A Changing World Requires New Thinking
I recently attended a workshop designed to help boost creative thinking as it relates to Home Improvement Marketing. The facilitator started the participants with a discussion of how quickly the world we live in is changing, and how those changes impact homeowners as well as the marketing and sales of home improvement products. It really opened my eyes to the fact that, if the world is changing, we can’t continue to market residential metal roofing the same old ways as we have for years and expect to be successful.
In thinking about this, below are a few things that are changing that are impacting how we must do business. You undoubtedly will think of more! Many of these are driven by changes in consumer media habits and also changes in home ownership and goals.
- Print newspapers are falling by the wayside and online news gathering can be done in ways that filter out advertisements. In other words, fewer people are seeing our advertisements.
- Direct mail can be targeted better than ever before but it is also more costly than ever before.
- More and more consumers are accessing the internet through smart phones and tablets, each of which carry their own limitations for viewing and consumer response.
- We live in the age of Amazon Reviews. No one wants to make any purchase without first reading reviews from previous purchasers. They trust past customers much more than they do vendors and suppliers.
- We live in the Information Age. People trust online content more than they do verbal content, largely because there is so much of it available from a wide range of sources.
- Average length of home ownership is increasing and many homes are becoming “legacy homes,” passed on to loved ones.
- As homeowners are owning homes for longer periods, they are more serious about making investments for comfort, beauty, home value, and energy efficiency.
- The increasing cost of labor for home maintenance is causing many homeowners to seek out more durable products that do not need to be replaced.
- The lower number of homeowners who are thinking of someday building a new home means that they are instead able to use their savings to invest in their current homes.
Again, I am sure that with some brainstorming, we could come up with countless other changes out there that are impacting the sales of home improvements. But, just looking at the above list leads to two conclusions:
- There are many homeowners looking to invest significantly in their current homes.
- Homeowners are seeking personalized product recommendations and reviews from trusted sources.
So, what do we do with this information? A few things come to immediate mind:
- Craft our marketing messages to attract homeowners who are looking for long term investment value, and who are seeking benefits like freedom from maintenance and energy efficiency.
- Figure out a way to turn every sales lead into a referral that has connected with past customers.
- Set up a system for collecting reviews from past customers.
We could go on and on … this is the power of creative thinking and brainstorming. The 2017 Metal Roofing Summit, scheduled for March 13-15 in Piqua, Ohio will feature a full day Creative Marketing Workshop designed to connect leading metal roofing retailers with each other as well as with “newbies” for the purpose of digging into today’s changing consumer, and breaking down into teams to develop new ideas to reach them. The workshop will be led by leading marketing consultant Susan Graim. You are guaranteed to go home with countless new ideas to institute in your business! More information is available on the 2017 Metal Roofing Summit website. Registration is free!
Things are changing out there, folks, and we need to recognize it and put ourselves in positions to capitalize on it. Let’s share ideas that help everyone!
Todd Miller has spent his entire career in the metal building products manufacturing industry. He is president of Isaiah Industries, an organization recognized as one of the world’s leading metal roofing manufacturers. Todd is currently Vice President of the MRA (Metal Roofing Association) and a Past Chair of MCA (Metal Construction Association). Through his website, he strives to raise the bar on standards and practices to provide property owners with the best possible products for successful roofing projects.
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