No Ifs, Ums, Ahs or You Knows About It, by Tom Cohn (DPHA Executive Vice President)

Every time my daughter wants something from me, she begins her request with the word "So". When I hear "So," my first instinct is to say no. Filler words are frequently used when we make presentations for new projects or accounts. They do serve a purpose to help notify the person that you are speaking to about what is likely to come next, but for the most part, filler words such as "um", "ah", "so", etc., are crutches that erode your ability to effectively communicate, be perceived as authentic and obtain buy-in to your message. 

 

Pause instead of using filler words, advises Noah Zandan, CEO of Quantified Communications in a recent HBR blog. Zandan's research suggests that most conversational speech consists of short (.20 seconds), medium (.6 seconds) or long (more than one second) pauses. However, great speakers often pause for two to three seconds, which requires thoughtful practice since long pauses are difficult because they seem so much longer than they actually are. 

 

Zander claims that well-placed pauses in a presentation can make you sound calm and collected, while helping you collect your thoughts, calm your nerves and build suspense. Strategically placed pauses can be used to emphasize a point, build anticipation or give your audience time to absorb the point you are making. 

 

Reduce your use of filler words such as "like" or "so" by becoming aware of how often you use them. Video tape a rehearsal of your presentation or have a team member point out how often you use those words during a presentation.

 

Rehearsals and preparation are key to building confidence. Most filler words are used because of uncertainty and nervousness. Remember, filler words can help you relate better to your audience if they are used sparingly. That's why Google actually built in filler words to its Duplex digital assistance. As you prep for your next client pitch, identify the words you lean on most and try to avoid them. 

 

Who Is Dog Food For?

In his new book, This is Marketing, Seth Godin claims that dog food must be getting better, more nutritious and "of course, delicious," because Americans spend more than $24 billion annually on dog food.  Dog food prices continue to climb and with them a corresponding increase in gourmet ingredients that now include sweet potatoes, elk and free-range bison.

 

Have you ever seen a dog buy dog food? How could we possibly know if dog food tastes better as it gets more expensive? Do dogs enjoy it more? "We have no clue whether dogs enjoy it more, because we're not dogs," notes Godin.

 

What we do know is that dog owners enjoy the "improvements" to dog food because dog food is made for, and marketed to, dog owners who are willing to believe that gourmet and more expensive dog food tastes better because of how the purchase makes them feel. Pet owners buy gourmet dog food for "The satisfaction of taking care of an animal that responds with loyalty and affection, the status of buying a luxury good, and the generosity of sharing it," explains Godin.

 

There is no way any marketer or manufacturer can know if dog food tastes better, because it would require understanding how a dog thinks. (And anyone who has spent time with the chief morale officer in the DPHA Bethesda office knows there is not a lot of mental activity taking place daily.) The right way to market dog food is to appeal to what dog owners want. Godin's dog food lesson for decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms is that there is almost always a disconnect between performance and appeal.

 

There's two voices in our heads. There's the dog's voice - the one that doesn't have many words, but knows what it wants. And there's the owner's voice - which is nuanced, contradictory and complex. It's juggling countless inputs and is easily distracted. Dog owners select dog food based on hundreds of different factors, but taste is not one of those factors. The customers that you want to reach care about a range of inputs and emotions, not who's cheapest or how much of a discount you might offer. Godin advises everyone to choose your extremes and your market. And vice versa.

 

The Art of the Elevator Pitch

Focusing on features and benefits of products is not a good strategy because the brain craves meaning before details, claims University of Washington School of Medicine molecular biologist John Medina. When a customer does not understand what a new bath or kitchen will do for them, how it will affect their lives and how it will make them feel every time they cross the threshold, there's little chance that talking about the number of finishes or options available will make an impact.

 

To connect with prospects and repeat customers, take a page from the movie industry. Every movie begins with a pitch or an elevator speech that in one or two sentences explains what the movie is about. If there is no elevator pitch, the chances are the movie will never get produced. The lesson for kitchen and bath showrooms is to master an elevator pitch.

 

The logline used by Larry Page and Sergey Brin to obtain venture capital for their company was as follows, "Google organizes the world's information and makes it universally acceptable." Those ten words explain what Google does and why it is important. Can you develop a one sentence explanation of why someone should rely on your showroom for their new bath or kitchen? Do these following explanations work?

• We create new baths and kitchens that improve the quality of our clients' lives.
• We design kitchens that make meal preparation joyous.
• We create baths that promote health, wellness and mindfulness.
• We create spaces that you never want to leave.

The keys to a great elevator pitch are brevity, memorability, repeatability and the ability to grab someone's attention.

Everyday Heroes

Most people, given the right circumstances, will do the right things, claims Dr. James Doty, a clinical professor of neurosurgery at Stanford University and founding director of the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education. In a recent podcast, Dr. Doty gave new meaning to being a hero. "Being a hero doesn't necessarily mean that you have to jump off a bridge into freezing water and pull somebody out of the water. Being a hero can simply mean recognizing a situation where somebody is at risk and making the effort to go and help them." An act of heroism can be as simple as helping a senior citizen cross the street or standing up to someone is who bullying a coworker or friend.

 

Doty's definition of hero made us reflect on the most recent DPHA Conference. Almost everyone who works in a DPHA showroom is a hero. Consider how often and how many of your team members go above and beyond a job description to solve a problem, to craft an innovative solution or to make a positive difference in the lives of your clients.

