How to Keep Your New Year's Resolution

It's that time of year when many people consider making a resolution to improve their life, business, relationships, health or a host of other reasons. However, the odds say that most resolutions won't be successful. According to one study, only 8 percent of New Year's resolutions are kept.

 

A recent article in The New York Times related that the three main reasons you may fail to keep your resolution are:

1. You are not the driver of the decision. External forces such as friends, colleagues or society tell you that you need to change instead of you actually making the decision to change.
2. You don't define success or identify milestones to reach a goal.
3. Your goals are unrealistic.

The Times points out that thinking too positively and not giving yourself enough breaks are other reasons goals are not achieved. Gabriele Ottingen, a professor of psychology at New York University claims, "The more positive people fantasize and daydream about their future success, the less well they do in terms of having actual success."

 

The key is to be realistic and recognize that you most likely will revert back to behavior and acts that you want to change. But remember that having an ice cream while on a mission to lose 10 pounds doesn't mean all hope is lost. Enjoy the ice cream and then continue with your diet.

How to Have a Successful Warranty/Job Site Visit, by Traci D'Antoni (D'Antoni Sales Group)

Every showroom person dreads the phone call saying "I'm having a problem with my shower/faucet/tub and I need you to come look at it." However, these after-sale visits can be a great way to show homeowners the value of your showroom and can also be a great learning tool for the showroom staff.

 

First, ask questions - LOTS of questions. How long has the product been installed, how long has the issue been occurring, have there been any unusual water or electrical issues at the house?

 

Second, request pictures from the job site - lots of pictures. What a homeowner sees as insignificant can make a huge difference in how the issue is addressed. Photos can also help identify the manufacturer of the product.

 

Third, contact the local rep. They may be aware of an on-going issue and how to solve it without a field visit. There are many plumbing issues that can be diagnosed and resolved while simply remaining at your desk.

 

If it is determined that a field visit is necessary, assemble any necessary parts you think you might need before going to the site. It is better to err on the side of having too many parts with you than not enough.

 

Set a time for a field visit. The showroom person, the rep, the plumber and the homeowner (or homeowner representative) should be there, if at all possible. The showroom person is the liaison between the rest of the job site attendees and should be there to represent their showroom while also learning from process.

 

After the visit, the showroom staff should always follow up with the homeowner to make sure they are satisfied with the resolution of the issue. Ideally, no one likes issues with a product, but how you deal with those issues that arise can go a long way in making your showroom the "go to" operation in your area.

 

The Top Six Design Trends for 2018 on Pinterest Pins

Great news for DPHA members. Spa-inspired bathrooms ranked in the top six design trends for 2018 based on Pinterest pins. Searches for "spa-bathrooms" on Pinterest increased 269% in 2017. The other top five design trends expected for the coming year are:

1. Wall art: pins increased by 637% in 2017.
2. Patterned plants: specifying plants for new baths and kitchens help your customers relax and stay on trend. Pin searches in this category increased 533% in 2017.
3. Mixed metals: stainless steel kitchens and bath fixtures, countertops and toilets are hot. Pins for mixed metals skyrocketed 423% in 2017.
4. Terrazzo flooring: what goes around comes around. Very popular in the 1970s, terrazzo is making a comeback. Pin searches increased by 317% in 2017.
5. Statement ceilings: don't ignore this space in your bath and kitchen designs. Whether you specify paint, wallpaper, or a texture, it's a space your customers care about. Pins increased 310% in 2017.

What's are the hot trends among your clientele? Share your thoughts with fellow DPHA members on our Facebook page or with our LinkedIn group.

European Court Rules for Luxury

Good news from across the pond - the European Union's top court ruled on Tuesday, December 6 that luxury product manufacturers can prevent their brands from being sold on Amazon, EBAY or other web platforms in order to protect their brand and safeguard their exclusivity provided the company does not discriminate among retailers, reports The Wall Street Journal. 

 

The ruling involved a case brought by cosmetic manufacturer Coty against a German retailer that was selling Coty brands Calvin Klein, Marc Jacobs and Cloe on Amazon.  Coty claimed those online sales violated its contract provision that barred retailers from selling through third parties.

 

The court ruled that "The quality of luxury goods is not simply the result of their material characteristics, but also of the allure and prestigious image which bestows on them an aura of luxury.  That aura is an essential aspect of those goods in that it thus enables consumers to distinguish them from other similar goods."

The European Court decision is comparable to the Leegin Creative Leather Products decision that ruled a manufacturer can set minimum pricing policies for its products and can pull lines from companies that violate those policies.

Yes Virginia, You Can Teach Old Dogs New Tricks

Erin Bittner (Pierce Hardware) hired a new team member who did not come from the decorative plumbing and hardware industry.  In order to get her up to speed as quickly as possible, Erin tasked his new team member with reading all of the DPHA Education Program manuals and taking the Recognition Program testing modules.  When he logged on to the DPHA web site to provide access to the Education Program however, Erin realized that not all of his team members were registered for access to the Education manual, nor were they receiving weekly electronic issues of Connections and other DPHA information the helps build sales skills while keeping ones fingers on the pulse of what is happening in the industry.  As Erin related, this was a big "Ah-Ha" moment for him and Pierce Hardware. 

 

"The second thing we realized was that only a few of our team members had participated in the actual DPHA Recognition Program,"  Erin said.  His team thought that they were participating in the Recognition Program because they had downloaded the Education manuals and taken the tests at the back of each chapter, but did not realize there was another step.  That's when Erin contacted DPHA Executive Director Jim Babbitt and asked him to explain to the Pierce Hardware team how the Recognition Program works and to walk them through the DPHA web site. 

 

In fact, many of the team members at Pierce Hardware are seasoned veterans with multiple years of experience, but following Jim's presentation, Eric challenged all of his team members to take the Recognition Program sample quiz and offered a cash incentive to the person who earned the highest score.  Amazingly (or maybe not so amazingly), the winner of the cash prize was Erin's newest employee, the team member who had just recently read all of the Education Program manuals.  (Erin scored second best with 61% of the right answers, by the way.)  The test results opened Erin's and his team members' eyes to the fact that you can't rest on your past laurels and that regardless of how much experience you may have, ongoing professional development and education is essential to perform at the top of your game.

 

If you would like more information on the Recognition Program and the testing modules, or simply want your staff members to have access to the Education manuals, weekly issues of Connections, etc., please contact Jim Babbitt at jbabbitt@dpha.net.

 

Cool Product of the Week

A French startup AiZimov (www.aizimov.com) has developed a tool that will allow you to search the Internet to find out every mention of a person's name and their organization in order to enable users to craft more personal messages to prospects they don't know.  You already have access to company news releases, personal Twitter feeds and hobbies that might be listed on a LinkedIn profile.  Imagine how much more powerful a presentation or an email message might be if you discovered that your prospect is a wine lover and brought a favorite bottle of wine as a gift or sent it as a calling card.