What Message Do You Send?

Bathroom design has climbed numerous notches in the past decade.  Today, successful design focuses on creating a personal oasis that provides an escape from the outside world. It is a space that your clients call their own, devoid of texts and tweets, and a place where they can literally wash away the stresses of the day.

 

The baths you create for your clients provide them with a refuge and a place to relax.  Many clients are inspired by their travels.  Does your sales team ask prospects where they like to relax, what is their favorite spot to vacation and what hotels have they stayed at that made an impression?  If your clients stay at hotels, resorts and spas that spark their imaginations, you can use their curiosity to explain that you can help them create a similar place of wellness and relaxation in their home. Many of the baths that you design feature jetted, soaking, air or combination tubs, sculptural freestanding baths that serve functional and aesthetic roles, steam showers, multispray showers with music, aroma and color therapies, etc.  The list goes on and on.

 

You know that space is always a challenge when designing a new bathroom.  Powder rooms are particularly challenging.  However, it is the bath that is renovated most often because it is the bathroom that friends and family use the most.  Regardless of the space your clients have for a bath renovation, your message should explain that good design can make even the smallest of powder rooms look and feel relaxing and inviting.  Good design creates a feeling that offers the most amount of enjoyment and fun in the smallest amount of space.  Good design is not available from transactional online purchases.  Good design is a distinctive competency that provides your showroom with competitive advantages.

 

Designing a master bath gives you the opportunity to improve the quality of your clients' lives while simultaneously permitting them to make a unique design statement. There are health and wellness benefits to promote alongside practical considerations.  New baths should be easy to use, provide practical value and make your clients feel like a million bucks every time they cross the threshold.

 

The trend toward outfitting bathrooms with beautiful furniture reflects the changing dynamic of master baths.  The master bathroom has become a room that is a refuge from the frenetic pace of daily life. The bath is a haven where your clients can make unique design statements and enjoy spa-like experiences while remaining in their homes.  The bath is a place where individual family members can steal a few minutes all to themselves to relax and rejuvenate. 

 

Bathrooms are now viewed and used as another living space, offering another place for your clients to relax.  Bathrooms can include sofas, comfy chairs, benches and other pieces that extend the living area into the bath.  Wood tones add warmth and serve to contrast white ceramic and acrylic surfaces of tubs, basins and water closets. With this transformation, the standard white vanity has given way to elegant and expertly crafted furniture pieces that create the look and feel of stress-free luxury.

 

Clients that don't want to fill their bath with built-in cabinets and countertops can opt for freestanding étagères, cabinets, armoires, wall-hung vanities, seating areas and storage pieces. And DPHA has a number of members that manufacture these stunning pieces that help set your showroom apart.

 

Function is another critical factor. A beautiful bathroom is an organized bathroom.  Your clients' days are hectic.  They don't have time to search for their favorite tube of lipstick or wait for their curling iron to heat up.  That's why bath furniture manufacturers offer multiple storage solutions and convenience features that include interior adjustable shelving, pull-out trays, interior lighting, hairdryer/curling iron holders, interior electric receptacles, USB port charging stations and drawer dividers.

 

In larger baths, there are opportunities to create separate spaces with different vanity types, styles, and heights for individual grooming stations.  In these circumstances, you can distinguish two spaces by installing mirrors, sconces and other types of lighting.  A common practice to help separate space in the bath is to use wall mirrors, armoires, étagères, ceiling-hung mirrors or a wall of mirrors. 

 

Are you using your design expertise to explain that what you do improves the lives of your clients or are you merely focusing on the number of finishes?

 

Avoid Hiring the Tallest Pygmy

Finding qualified, passionate and committed team member just may be the hardest challenge for showroom owners and managers.  Let's face it, there are not a lot of people banging down the doors to work in our showrooms, but that does not mean you can't attract and recruit great team members.  A key is knowing how to hire effectively. That means never settling for anyone other than a truly qualified and interested candidate.  Ed Kelly advised DPHA members many years ago to "never hire the tallest pygmy." 

 

Asking the right questions that reveal insightful information about the candidate will enable you to make better hiring decisions.  Here are several staples to help you.