 

DPHA has a vast resource of heroes. DPHA President Gary Ericson is a hero - he bleeds DPHA blue and constantly promotes the value of being a DPHA member. DPHA President-Elect Ryan Paul is a hero, spending countless hours strategizing to create additional value for all DPHA members.  Everyone who serves on the DPHA Board of Directors is a hero because they make the effort to help our fellow members, their staffs, clients and others.   

 

Most DPHA members perform heroic acts daily and that's why DPHA has programs, activities and communities to recognize them. Our community and organization will continue to build strength and deliver additional benefits that help make heroism commonplace. As our mission statement says at the beginning of every issue of Connections, we are "A network of exceptional decorative hardware and plumbing professionals creating a culture of excellence and education."

The Lessons from the Palessi Prank

Payless pulled a fast one several weeks ago in storied Santa Monica, CA. The discount footware purveyor took over a former Armani store and stocked it with $19.99 pumps and $39.99 boots. That should not surprise anyone familiar with Payless, but that's not the whole story. The company and its marketing agency then invited groups of Southern California influencers to attend the grand opening of a new retailer called "Palessi" and asked their invited guests to comment on the merchandise featured in the store.

 

Those invited to the grand opening did not have a clue they were evaluating discount shoes often sold in malls and strip centers. They were asked how much they would pay for the merchandise they were evaluating. The top amount was $640 and the store recorded more than $3,000 in sales within the first couple of hours that it was open.

 

Payless rang up the sales but did not keep the money. Party goers who made purchases were told of the prank and received a full refund along with free shoes.

 

What lessons does the Payless prank teach decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms? It's the story that matters - products are products. Both hot and cold water comes out of showerheads and faucets. Sinks are vessels where water can be trapped and drained. Vanities provide space to store things. Stop focusing on products and start telling better stories. When you do, you can convince a noted fashion influencer to pay $640 for a pair of shoes that otherwise could be had for $19.99. Showroom sales professionals need to learn how to tell compelling stories that match the built-in narratives and dreams of their customers.

Opportunity Knocking

The decorative plumbing and hardware industry is influenced by, and follows, fashion trends.  So what's trending in fashion?  Personalization and luxury brands have an advantage.  More than half of all consumers are interested in purchasing customized products or having a personalized element added to their shopping experience, according to a recent article in Glossy.  

 

Luxury consumers that patronize decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms expect exceptional customer service.  They pay a premium to have their hand held and for showroom professionals to walk them through the process, make recommendations best suited for their project and handle problems that may arise.  But that's not enough to set your showroom apart from the competition or to gain trust or loyalty.  Today's luxury consumers want more.  

 

To capitalize on consumer interest in personal design statements and customization, new niche fashion brands such as Sene offers custom clothing for both men and women. Nike and Adidas let consumers design their own shoes.  Consortium opened a new brick-and-mortar store in New York's Soho neighborhood offering only custom-made clothing.  

 

What are the lessons for decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms?  Partner with brands that enable you to customize their products for specific projects. Split finishes, custom finishes, choices of handles, spouts, systems, etc., enable you to create unique products and solutions for your clients.  Promote the fact that you can create custom products.  Feature a custom products display in your showroom of one-of-a-kind items that you have produced for clients and projects.  

 

Consumers that cross the threshold of a brick-and-mortar decorative plumbing and hardware showroom are looking for a great brand experience.  They are there because they want a professional who can understand their needs and act upon them.  

 

Do you have customization success stories?  If so, share them on the DPHA Facebook page or with our LinkedIn Group.

Is the Future Now?

The goal of Nike's new Manhattan flagship store is to make the brick-and-mortar buying experience as seamless and easy as it is purchasing online.  The store is huge - six floors comprising 68,000 square feet - with two customization studios, a sneaker center with displays on how shoes are designed, tested and manufactured, and a Speed Shop on the basement level with its own entrance where you can reserve shoes in advance that you are considering buying. When you arrive at the store, there is a wall of lockers, one of which will have your name on it. Use a smart phone to open your locker and the shoes you have reserved will be there.  If you decide to buy one of the pairs you reserved, you can simply check out using your phone without having to go to a register or wait in line.

 

To use the Speed Shop, just download the Nike App on a smart device (phone or tablet), which also can be used to reserve other merchandise in the store.  If you like an article of clothing, scan the QR code with the app or any other product in the store and those items will be waiting for you in the size you requested at a fitting room.  Additionally, the fitting rooms have three light settings to reflect how the clothing might look in daylight, at an indoor gym or at a fitness class.  Again, you can use the app to purchase everything without going to a register and Nike has placed small stations throughout the store on each floor as self-checkout points.  It is there that customers can leave hangers and grab a bag for their purchases.

 

To take advantage of the conveniences, consumers will have to become a Nike member (there's no cost for this), download the app and give Nike permission to track their location.  In that way, Nike will know the moment you walk into the store and will send you notifications when you are nearby.  If you don't want Nike to track your daily movements, you can simply turn the app off.  

 

Has Nike upped the ante? It's fans certainly won't mind receiving a constant stream of messages and taking advantage of conveniences that the app offers.  Undoubtedly, other retailers will follow suit, creating enhanced customer expectations that purchasing at a brick-and-mortar business should be fast, easy and fun. If someone came to your showroom to select products for their new bath, would they view the process as fast, easy and fun?  What can you do right now to make it easier and more enjoyable to buy from you as compared to your competition? 

