Which treated wood do your deck contractor customers want?

By Diana Hanson

HO cares about decking trends? You do! These davs. homeowners see a deck as an extension of their home. Gone is the standard 12x12' deck. Consumers are buying outdoor kitchens, water features, full suites of furniture, fire pits, outdoor sound systems, spas, and more for that deck. What does that do to the deck?

It makes it BIGGER. And what does that mean for the lumberyard and the pressure treated wood industry? Increased sales of pressure treated lumber, of course. (See, you do care about decking trends!).

While alternative decking materials like composite and vinyl have entered the market, many homeowners simply want wood. The new stains and treatments now available for ourchase make working with and maintaining pressure treated decks much easier on the deck contractor, as well as the homeowner. The consumer simply needs to be told about it.

Deck contractors are in the unique position to sell a prospective deck customer the products they prefer to use. A deck contractor will not sell product that they don't like to work with. If a product is difficult to obtain, they won't sell that either. So, making the deck builder happy by providing quality pressure treated lumber-and making it easy to get-will position you as the number-one spot for their purchases.

The key to yards selling more pressure treated lumber is education of warehouse personnel about the differences between types of pressure treat- ed lumber and its purposes (e.g., not all is rated for ground contact, some require special coated or steel fasteners). Making available the type of pressure treated lumber that your local contractors prefer, as well as ensuring the quality of your stock will also go a long way toward bringing in more business.

Think of it this way: a deck contractor has lots of choices-what kind of materials to use for structure, what kind of materials to use for decking and railing. However, whatever he chooses, he is going to buy what he needs from someone. If you provide your local deck contractors with favorable materials and informed floor personnel they will certainly choose your store over another.

Initially, deciding to support your local deck contractors may mean a little investment on your part. However the improvement in your ability to service them will far outweigh any costs incurred. Gaining the reputation as the "go-to" yard for deck contractorswell. .that's priceless.

- Diana Hanson is administrative director for North American Deck & Railing Association, a not-for-profit trade group of deck contractors, suppliers and manufacturers. She can be reached at (888) 623-7248.