 

1. What in your career are you most proud of and what role did you play?

 

Their response will tell you if a candidate can lead, contribute and follow.  The response will also provide insights into the candidate's definition of success. Listen for how he or she describes the project, what inspired them, the challenges they overcame, the reasons behind the success and why that success is a highlight of their career or life. If he or she only talks about themselves and does not mention others who may have contributed, that tells you something. 

 

2. Identify changes you see in our industry and tell me about companies you believe are adapting well to our current market conditions?

 

The answer will reflect if the candidate has an understanding of the new buying paradigm.  The second part will reflect if the candidate has an understanding of the competition and marketplace.

 

3. What is the last thing that you saw, read or heard that was remarkable?

 

This response speaks to the candidate's curiosity.  If the response is a popular television show or movie, that's okay as long as the description is interesting and the candidate can articulate the story.  For example, a good response could be that they just finished The Unwinding by George Packard that traces the decline of American values through the lens of different individuals and institutions that easily explain the rise of 21st century American Populism.

 

A bad answer is I don't read.

 

4. Describe a current fad that you don't want to be a part of.

 

It does not matter what trend they identify as long as your candidates can explain the reasons why they don't want to be a part of it.  Bad answers are ones that lack specifics.  I don't want to be part of the virtual reality trend because I have a hard time with regular reality.  Most likely that is not someone who would work well in your showroom.

5. What do you do for fun?

 

This points to life-balance.  The only bad answer is nothing.

The Keys to Building Great Teams

Google dedicated millions of dollars and countless hours of internal team members and external consultants to determine how to build great teams.  It's Project Aristotle evaluated 180 Google teams, conducted more than 200 interviews and analyzed 250 different team attributes.  Despite these efforts, the study came up empty.  There were no clear patterns that Google could point to that answered the question, how do you consistently create great teams?

 

Google then headed back to the drawing board, focusing on "group norms", traditions, behavioral standards and unwritten rules that dictate how teams operate.  According to an article in The New York Times, "Norms can be unspoken or openly acknowledged, but their influence is profound." 

 

Armed with this new perspective, Google researchers looked at unspoken customs among its highest performing teams and found five key characteristics of the best performers.  They were: 

• Dependability:  Highest performing teams meet deadlines and expectations.

• Structure and clarity:  High-performing teams have clear goals and well-defined roles. 

• Meaning:  The work performed is personally significant to each group member.

• Impact:  Members believe their work is purposeful and contributes to the greater good.

• Psychological safety:  Group members feel comfortable taking risks, voicing their opinions and asking judgment-free questions.  There is a comfort level - that team members can be themselves and are willing to step outside of safety zones. 

There is no scientific algorithm that guarantees outstanding performance.  However, focusing on the five norms will definitely increase the possibility of a dream outcome.

Managing Customers' Expectations, by Traci D'Antoni (D'Antoni Sales Group)

Everyone has had that customer - the one who isn't happy about the price, the lead-time, the installation or the quality of the product. How can you avoid these issues in the future?

Give realistic lead times - generally, lead times do not include transit times so build those into your lead time estimates. If there is going to be a delay, advise the customer as soon as possible so they can adjust their construction time line.

Explain the differences between product quality and function. A solid brass faucet may look the same as a zinc or plastic one, but the durability and function are quite different. Also be sure to mention any warranties that cover the product and what they do and do not cover.

Be aware of the customer's budget, but don't undersell. If a customer wants a specific brand or style, ask a few extra questions to determine what is actually driving that desire. As the experienced professional, you should be able to guide them to a product that best meets their needs, even if it is not exactly what they asked for.

If there is an issue with a product, be proactive with a solution. Most of the time, the customer is not really upset with you or the product but with the whole process. It has been my experience over the years that when a customer has a meltdown it is because there have been a number of issues on the job. If you let them know about the issue and already have a couple of solutions to suggest, it will make the customer appreciate that you really do care about their project and you have a professional approach to their situation.

Managing expectations is a part of every sales person's job. If you are successful at expectation management, your customers will almost certainly talk about your professionalism. If you don't do a great job managing expectations though, they may still rave about their products, but not about the person who sold them those products.