 

You Only Get One Chance to Make a Positive First Impression

Charting the initial steps of your customer's bath or kitchen remodel journey can enable you to stand apart from the competition, establish trust with a potential client and identify opportunities to differentiate your showroom at every touch point. Most customer journeys begin with Google and your website.

 

Your website is the window into the soul of your business. If you visited your website and looked at it through the lens of someone considering a kitchen remodel, what information, message, and/or call to action would attract that person to remain on the site, email you, request information, call your showroom or visit it in person? Your landing page needs to deliver the same impact and make the same impression as the $100,000 "front of the store" display that greets visitors to your showroom. Use your landing page to reflect the most current styles and trends in the marketplace, and answer the question, "why you and not a competitor". 

 

Whet your potential customers' appetites and generate enthusiasm by explaining how their new kitchen will improve their life. And demonstrate how you can deliver the kitchen of their dreams. Finally, have a call to action. Provide a buying guide, a renovation step-by-step guide, a budget guide or other information that makes the customer journey easier. 

 

That being said, do not allow prospects to simply download the information that will help them make their renovation easier, or any other material, without providing you with their name, email and phone number. Finally, remember the website needs to be focused on your potential client's needs and not on you. Potential customers want to know how you can help them and why you they should trust you versus someone else.

 

Don't Get Overwhelmed by E-Mail!

How much time every day do you spend looking at and responding to emails? A recent study found that on average professionals spend 4.1 hours per day responding to email messages. That's half the day for many of you. And if you are like many others, chances are that your email Inbox is never completely empty. 

 

How can you manage your email Inbox more effectively? One way is to be judicious with what you agree to do. Every time you say "yes" to helping someone, making a referral, assisting a colleague or doing favors for others, you are committing additional time that will most likely involve having to respond to additional emails. If you want to get a better grip on your time and email obligations, try tracking for a two week period the number of emails you receive that ask you to do something you had not previously committed to. Doing so will help you focus on your most important priorities such as responding to clients and marketing your business.

The Value of a Good Night's Sleep

Operating a bath and kitchen showroom is not easy. There are constant demands and the fact for many is that the "to-do" list is never completely done. You put in long hours and the demands of your position likely come at the cost of a good night's sleep. What's the trade off? Research shows that when leaders trade sleep in order to work more, they become less effective, are more hostile, have less effective relationships with team members, are less likely to inspire others and experience declining engagement rates on the teams that they manage. When you are tired, you become more impulsive, less creative and innovative, and less likely to make the best decisions.

If you regularly put off sleep in order to accomplish one more task or cross another item off the "to-do" list, reconsider. Working 15 and 18 hour days might enable you to get more done, but it also will cause you to make more mistakes, which in turn will cause you to waste time making corrections (provided the mistakes are caught). The longer you work, the less productive you become. Most executives and leaders are more productive, creative and profitable if they dedicate their days to performing high-quality work instead of trying to get as much done as possible.

Caffeine is an effective barometer of your sleep needs. If you need to drink a pot of coffee every morning to prevent sluggishness, that raises a major red flag that you are not getting a sufficient among of sleep. The same warning signs flash if you need caffeine in the afternoon to make it through the end of the day.

Delegating some of your tasks to team members is another tool you should use to make sure you produce high quality work every day that does not compromise your ability and desire to get the proper amount of sleep each night.

Develop a plan when you intend to arrive at, and leave, the office every day and stick to it. Have a daily "to-do" list and prioritize your most important tasks. Recognize that on most days there likely will be items remaining on your list when you leave work. Ask yourself this question before making the decision to stay or leave, "If I don't finish this task before leaving, will my world come to an end?" Most likely the answer is no! Research shows that when highly productive leaders sleep well, they are more effective.

Improving Out-of-Office Messaging

There are times of the year when you go on vacation, attend the annual DPHA Conference or are away from the showroom to celebrate births, weddings and other milestone events. Too often, many of us create an out of office message similar to the following, "Your correspondence is important to me. However, I am out of the office and have limited access to email. I will respond as quickly as I can when I return. If you need immediate help, email or call, xyz person." The odds are that this type of message is probably used 98 percent of the time. However, there are better options that enable you to connect with those who email you if you simply provide a few more details. This will enable you to better engage with your email senders when you return to work. For example, "I am out of the office to attend the annual Decorative Plumbing & Hardware Association Annual Conference where I will spend a considerable amount of time exchanging and learning trends and best industry practices that will bring additional value to you and our clients. If you need immediate assistance contact xyz person." In a similar vein, if you are celebrating a milestone consider the following, "I am out of the office celebrating the birth of our first grandson, Jake. In honor of this momentous event, I will not be checking my emails until (date). If you need immediate assistance, contact xyz person."

 

Experiment with your messaging. When you add a bit more information and make it personal, chances are that when you return, you will have great conversation starters and be able to better connect with your clients, team members and prospects.

Making Better Decisions

Everyone struggles to make tough decisions. Is there a process that can make tough decision making easier? The answer is "yes" according to management consultant Rick Houcek, and he turns to Winston Churchill as his guide. Churchill is both one of the most loved and loathed characters of the 20th Century. Credited with protecting England from Hitler's onslaught in World War II, Churchill was forced to make thousands of life-and-death decisions. Churchill developed a process outlined in his book, Churchill on Leadership, that he deemed "5 distinct truths" to make decisions:

1. There is full authority to make the decision
2. There is a reasonable prospect for success based on the decision made
3. Greater interests are not compromised
4. All possible care and forethought are exercised in the preparation
5. All vigor and determination are shown in the execution

Houcek adds a sixth point:

• Adjust as you go as you gather valuable new information.

