HOME GENTER MERGHANT

BILL FISHMAN

Bill Fishman & Affiliates

11650 lberia Place San Diego, Ca.92'128

This is the lqst of three columns speciJically dealing with woys of reoching t he do- i t -you rse lf cus t o mer-ed.

lllnBN RETAILERS first embark

UU on a clinic program they usually rely much too heavily on their vendors to supply the talent. It's a mistake! I do not advise a retailer to continuously expose his customers to only manufacturers reps or factory men for a full course of study at consumer how-to-do-it clinic sessions. Understandably, these vendors are tied to a single brand, and their preferences and prejudices make the attendees suspect. Clinics are better received when the audience feels that there is not such a selfserving motive on the part of the instructor.

There are times when the factory expert is the most qualified person to perform the clinic program. But the results are better when there is a store representative on the platform with the outsider.

The best clinics are those taught by the local store's own personnel. When a department manager has both the construction knowledge and some teaching ability, it makes for a great how-to-do-it clinic session, and super consumer relations for the store.

But not all retailers can be that lucky. Most have to turn to other sources for their instructors. A good source is the shop teacher at the local high school. Usually these school teachers are happy to moonlight for some extra income.

A few years ago the state of Ohio subsidized some of the retailer's payroll for these instructors under their "continuing adult education programs. "

Some retailers have a relationship with general contractors and remodeling contractors who do not feel threatened by doit-yourselfism. They too are well qualified to conduct clinic programs.

But again a word of caution. To assure success-make it the store's responsibility to have the instructors fully aware of the merchandise mix and the selection of brands available in the store.

There are a number of sources for training and visual aids for how-to-do-it clinic sessions. Another speaker on my Home Center Show Clinic panel was Adolph Auerbacher, the publisher of Better Homes and Gardens special interest publications. For his part of the program, he conducted a survey and created a list of 256 vendors who support the retailer's clinic programs for no or little cost. This support came in the form of : r Films or slides

O Speakers, demonstrators, or instructors o Samples o Give-aways (bags, rulers, aprons, etc.) o Instruction or idea booklets o Advice on conducting how-todoit clinic sessions

Better Homes ond Gorden's new book The Complete Guide to Home Repairs, Mainte nance and Improvemenl, together with their new product knowledge training course,makes an excellent resource for developing a clinic program.

Easi-Bild Home Improvements, Briarcliff Manor, New York,also sells strip films and scripts on a number of popular remodeling programs.

A second word of caution, however. Those how-to-do-it clinic sessions that are mostly all audio-visual programs do not receive good grades from the attendees. It is preferable to use live people with live demonstrations whenever it is possible.

Let's now talk about merchandising the clinics.

Some retailers today are making the mistake of not merchandising their clinic programs. I use the term merchandising with care. The people who are invited to attend the clinic feel that they are coming to learn-not "to be sold." Hard sell is a turn-off. But creative soft sell can produce volume-mayle not overnightbut it's very measurable over the long haul.

Selling softly means: o Building a mailing list of those who attend clinics, and recording what they indicate they're building or repairing. o Opening a company charge account for those who register for clinics. o Offering a short term discount on merchandise featured at that evening's session. o Developing "complete material packages" for those projects that attendees indicate are of prime neighborhood interest. o Offer a special "complete material list" discount when the clinic attendee buys all his project needs at one time.

Although it's not the only way, clinics are still one of the most productive methods of retaining the reputation as

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HARRY MENDENHALL E!e

Executive Vice President

?HE LUMBER Merchants AssociaI tion of Northern California, a trade association comprised of retail lumber and building material dealers from the Oregon border to Santa Barbara, with headquarters in San Jose, Ca., elected Robert Patterson Jr. their president for the 1983-84 term.

Patterson is the manager of Central Valley Builders Supply, St. Helena, Ca. A graduate of St. Helena High School and Whitman College, Walla Walla, Wa., Patterson worked for his father at Cen- tral Valley Builders Supply while attending high school and Whitehorse Crawford Lumber Co. while attending college. He has worked for Weyerhaeuser Co. and was enrolled in the Montgomery Ward Management Program.

He resides with his spouse, Kathleen, sons, Stephen (13) and Adam (8) in St. Helena. He is president, St. Helena Chamber of Commerce: vice chairman, St. Helena Building Commission; vice president, Napa Solano Builders Exchange; president, St. Helena Swim Club; president, Redwood Empire Swim League, and senior warden, St. Lukes Church.

Members of the association elected Patterson as their leader because they needed a strong and aggressive representative to guide the-aisociation as the industry starts a climb from thd l,owest recession since the great depression. Patterson recently constructed a new and modern building supply center in St. Helena and has several years experience in both state and federal legislative activities. His expertise will assist materially in bringing about the slow and orderly recovery ofthe housing industry in Northem California.

In accepting the office of president, Patterson told the members that he plans a concerted effort to bring those companies not presently members of the Lumber Merchants Association onto the membership rolls. He stated that each individual retail lumber and building material company receives the benefits of the efforts of the association; therefore, it is essential that each company participate as a member'

Others elected to office are James Leonard, SBS Inc. Marysville, Ca., first vice president; L. Ronald Silvera, Silvera Lumber Co. Antioch, second vice president; Embree Cross, Truckee Tahoe Lumber Co., treasurer.

By an odd coincidence, every speaker at the convention, five in all, pumped the same message to the dealers. "You must become involved in legislation and government affairs at all levels oigovernment. It is part of the responsibility you accepted when you bought the company or became manager. These are responsibilities that cannot be ignored because you feel that no action is necessary because some one else will do it. " If you want it done rightdo it yourself.

CHUCK LINK executive director

l1/OUn HELP is needed in spreading

I the word on the Mortgage Retirement Account Act introduced to Congress by Senator John Tower (R-Tx) as S. 1051. The measure was introduced in the House by Representative St. Germain as HR 2567.

Home Center

(Continued from page 24)

THE do-it-yourself headquarters in your market. But, defining a market in the 1980s is complex.

At first we considered our market as the geography surrounding our store. Then, as retailers we learned to measure the demographic market. Five years ago the term physchographics described a retailer's market-and in our industry we

In simplest terms, the MRA is an amendment to the Individual Retirement Account Act. It would allow a person to use his IRA allotment for the purpose of investing in his own home mortgage. A person could use his funds for the accumulation of a down payment on a new or existing home or he could buy down his existing mortgage, thus saving an enormous amount of interest payments over the years.

We feel that the MRA concept is one of also heard about dedicated do-ityourselfers-and-occasional do-ityourselfers.

While today, in the shopping reach of almost every store you can measure almost 40 different geo-demographic lifestyles-each influenced by different product appeals, store locations, advertising styles, and media.

While today, manufacturers are asking companies such as mine to utilize the new PRIZM research study to select specific the most significant pieces of legislation affecting housing to be introduced in many years, with very wide reaching consequences. We have to take every step we can to get people to understand what this legislation can do and why it should be supported. We realize there are a number of "Individual Housing Account" (IHA) bills in Congress. We feel that the MRA is simpler, and as an amendment to an existing law would have wider acceptance and with relatively minor impact on the U.S. Treasury. retailers to market to the individualized market segments.

Anything you can do to helP us in generating support for the MRA will be appreciated. Please write your congressman urging his support today!

And while today, independent retailers, and chain operators retain marketing companies like ours to refine the old and develop new traffic building promotions to fit their store's personalities.

It's the how-to clinic that still heads the list of concepts that quickly tag the retail lumber dealer as the community-or even regional do-it-yourself headquarters.