A Showroom's Competitive Advantage

50 percent of customers are interested in purchasing custom products and 48% of those customers are willing to wait for a product that they can call "all their own", found a 2016 Deloitte consumer survey.  Those findings certainly spell good news for DPHA member showrooms.  The ability to produce unique products whether they are split finishes, unique combinations of handles and spouts on faucets, custom system showers or individualized pieces of cabinet and door hardware provide showrooms with competitive advantages that can't be replicated by online etailers or order takers down the street.

 

The customization of decorative plumbing and hardware products enables showrooms to deliver compelling customer experiences and are in keeping with retail trends in other industries, especially fashion.  This week, Frilly started providing women with customizable, made-to-order clothing in bohemian, preppy, minimalist and edgy styles.  The technology platform enables customers to select fabric, sleeve and bodice options.  The company expects to introduce a made-to-measure service within a year.

 

Nike started customizing sneakers in 2012 with the launch of NikeID.  Adidas was not far behind with the opening of its Speedfactory, a robotic facility that allows customers to participate in the creation process.  Nor is Amazon going to be left behind in the ability to provide customization opportunities.  Last April, Amazon was awarded a patent for an on-demand apparel manufacturing process that will enable customers to receive custom dresses, shirts and other apparel in five days.

 

Men's clothier Indochino plans to open 150 new showrooms in the next three years, primarily in high-end malls, to offer custom-made suits that are delivered within three weeks.  Its go-to-market strategy is that its custom suits offer a better product choice at that same price as an off-the-rack offering.

 

Indochino is not alone.  Ministry of Supply uses 3D robotic knitting machines to produce custom blazers within an hour and half.  Even though the Deloitte study found that most customers said they have the patience to wait for a one-of-a-kind product, patience is not expected to last for a long time, especially when Amazon starts in the customization arena. 

 

As 3D printing becomes more cost-effective and used, customization of all products, including decorative plumbing and hardware, is expected to skyrocket.  What can you do to take advantage today and in the future of your ability to deliver custom products to your customers?  Brainstorm with your team to identify the manufacturers you currently specify to identify opportunities and develop a consumer education and marketing effort to promote your customization capabilities.  

The Power of Being Nice

Two professors from the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business found that speaking positively of fellow team members gives more meaning to one's work and provides a greater sense of purpose.  They also claim that there are numerous opportunities to highlight your team's contributions and talent that often are not taken advantage of. 

 

When you bring on a new team member, you can make him or her feel like a million bucks by highlighting what makes the new hire interesting and telling other members of your staff the talents they bring to the organization.  One company asks candidates during the interview process what their favorite foods are, what their hometown is, what are their likes and dislikes and an inspirational quote that they like.  Then on the first day of work, the company hangs a picture of the new hire in its gallery of other team members, relating the information gleaned from the interview process.  This helps jump start a new hire's transition into the organization's social fabric, the professors write.

 

Sharing information is critical to a showroom's success.  To help team members open up, relate stories of each person's strengths and contributions they bring to the showroom.  If you are putting together a team to go after a large project, start the initial meeting by explaining why you picked each team member for the project, their unique talents and their background and interests.  This helps foster a sense of purpose and serves as a power motivational tool.

 

If you have team members that are introverted or are put down you can build their confidence and sense of workplace satisfaction by pointing out the value they bring to your operation. 

 

Highlighting experience, strengths and successes of team members when introducing them to new clients is another way to motivate and provide a sense of professional satisfaction.  Share details that you believe make the person interesting and someone that others would want to know and have work on their project. 

 

How you introduce and respond to your team members can create more meaning in their work and highlight reasons that demonstrate they are involved in a dynamic profession that helps customers make their dreams realities while improving the quality of their lives.

Stress Relief

It's difficult to work with others who don't appear to be in control and are always frazzled, but there are ways that you can positively interact with the most stressed out members of your team.

Some people may appear stressed out because they never take a break from the showroom. They are always connected. It's difficult for them to go home and leave work behind. Empathize with your stressed team member and compliment them. Praising the quality of their work improves their self-image. For example, you may tell your team member that they did an outstanding job on the project you just pitched and let them know they came across as calm and collected.