Every day in the showroom you and your team make decisions. Brainstorm with fellow team members to identify the criteria you should follow to make more effective decisions. Churchill provides a road map. Will it work for you? If not, what will?

The Difference Between Trust and Loyalty, by Tom Cohn (DPHA Executive Vice President)

There was a recall on one of my cars recently, so I took it to the dealer to be fixed. While it was in the shop, I asked for an oil change and a replacement wiper blade. I also asked the technician to check a whistling sound coming from an air vent. 

 

Several hours later, I received a call from the service technician who offered a laundry list of fixes and recommendations that totaled more than $3,000. The repairs that I had requested amounted to $112.50. Being mechanically challenged and not knowing the difference between a camshaft and a spark plug, I questioned the service manager about his recommendations. The car had just reached 60,000 miles, and the manager informed me that at 60,000 miles the dealership performs a number of preventive maintenance services such as changing the power steering fluid and a bunch of other stuff that sailed right over my head. Now I must admit that I take care of my cars, and I have two others. One is 19 years old and the other is 24 years old. Both run great. I have had no previous problems with preventive maintenance, but I do want my cars to last a long time. When I got the call, however, my antenna went up. "Danger, Danger" rang through my head, and for good reason. About six months earlier, I had to take the 19 year old car to the same dealer for an emissions check. A couple of hours after dropping it off, a call came in recommending $5,500 worth of repairs. I simply laughed. The car is not worth $5,500, so I respectfully declined the additional repair recommendations. That was more than a year ago, and the car continues to operate beautifully.

 

I asked a simple question, "Does the car really need all of this work?" The response I received was, "this is what we do at 60,000 miles." I again asked, "Does the car need to have the work done. I realize that this is what you want to do, but is it necessary?" The manager could not answer. He repeatedly stated that this is what they do. He could not answer why they do it or explain the necessity for doing it. I was left to believe that the only reason the work was recommended was to make money for the dealership. Bottom line: There was no trust. 

 

Trust is the hardest thing for any business to earn today. This lack of trust is helping to commoditize products and service. That's one of many reasons for Amazon's success. According to Charles H. Green, author of Trust-Based Selling, "We know that when we are buyers, we are afraid of being manipulated or taken advantage of, looking stupid or silly in the eyes of our peers or bosses or subordinates or of risks only simply perceived. In all cases, our inclination is to revert to features and price and away from the relationship - and away from the risks and opportunities of trust."

 

Consumer caution and skepticism fuels commoditization that has intensified because the Internet provides access to information never before available. Couple that with online discussion forums and review sites such as Yelp, Angie's List, Home Advisor and a host of others and consumers, regardless of what they purchase, do not willingly trust sellers. Trust is something that has to be earned. 

What are you doing to earn the trust of your customers? Do you know how trust is established? Green points out there is a difference between trust and loyalty. Customers may buy from you, but that does not necessarily mean they trust you. Trust involves making emotional connections. It requires really listening to customers, understanding both their wants and needs, and then delivering. Green believes that trust is established if a buyer believes that the seller actually cares. "Caring is indicated by things like paying attention to, showing interest in and exhibiting curiosity about the things that customers themselves care about. If you do, people tend to trust you, and buy from you when they need what you are selling," Green writes.

 

Did the service manager at the car dealership care about me or my car? There was nothing in our conversation that gave me that impression. What do you and your sales staff do to show that you care? 

 

Lessons We Can Learn From Sears

On Monday, October 15, Sears filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, announced the shuttering of more than 140 stores and fired its CEO.  None of these actions came as a surprise to anyone who has followed Sears recently.  There will be many who attribute Sears' woes to Amazon and other online etailers, but that's not the reason for Sears' current predicament, because Sears was Amazon before the Internet was even a pipe dream.

 

Sears is arguably one of the most innovative companies in retail history.  As the Retail Doctor, Bob Phibbs, points out in a recent blog, in the 1920s, Sears opened a new store on average every other business day.  When a journalist asked President Franklin D. RooseveIt if he could send only one book to the Soviet Union, what would it be, his response was "The Sears Catalog."  

 

Sears revolutionized retail, direct mail, merchandising, customer flow and store design due to a corporate culture of innovation flowing through every fiber of the company's DNA. Did you know that Sears introduced the Discover Card to help offer credit to catalog shoppers?  Did you realize that when Sears started Allstate it was the first time consumers had the ability to buy insurance through direct-mail?  Acquiring Dean Whitter and Coldwell Banker and combining those services along with Allstate gave Sears the ability to provide a wide range of services all under one roof.  

 

Sears had no equal when it came to training its sales professionals.  Starting in the 1940s, Sears taught their sales professionals to always promote first the best in category.  For example, if a customer wanted to purchase the least expensive Kenmore washing machine, Sears associates were taught to direct that customer to the most expensive Kenmore model and explain how much more functionality and benefits the top-of-the-line item offered.  If the customer did not bite, the sales professional would then move to the next model down and explain what benefits would not be available at this price point, and so on.  

