "l'd welcome it and all things being equal I would give them all the business I could."

Interestingly, thc current tlnited Airline tv commercial. "Our oldest customer just fired us," brings home the same point. A bit ol'pcrsonal attachment does much to bind a rclationship and make it less vulnerable to low price competition.

Ilxtra service keeps your customers your customers. Sometimes extra service takes unusual forms. West lluilding Material (lenters in Atlanta once boasted the longest lunch counter in town. A pot of grits was constantly warming on the stove and the large sign behind the counter read something like, "lf your company account is up-to-date, enjoy breaklast and lunch IrREE at West's!" (iuess where the contractor's trucks went when the drivers were sent to pick up some additional material lor a construction job.

If the price is right il you're just a little friendlier and show you care il you deliver a little extra value your customers will drive right past your competition to get to you. lf your competition's customers know about your price, and that you care about them, and about your "pot of grits" they too may drive on by the competition.