Another way to assist them is to offer to help, which sends the message that they are truly not alone. However, put limits on what you offer so your fellow team member knows it is not a carte blanche invitation to be used at any time.

Finally, assist stressed out coworkers by helping them break up their workload into more manageable tasks.  Breaking a task down into several steps makes the end goal seem more achievable to everyone.

Making Great First and Memorable Impressions

It's only natural for first-time visitors in your showroom to be a little reserved.  It's the showroom's responsibility and mission to make visitors feel comfortable, to earn their trust and engage in a meaningful conversation that leaves visitors wanting to come back. 

 

Start earning that trust by making visitors feel good about themselves. Your goal is to elevate the confidence, pride and esteem of everyone who enters your showroom.  The conversation should not be about the showroom, how great a designer you might be or how satisfied your customers are.  Your first impression conversation should be all about your customer.  Be interested in what they want, what their goals are, what makes them the happiest and what brings them their greatest joy.  As Dale Carnegie said, any person's favorite topic is themselves.  Let your visitors be themselves and talk about whatever they would like to say.  What can you do to make your visitors feel like they are the most important person in your space?

 

If you have common interests with your visitors, don't knowingly or unwittingly show them up.  For example, if your visitor says I really enjoy wine and have started a small collection, don't let the person know that you have been collecting for years and have amassed a collection of hundreds of bottles. Instead, ask what is their favorite wine and inquire if they would they be interested in coming back to the showroom for a wine tasting with local experts?

 

Don't forget to make eye contact.  There's nothing that says you are unimportant than looking around to see whom else might be in the showroom.  When you look directly into the eyes of a first-time visitor, you are conveying the message that he or she is at the center of your universe. 

 

Susan Scott, author of Fierce Conversations, claims, "While no single conversation is guaranteed to transform a company, a relationship, a life, any single conversation can.  Speak and listen as if this is the most important conversation you will ever have with this person. It could be. Participate as if it matters. It does."

Can You Teach Old Dogs New Tricks?

Our world is changing so rapidly that you may not believe you have the capacity to keep pace.  Wouldn't we all be more productive if we could assess applications that are best suited for our businesses and careers more quickly?  Everyone knows someone who is technologically illiterate, but does that mean they can't learn or it's too complicated to even try? 

The age old question "can you teach an old dog new tricks" comes to mind, and if you asked Dr. Barbara Oakley that question her response would be a resounding "yes".  Dr. Oakley teaches Leaning How to Learn, an online course that has been taken by nearly 2 million people worldwide to help them tackle difficult subjects and stop procrastinating. 

In a recent article in the New York Times, Dr. Oakley offered four tips to improve your learning capabilities.

1. Dr. Oakley says people think in two different ways.  One is where you concentrate on the material you want to learn and the second is diffuse.  Diffuse is the process the brain uses to absorb the information you focus on.  Diffuse is the place where connections between information and unexpected insights occur.
2. To help yourself focus and diffuse information, Dr. Oakley suggests setting a timer for 25 minutes of focused work.  When the timer goes off, take a break.  Give yourself a reward such as listening to music, taking a walk or grabbing a latte.  The goal is to think about something else, which enables your brain to process the information from the task you just focused on.  Setting a timer also helps avoid procrastinating.  Thinking about doing something you dislike activates the pain center in the brain, Dr. Oakley said.  Setting a timer "helps the mind slip into focus and work without thinking about the work."
3. Practice:  When you repeat a task or practice that you are trying to learn, you acquire a procedural fluency, Dr. Oakley states.  She compares the process to learning how to back up a car.  When you first try, it's difficult, but after you have backed up a car several dozen times, it almost becomes second nature and your brain thinks about other things when you do it.  The more you practice the easier it is to lean more complex information.
4. Be intellectually honest.  No one knows you better than yourself and the best way you learn new things.  Some people grasp new concepts right awa, while others take the tortoise route.  Those who take more time are likely to notice more details.  Dr. Oakley says that knowing the difference between tortoise and hare learning styles is a first step in learning how to approach unfamiliar material.