 

Customers could order merchandise through the catalog and pick it up in store. Sound familiar?  In the 1980s, Sears used its own employees in ad campaigns to promote its new line of beauty products. That campaign was another first-to-market innovation.  

 

What happened? Sears stopped innovating in the 1980s. For many DPHA members and their parents and grandparents, Sears was a staple. They knew that they could go to Sears and get what they needed at a fair price from a knowledgeable and helpful sales professional. But Sears lost its focus - it forgot what made it successful, resulting in many of its customers gravitating to Target, Walmart and Amazon.  

 

Here are some of the lessons that the Sears predicament teaches.

• Don't ever forget who your customers are and what they need.  Sears offered to a wide swath of Americans the ability to acquire products that made their lives more fulfilling.  Their sales professionals realized their primary role was to help customers obtain the good things life had to offer.  At your next sales meeting, brainstorm with your team on approaches you can take to talk to your customer about how the products, services and end results of what you do improves their lives and provides access to the best things life has to offer.

• Technology is a tool, but not a complete solution. Sears tried equipping sales associates at 450 Sears and Kmart stores with iPads to help bridge the gap between online and in-store sales, but technology and omni-channel purchasing opportunities are not substitutes for knowledgeable, friendly and professional sales associates. 

• Invest in your brand. Have you been to a Sears lately? If you have, most likely you were depressed when you left.  Sears spent on average a paltry 91 cents per square foot in capital expenditures per store. Contrast that figure with Best Buy's investment of $15.36 per square foot in the same time period.  What impression does your showroom offer to someone who walks in the door for the first time?

• Your marketing must reflect reality.  Sears' marketing was top shelf - it has its own YouTube channel that offers helpful information. However, when marketing drove customers to stores, a different portrait was painted. Consumers found too few sales professionals whose knowledge was not the best, too many discounts and too much merchandise that was out of stock. 

The future of Sears remains tentative at best.  You can take the lessons from Sears though and make sure you don't suffer a similar fate. Focus on your customers' needs. Make sure your showroom and marketing reflect that brand that you want to project, and train your sale professionals to understand their role is to make their lives of their customers better. 

How to Put Your Team In Your Clients' Shoes

Empathy is a powerful tool to connect with customers and build their trust. Unless someone on your team has actually undertaken a bath or kitchen renovation, they really can't completely relate to what it's like to have part of their home ripped apart with troops of strangers marching through it for an extended period of time.  How can you emulate that experience without actually undertaking a renovation? Consider inventing a game or exercise that illustrates the challenges and stress that your customers encounter when selecting products and living through a renovation.  Here's a roadmap:

• Identify with your team what makes it difficult to select products, budget effectively, respond to unexpected changes and create realistic expectations.
• What comparable experiences does your team encounter when they make transformative decisions that affect the quality of their lives, such as buying a car or moving into a new home or apartment?
• How can you simulate, act out or play through the process of renovating a new bath or kitchen?  

For team members who have never had to stand in their customers' shoes, developing examples and games that replicate the experience will not only provide them with a deeper appreciation of a customer's concerns, it can also identify countless opportunities to improve the customer experience.

Boosting the Benefit of Bar Time

The networking during bar time and other events generates a big return while attending the DPHA Conference (October 11-14, 2018) at the Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL. At the bar, members can discuss how things are going with peers from across North America. It's also the only venue where dealers can receive a real inside perspective on the state of the industry and business practices that others use to address the daily challenges of owning and running a showroom. 

 

You can maximize the returns on your bar-time conversations in Ponte Vedra Beach by preparing in advance - sorry though, that does not mean to start drinking now. When someone asks "how's business", don't automatically respond with the tried and true, "good, could be better, great, coming around, on the uptick," etc. Instead, use those standard questions to engage in a more beneficial conversation by giving a couple of examples of how you have made things better, changes that are taking place or recent accomplishments. Instead of saying, "business is good," relate that business is good because a couple of new things you have tried are starting to bear fruit. For example, state something to the effect that you took a dive headfirst into the social media pool and already have acquired 625 new friends, several of whom you converted to customers when they came to the showroom. Or you may want to say, "we weaned our faucet lines from 163 down to 24 that we now focus on. Our sales, margins and profits all increased as a result." Two examples is all you need to really get the discussion going because your peers are likely to respond with recent accomplishments of their own. 

 

Bar time also presents a perfect opportunity to talk about problems you are working on or challenges you are looking to overcome. When you are networking with your peers, talk about what's different now compared to six months ago and why. It's a great way to catch up with old friends, and a better tool to really engage in a meaningful discussion. 

 

Finally, don't be shy about asking your peers for opinions and their advice. To get the conversation going, you may want to say, "our business is really starting to take off. I know you guys are also doing well, especially since you started using iPads in your showroom. Can you explain what you had to do to get buy-in from your staff to move away from paper catalogs and use electronic libraries on tablets instead?" 

 

When you are at the DPHA Conference, don't miss the opportunity for meaningful engagement and guidance from your peers. Instead of responding with the standard one-word or one-phrase answers to questions about how your business is doing, think about follow-ups that can start a conversation about challenges, or issues and experiences that you want to discuss from a resource that is rarely available at any other time of the year. And it's also okay to have a drink or two. 

 

Do you need more reasons to attend the DPHA Conference? Let us provide another one. It will make your business better. If you waited until the last minute to reserve, there's still time to make your business better. Contact Rebekah Covay at rebekah@dpha.net or call her at 630-854-3911 to reserve.