Brick and Mortar's Savior: Humanity

As technology continues to advance, it will allow consumers to shop in a "wholly immersive way," writes DPHA Conference keynote speaker Doug Stephens in his spell-binding book ReEngineering Retail: The Future of Selling in a Post Digital World.  Virtual reality will take us wherever we want to go, Stephens surmises.  Virtual augmentation will create lifelike stores wherever we happen to be at the moment.  Will technology eliminate shopping as we know it?  The answer is a resounding "no".  Stephens argues that "As long as humans shop for reasons beyond the mere acquisition of things, physical retail spaces will remain relevant.  In fact, as we become increasingly tethered to technology, they will become even more valuable, more cherished, as our hunger for visceral and emotionally connected experiences intensify." 

Moments of discovery, surprise and delight are additional reasons why brick-and-mortar will continue to be destinations of shopping choice.  Technological advancements have not expanded the world around us.  Instead, they contracted our vision and perspective.  As Stephens points out, Facebook does not increase our circle of friends, it contracts who we network with by limiting our interactions to only those who are like us and avoiding those who are not like us.  The same can be said of Netflix.  It does not expand our film watching horizons, it actually contracts them by recommending offerings that are similar to the ones previously viewed.  Recommendations based on past experiences and patterns saps buying of  the possibility of accidental discovery. 

"The joy of shopping lies in the delicate balance of relevance and randomness," Stephens writes.  Humans crave the surprise and delight of encountering products and stores we had no idea we would cherish, products that we did not know existed or experiences that come out of nowhere to surprise and enhance us, Stephens says. 

Another reason for brick-and-mortar survival is the human need for human interaction.  We like crowds.  Need proof?  Watch the lines of people outside department stores on Black Friday or outside an Apple store before the launch of a new product. 

Shopping is also physiological.  "Our brains love shopping.  In fact, when it's good, retail is essentially a legalized form of crack. No joke.  Our neurological response to a great shopping experience is virtually identical to the one produced by crack cocaine - because they're both reliable producers of a chemical called dopamine," writes Stephens. You don't get a jolt of dopamine buying on Amazon or any online etailers. 

Physical stores have a distinct competitive advantage over online shopping by having the ability to deliver custom experiences.  Decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms can deliver compelling customer experiences through working displays, demonstrations and the ability to surprise and delight by introducing products and applications that your customers could never have encountered regardless of how much time they spent on Houzz or any other website. 

Want to learn the secrets to making your showroom deliver jolts of dopamine to your customers?  Plan to hear Doug Stephens at the DPHA Annual Conference and Product Showcase, October 12-15, at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort, Chandler, AZ. 

Click here to reserve for the Conference.

What Business Are You Really In?

In the 1960s, Harvard University marketing professor Theodore Levitt wrote that most companies focused almost exclusively on producing goods and services that they don't try to understand what customers really want.  In other words, companies had their sights set on making a quarter-inch drill when customers only wanted a ¼ inch hole.  Levitt's point to decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms is to move from the obsession with different products to what your showroom customers truly want and sometimes, they don't know what they want.

Levitt pointed out that one reason railroads failed was that they believed they were in the railroad business when in fact they were in the transportation business.  If railroads had understood the job they performed for their customers was getting them from point A to point B, they might have evolved into manufacturers of cars, planes or even drones. 

When a customer comes to your showroom, what do they really want from you?  It's not simply to select a tub, shower system, vanity, cabinet hardware, faucets, mirrors and lighting. What do your customers really need?  Peace of mind?  A place that they can call their own?  An oasis they can use to wash away the stresses of the day?  A statement of their personal style?  The opportunity to avoid undue stress and save time? 

Brainstorm with your team, representatives, manufacturers, trade allies, designers and other stakeholders to determine not only what customers say they want from your showroom, but to also deliver on needs they don't even know they have.