Writing More Effective Emails

You are prospecting a new high-end builder to make your showroom the "go-to" resource for all decorative plumbing and hardware. You realize that cold calling won't work, but crafting a compelling and creative e-mail may help get your foot in the door.  To grab their attention and persuade your prospect to open your email, you must begin with a strong subject line.   A couple of examples, "Interested in selling your homes faster?"  Another might be, "Are margins important?"  "Need to capture the attention of a fickle market?"  Determine what causes your existing builder clients the most pain associated with decorative plumbing and hardware, and offer a solution in your subject line.

 

Follow the subject line with a powerful opening sentence.  "Working with XYZ builders has enabled the company to reduce anticipated sell times by X number of weeks, days, months?  What would that do for your bottom line?"

 

The next step is your call to action.  If your goal is to arrange a meeting, an effective CTA (call to action) might be, "We work with several custom builders that are our best source of new business.  Let me prove that there is such a thing as a free lunch.  What's a good day to get together?"

 

Your closing salutation should be simple and to the point, such as thank you for your attention to this request.  We look forward to creating value to your future projects.

Returns and the Pit of Despair, by Darryl Jones (QuickDrain USA), an Education Committee Member

No one, and I mean no one, like's the process of returning product, be it the manufacturer, end user or decorative showroom. It happens occasionally, or more then we would like to admit, for any number of reasons. Below are the most common:

1. Ordering mistake - If you are just one digit off, the product can be ordered wrong. Make sure you triple check your model numbers or get a fresh set of eyes on the quote.
2. Customer changes their mind - This happens when customers are unclear on what they are actually receiving. Have the customer focus on one room at a time and then review the order with your customer at least three times. Mark in bold any areas of concern so that they are not forgotten. Be sure to point out finishes being ordered that won't match (Oil Rubbed Bronze) or other products of concern (your customer has a full body "car wash" and needs to up-size their water heater).
3. The manufacturer ships the wrong product - This is a difficult situation to be in. On large orders, I have the warehouse contact me, so I can help check in the order. Murphy's law states that mistakes are guaranteed to happen on your large orders or with your most challenging customer. Trust me - it's worth the extra time to check the order in before it ships to the job site.

Rules of processing a return

• Check and see if you're in the manufacturer's time frame to handle the return (most have a 90-day stipulation).
• Never credit the customer before the return has been processed. (Products can only be returned if they are in saleable condition). Remember, the customer bears the responsibility of getting the merchandise back to you in one piece.
• Inform the warehouse that products being shipped back have to be received in a shipping box. (Some manufacturers won't except a return with mailing labels attached to the product box, or they will charge you a re-boxing fee.)
• Go over the restocking fees with your customer and let them know that a credit will be issued once the manufacture excepts the return. (Think transparency).

Returns happen - it's a known fact, however, you can safeguard yourself by having a review process before the products are ordered. Consider a sign-off on large ticket items (hydrotherapy tubs, vanities, mirrors, steam generators and any special ordered products). After all, people take things seriously once they have to sign a piece of paper. Stick to your guns and hold the order until you have a signature. As a manufacturer and past showroom manager, I've handled a lot of returns. Process returns as quickly as possible and move on to your next project. Treat a return like a child - if your customers need an answer today on a return, then the answer should be "no", otherwise they can wait until you contact the manufacturer. Returns are part of the business - all you can do is minimize your chances of having to deal with one.

 

The Downside of Optimism

There have been numerous studies that show being an optimist is good for your physical and mental well-being. However, does the benefits of being an optimist translate to the showroom? Not necessarily. According to Liz Wiseman, author of Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter, there are generally two types of people: multipliers and diminishers. 

Multipliers, as the name implies, highlight the intelligence and skill sets of their co-workers. Conversely, diminishers do exactly the opposite. Even the best managers and leaders can have elements of a diminisher in them, because their personalities are so large they tend to inhibit or intimidate their fellow team members.

Optimism is one of the characteristics of a diminisher. The potential downside of an eternal optimist is that they are so positive that almost anything can be accomplished they tend to turn a blind eye to the difficulty in achieving the goal. The way to avoid optimistic diminishing is to acknowledge how difficult a task or project will be. Wiseman also suggests asking lots of questions that help identify potential challenges such as - "What obstacles are we going to have to overcome that we have not yet considered? Are there good reasons that we are heading down the wrong path? What questions have we not asked that we should have?"

Unbridled optimism can be a negative simply due to the fact that fellow team members, subcontractors and others involved with a kitchen and bath remodel need to have their experiences validated. Even if you see the glass half full all of the time, understand that many on your team are involved with difficult projects, taxing deadlines and outside service and product providers that sometimes disappoint. When you acknowledge the difficulty in achieving goals, deadlines and/or budgets, you validate feelings that most of your team are reticent to vocalize.

What To Do When the Market Shrinks

Guess what?  As a society, Americans are not going forth and multiplying.  The number of Americans, which translates to the number of potential future customers, is growing at less than one percent annually.  In fact, the U.S. is at the lowest population levels since 1937. There are several reasons for our population stagnation, among which are fewer births as a result of Millennials marrying later in life and having fewer children when they do marry, fewer immigrants as a result of national policy and fewer deaths.  

 

Concurrently, there are population shifts. Did you know that Utah is the fastest growing state in the U.S.? Whoda thunk it?  And major metropolitan areas are not increasing their population. Combine fewer potential customers with the increased use of online retail, and you can see why brick-and-mortar stores in traditional retail hotbeds will have to respond to this changing societal dynamic.  

 

One of the points may be, according to L2 Founder and New York University Stern School of Business Professor Scott Gallaway, that the reason many mid-market to premium retailers are suffering is the ongoing erosion of the middle class. That helps explain the challenges faced by J.C. Penny, Sears and Macys (among others).  Pew Research reveals that those considered "middle class" have plummeted 11 percentage points from 1971 to 2015 and Pam Danzinger of Unity Marketing notes that the middle class' share of the nation's aggregate income has declined from 62 percent in 1970 to 43 percent in 2014.

 

While the middle class is eroding, the upper tier of the revenue producers is increasing.  There are 35 million affluent American households, of which 5 million have an annual household income exceeding $250,000. Another demographic trend affecting decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms is multi-generational households. An estimated 40 percent of Millennials are still living at home or with other family members.  That's the largest percentage of child-parent households since 1940.  The number of households with elderly parents living with their children is also increasing, signifying market opportunities for showrooms that can help homeowners modify their houses for aging in place.  This market opportunity becomes even more illuminated by the fact that only 10 percent of Americans are expected to move in a year.  That is half the number that moved in the 1960s and the lowest percentage of household turnover since 1948.

 

Baby boomers are the second largest generation in history and currently the generation with the most money. As boomers want to stay in their homes longer, targeted marketing campaigns to this demographic should generate positive returns.  Meet with your staff and brainstorm ideas of how to better serve this critical market segment.  

 

Women still control or influence the purchase of 80% of everything.  However, the number of women in the workforce has actually declined since 2000.  The Labor Department estimates that women in the workforce in 2020 will be at a lower level than it was in 1990.  The fact that fewer women are earning paychecks is not a positive trend for premium and luxury brands or brick-and-mortar retail in general.  

 

Lessons for decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms:

• Because more baby boomers are aging in place and moving less often, there are opportunities for upgrades of existing homes to develop an expertise for aging in place.
• Millennials gravitate toward experiences rather than brands or conspicuous consumption. Craft messages that tout the health and experiential benefits of a new bath.
• Women, while declining in the workforce, still make the vast majority of purchasing decisions. Make sure that your market efforts and sales approaches are female orientated.  
• There are 30 million Americans who are considered wealthy, and 5 million who are considered ultra-wealthy, e.g. household incomes in excess of $250,000.  Develop marketing campaigns that appeal to this demographic.  

The State of American Luxury

Not so fast to ring the death bell for brick-and-mortar retail.  Yes, there are a rash of closings from Toys R Us to Sears and many others whose model, merchandising and go-to-market strategies are cemented in the 20th century.  They depended upon providing consumers with a panorama of products that could be purchased at one location.  The Internet changed the game, making it easier for consumers to purchase online than to make a trip to a brick-and-mortar retailer whose main claim to fame was their breadth of product selection.  

 

Then there is Bonobos, Warby Parker, Amazon Books and a host of other online etailers who are rapidly expanding into the brick-and-mortar arena.  Target and Walmart recently reported their best quarterly performance in a decade. Other brick-and-mortar retailers that are thriving include Nordstrom, Home Depot, TJ Maxx and Urban Outfitters.  

 

What about luxury brands? Tapestry, the parent company that owns Coach, Kate Spade and Stuart Weitzman, reported increased top line sales of 31% in the fourth quarter of its fiscal year. Michael Kors had almost equally impressive results, up 26.3% in its latest quarterly report.  However, the top line sales don't paint the entire picture.  Michael Kors' same store sales were relatively flat.  Coach's same store sales, including ecommerce, increased by a paltry 2%. 

 

The definition and perception of luxury are also changing.  When you think of luxury handbags, is Coach the first name that pops into your head?  Probably not.   The first thoughts may be Hermes or Louis Vitton.  And that distinction is at the heart of "American Luxury."  There's a strong case to say that American Luxury no longer exists. Tapestry and Michael Kors produce premium products.  They can't be considered luxury simply by definition if luxury is defined as "an inessential, desirable item which is expensive or difficult to obtain or a pleasure obtained only rarely," per the Oxford English Dictionary.  Is anything that Michael Kors or Tapestry offer difficult to obtain or do they usually deliver a "pleasure"?

 

The same parallel holds true for decorative plumbing and hardware products.  There are certaiunly brands that can be defined as luxury, however many showroom products can be found heavily discounted either on the showroom floor or on the Internet.  The continued success of DPH premium brands and products requires combining newness with value.  Evidence of the combination in the DPH showroom is exemplified by technological advances in thermostatic valves, which today are almost priced the same as pressure balanced valves.  Another key to the continued success of the decorative plumbing and hardware showroom is to understand what your customers truly want and the motivation behind their desire to equip their home with premium products that not only deliver better experiences, but also make the customers feel good about their purchases.  What doesn't work is the "spaghetti against the wall" approaches exemplified by having multiple brands and products whose design and performance are not distinguishable and then hoping that something sticks.  And as sales guru Gerry Layo told DPHA members at a previous conference, "Hope is not a good strategy." 

Does Luxury Mean Anything Anymore?