What We Can Learn From Sephora To Enhance Our Customer Experience

Let's face it.  Traditional brick and mortar stores are having their lunch eaten.  Shopping centers are reinventing themselves to put more emphasis on dining, movies and entertainment as opposed to relying on Macy's, Bloomingdales, Sears or others as anchors.  Sephora also recognizes that the mall may not hold the attraction it once did despite the fact that it has approximately 400 of its sprawling cosmetic emporiums in malls around the country.  Sephora's success has been well documented.  Consumers are met with rows and rows and shelves and shelves or products when they cross the store's threshold, not dissimilar to most DPH showrooms.  Sephora sales consultants offer advice and will even perform a full makeover at special stations, writes Elizabeth Segran in Fast Company.

Sephora is not about to rest on its successful experience with sprawling stores in shopping malls.  In July, it opened its first boutique on tony Newbury Street in Boston, name Sephora Studio.  The new concept store is much smaller than its shopping center counterparts. 

The experimental store in Boston is Sephora's response to changing consumer habits.  Sophia believes that many of its existing and potential customers don't want to schlep to a suburban shopping mall. They want  to buy closer to home quickly.  That's why Sephora picked Newbury Street, because it is a shopping street destination in Beantown, not unlike Fifth Avenue in New York or Rodeo Drive in LA. 

Sephora understood that it could not merchandise the Studio in a similar fashion to a shopping center store.  It's strategy was to be extremely product selective.  Most of the product is makeup whereas at shopping center locations you will find perfume, skin and hair care products, tools and brushes and bath and body products.  The Studio features makeup stations to connect in-store beauty advisors with clients, build relationships and deliver a compelling customer experience. 

Sephora commented that the Studio locations are not designed to replace the mall stores, but rather to complement them.  The company's long-term goal is to establish as many as 80 Studios throughout North America.

Lessons for decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms:

• Have a plan to respond to the new shopping paradigm.  Time for most DPH customers is a precious asset.  Tout your ability to save time and ease stress based on your expertise designing new baths and specifying products for them.
• Less can be more.  If you search for farmhouse sinks on Houzz, there are 77,000 options.  One key to Sephora Studio's strategy is that it does not display all of its products, but the sales professionals are well versed in merchandise offerings and can make recommendations for products not on display that they will ship freight free to customers.
• What has worked in the past most likely is not as applicable to the present or future.  What can you and your team do to provide your customers with a more delightful in-person experience?  If you would like to receive innovative ideas for improving your in-store experience, attend the upcoming DPHA Conference, October 12-15.

Contented Cows Give Better Milk

One of the biggest challenges for DPHA members is attracting and retaining top talent.  That's why DPHA has invited Richard Hadden to present his signature workshop, Contented Cows Give Better Milk, at the 2017 DPHA Annual Conference and Product Showcase, Sheraton Wild Horse Pass and Resort, in Chandler, AZ.

 

Hadden believes DPHA members could learn a lot from a message echoed by generations of dairy farmers: "Contented cows give better milk." This workshop is not a management tome. Instead, it is testimony to the power of treating people the right way.  Hadden will present:

• Case studies and new examples from on-site research in a number of real organizations, as well as inspiring examples of companies that know how to do it right, and a few that didn't.
• Fad-free prescriptive advice informed by Hadden's combined four-plus decades of training and consulting with thousands of managers and employees, conducting employee engagement surveys, and translating the attendant learning to management audiences in a form they can appreciate and use.

Direct from the horse's, actually the cow's mouth, this workshop will teach DPHA members  the bottom-line benefits of having a focused, engaged, and capably led workforce.

 

Click here to reserve for the Conference.

Learn the Five Elements of Remarkable Customer Service

Plan to attend the 2017 DPHA Annual Conference and Product Showcase, October 12-14, 2017 at the Sheraton Grand at Wildhorse Pass Resort in Chandler, AZ and learn The 5 Elements of a Remarkable Customer Experience as presented by Doug Stephens.

Brands struggle to meet and exceed the expectations of today's sophisticated customer. Although it's widely recognized brands best positioned to thrive in the future will compete on customer experience, there's a misconception about what "customer experience" really means.

Join author and internationally renowned consumer futurist, Doug Stephens, for an amazing tour of the future, where every aspect of the retail experience as we know it, will be radically transformed. Stephens will present what constitutes a truly remarkable customer experience and how DPHA members can create one-to-one intelligent journeys to deliver connected shopping experiences to secure their place in the hearts and minds of tomorrow's showroom customer.