Does your showroom sell luxury products?  If you believe it does, you may have another "think" coming.  Sebastien van Laere of the Future Laboratory recently wrote that the term luxury has been so overused that it no longer has meaning.  Luxury is defined as "an inessential, desirable item which is expensive or difficult to obtain or a pleasure obtained only rarely," by the Oxford English Dictionary.  If that definition is accurate, then any product in your showroom that is offered at a substantial discount by an online etailer or competitor cannot be considered luxurious.

 

Millennials create another challenge to using luxury nomenclature.  The largest generation in US history is generally not attracted to products just to show them off.  For Millennials, conspicuous consumption is a negative.  Throughout the luxury world, manufacturers and retailers are changing the narrative to align with new consumer expectations and desires.  Van Laere notes that cultural changes have spawned anti-luxury approaches.  Tiffany employed a rapper to promote its new Paper Flower products and its new London concept store features fragrance vending machines, neon lights and sneaker-wearing sales professionals.

 

Using the word "luxury" to describe a product or a showroom no longer has cache.  But it is more than nomenclature that needs to change.  The entire customer experience needs to follow suit as well by delivering high-quality, sustainable and memorable moments that are remarkable. What do you offer to customers that will make them want to talk about their experience to neighbors, peers and friends?

 

Email or Call? That Is the Question

When you want to establish a relationship with a prospective client, be it a builder, multi-family developer or single-family homeowner, what's better for an initial contact - email or phone call? After all, you have only one opportunity to make a first impression, so you want to make sure that it is a positive one.  Robert Graham, author of Cold Calling Early Customers, recommends sending an email because it does not require the recipient to respond immediately.  Plus, you can use an email as a reason to make a follow-up phone call.  

 

Another reason to email first instead of calling is it provides the opportunity for your showroom to explain your value proposition and convince the prospect that you are a better solution than the one they may currently be using or are considering.  Realistically, few of your prospects are going to take a call from a showroom they may never have heard of before or may not be interested in.

 

Google trends is a great tool to gauge how well your brand is recognized in your market territory.  Log on to Google Trends to determine how many times your company's name has been searched versus the searches of your top competitors.  If you are blogging at least weekly, chances are your showroom is getting significantly more visibility because there is a strong possibility you are appearing on the first page of Google searches.

 

You can skip the email or phone debate altogether though if you can use a contact to introduce you.  If you don't have a contact, check out the prospect's LinkedIn profile, Twitter or Instagram accounts and start to engage them by using social media to demonstrate how you can add value to their project.

 

Regardless of your strategy, make sure you know who you are contacting and what their needs are.  Researching a project's prospect enables you to craft personalized messages that address their needs.

Leadership + Innovation > Entrepreneurship, by Phil Hotarek (Lutz Bath & Kitchen), an Education Committee Member

For decades, companies have been pitched the concept of entrepreneurship as a method for harboring innovation.  You may have heard of several inspiring stories spawned from "rebels" such as: the Sony Playstation, Skunk Works, the Gmail search feature and the post-it note.  While one great idea may be born from a brilliant mind, the real key to a "post-it note" idea being born is developing a culture that embraces innovation with strong, open-minded leadership.  Innovation must be a company-wide venture with 100% buy-in from top to bottom.  It is a permanent function within an organization that is constantly seeking ways to improve operating processes, market strategies, and company growth.

A potential side effect of the entrepreneurship sales pitch is the development of an "anti-corporate" mindset that could inspire an employee to swim against the tide resulting in a potential company divide.  While the idea of being a company renegade is enticing to some, the reality is it ends up adversely affecting cyclical innovation and employee retention.  Companies also want to avoid depending on one "superhero" mind to fly in and save the day.  Instead, organizations need to be committed to a system that continuously innovates.  Most importantly, innovation within a company can not be disconnected from the larger operations, but holistically embraced throughout the organization.

• Leadership committed to an inclusive and innovative culture
• The ability to provide necessary resources
• The requirement of clear articulation of a proposed idea with data driven results
• Implementation process and planning
• Tracking data and incentives of innovation cycles
• Recruiting top industry skill and talent for business development

By embedding the above elements, you create a strong company identity that embraces a culture of consistent innovation.  The benefits of this strategy?  You end up with highly motivated employees who remain challenged, engaged, team oriented, and drive company growth with creative thinking skills. 

A Brilliant Marketing Idea

What's the goal of your marketing efforts?  The traditional marketing path relied on advertising to make a business more visible, but visibility and memorability are not one and the same and one does not necessarily beget the other.  Today's marketing for decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms, which must account for the fact that consumers control a businesses' brand, should focus on creating memorable customer experiences.

 

Bernadette Jiwy, in another brilliant blog post, related the story of a new bakery that decided to eschew traditional advertising, opting instead to promote its brand by offering a weekly bread basket to one lucky customer, who received a week's supply of different breads and goodies to share with their family.  But that's not all and the "not all" is a stroke of genius. Each customer who won the bread basket then got to nominate the next person to receive the free bread and to document the reasons why they chose their friend, colleague or neighbor in a notebook at the bakery.  The free weekly giveaway, Jiwy points out, did not simply promote the bakery's brand, it connected friends and neighbors and made them feel like they mattered.  

 

The lesson for decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms? Why not offer a weekly gift to a potential or former customer?  Why not partner with a faucet, cabinet knob, shower head or other manufacturer and provide a bath improvement basket?  Why not have your customers nominate a colleague, friend or neighbor to win the next basket and have them write the reasons they should win the basket on a notebook in the showroom, and on your web site?  Why not?