True customer experience design means digging below the surface within each interaction to understand the underlying customer need. It means engineering the exact combination of people, place, product and process to deliver delight in every moment, whether online or in store.

Doug Stephens is one of the world's foremost retail industry futurists. His intellectual work and thinking have influenced many of the world's best-known retailers, agencies and brands including Walmart, Google, Home Depot, Disney, BMW, Coca Cola and Intel. Doug is also listed as one of the retail industry's top global influencers by Vend.com.

Prior to founding Retail Prophet, Doug spent more than 20 years in the retail industry, holding senior international roles including the leadership of one of New York City's most historic retail chains.

He is the author of two groundbreaking books, The Retail Revival: Re-Imagining Business for the New Age of Consumerism and Reengineering Retail: The Future of Selling in a Post-Digital World. 

 Learn more about the 2017 DPHA Annual Conference and Product Showcase.

How To Make Your Message Go Viral

Word of mouth is responsible for 93% of messages passing from one person to another. Everyday, Americans engage in 16 word of mouth conversations where they say something positive or negative about a showroom, product, service or person. We recommend restaurants and movies we've watched to coworkers, tell family members about a great sale and recommend babysitters to our neighbors. American consumers mention brands 3 billion times a day. Our mentioning of brands is about as involuntary as is our breathing. We do it so often, we don't even thing about it.

In his book Contagious: Why Things Catch On, Jonah Berger notes that there are six key steps to creating viral messages.

Step 1: Social currency.

If we want our customers to talk about our showroom, we need to craft messages that help them achieve desired impressions. We need to make our customers feel like that have insider information and provide them with visible symbols that they want to show others, because it makes them look good.

Step 2: Triggers.

When you mention peanut butter you almost always think of jelly. Link the services and products in your showroom to cues in the environment. How can your showroom trigger a response and make a connection?

Step 3: Emotion.

A new kitchen is not about countertops, cabinets and appliances. It's about how it makes your clients feel every time they set foot in the space. People share emotions.

Step 4: Public visibility.

Things that are easily observable make them easy to imitate, and that makes them more likely to be popular. Trip Advisor has been monumentally successful because people use others' experiences to make decisions. In your showroom, highlight products that were used in different types of projects and applications. Write product reviews to help your customers make decisions. Have your designers designate a favorite product and explain why they like it.

Step 5: Practical value.

What information can you share that is useful? The secret behind Marcus Sheridan's success was to answer the questions his customers asked most often. Practical value is reducing stress, troubleshooting problems and being accountable. Help others helps them to share what you did with others.

Step 6: Stories.

You need to embed your projects with stories and ideas that others want to tell. The story needs to be valuable and covey a message so integral to the narrative that people can't tell the story without it.

People Don't Read: What Effect Does that Have on Your Marketing?

Fact: Most people don't want to read copy if they have a choice of watching video or listening to audio.  According to a study by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Americans read an average of 19 minutes per day, including texts and emails (there are some exceptions, of course). Those aged 35 to 64 read an average of 19 to 23 minutes per day. Conversely, people watch more than a billion hours of YouTube every 24 hours.  That's only YouTube.  That does not include Netflix, Amazon, other social media sites or conventional television.  Your web site and social media can no longer function exclusively as a resource to educate.  They need to transform into a venue where education is mixed with entertainment.  Your content needs to be offered in different formats that combine audio, video and text.  Guidance for doing so will be offered at the DPHA Annual Conference, October 12-14, at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort, Chandler, AZ.

Close More Sales

If you look around your showroom, how many products appear to be similar?  Most decorative plumbing and hardware professionals will answer "too many".  Imagine what a customer sees and thinks.  The fact is that almost all products in a showroom, when you compare features and benefits, will function similarly within each product category.  Recently a University of Southern California professor conducted a 76-part survey with 230 buyers to determine how customers perceive sales professionals and how they then make the decision to buy or simply walk away.

The survey found 40% of respondents want sales professionals who can demonstrate that they listen, understand the customer's goals, wants and desires and then provide a solution.  30% of the customers want sales professionals to make them feel comfortable and assure them that the long-term needs will be met.  This is easy to imagine in a showroom.  Customers rely on a sales professional's expertise to specify the best solutions for their project.  They count on the showroom to troubleshoot problems regardless of fault because they purchased their new bath from the showroom and not from a rep or a manufacturer.  They expect their sales professional to help avoid problems by providing guidance to installers and others.  Customers expect a showroom to inspect products before they are sent to the site and to stage deliveries as appropriate.  Customers may not know that is how a showroom delivers value.  To paraphrase Steve Jobs, customers don't know what they need.  Meeting unforeseen or recognizable needs are where the showroom can truly shine.

An additional 30% of customers want sales professionals to challenge their thoughts and perceptions, then recommend a better solution.  Again, this is another opportunity to create value, establish trust and create avid fans.  If you believe there are better options for your customers, ask ftheir permission to suggest a better alternative.  That way you can avoid the impression that you are a know-it-all or worse, that your customer is not smart.

How many times do couples disagree over a purchase?  In most buying situations there is one party that bullies his or her way to get what they want.  When you recognize that this is occurring, focus your attention on the party who is dominating the conversation.

The study found that buyers don't necessarily gravitate toward market leaders and are willing to look at alternatives.  In the decorative plumbing and hardware world, there are only a few brand names that homeowners, designers and trade professionals recognize.  The survey found that only a third of the buyers prefered the best-known brand with the highest functionality and cost.  Instead, 63% of buyers would purchase a brand that had 85% of the functionality and 80% of the cost. 

Most people who enter a showroom know they are going to pay a premium.  Too often, however, sales professionals evaluate a customer's budget based on appearance or what they can afford themselves.  As Michael Silverstein explained in Trading Up and at a DPHA Annual Conference, consumers will spend three times the amount they mentally budget for when they make an emotional attachment.  Don't prejudge a customer's budget.  The survey found that price only becomes a factor to those who are price immune when the solution recommended is priced far more than other options.

The survey also found that in the fashion industries, consumers are most attracted to charismatic sales professionals who they truly enjoy being with.  Having the most technical acumen or product knowledge was not as important.

The survey reinforces the fact that most customers who come to a showroom are not "rational" decision makers.  When you can recognize the intangible, intuitive human element of the sales process, you will close more sales.

The Reasons to Tell Compelling Stories

There are lots of companies that spend considerable time and resources developing mission and vision statements, which are generally not remembered by staff and customers.  A better option may be to craft stories that emphasize the values that the company represents.  Everyone likes a good story, especially when they are true.  Good stories make people feel good because they are about the experiences of real people.  Stories help to make team members and customers focus on priorities.  At your next staff meeting, challenge your team and team members to relate a story that reflects your showroom's mission and purpose.  When you document these stories, your team and customers will listen more closely and know what you stand for.

An Easy Button to Improve Customer Service

In his book The Customer Service Revolution, John DiJulius proposes an "easy" button for elevating customer experiences. Develop a never and always list of six to ten actions and standards that are guiding principles for your entire team. These are non-negotiable standards that will place your showroom in the upper echelon of customer service organizations nationwide.

 

DiJulius advises that each item should be one to three words in length, crystal clear and not subject to interpretation. For example, you may want to set as an always-rule to return email messages promptly. That's not a good directive because "promptly" to one person could mean two hours and to another two days.

•  Never say, "I don't know." Always say, "Let me find out."

•  Never show frustration publicly. Always be a duck.

•  Never accept okay as a result. Always make excellence the standard.

•  Never place blame elsewhere. Always make it right.

Telling a customer that you don't have an answer to the question they have asked destroys confidence and trust. DiJulius says that if you don't know something, acknowledge you don't have the information that was requested, but volunteer to find the answer the customer wants.

 

People disappoint. It can be extraordinarily frustrating if a supplier fails to meet a production schedule or their quality is not acceptable. Pointing the finger of blame at the manufacturer or supplier to explain the reason for the error though is not productive. The point is - don't let your customers see you perspire or lose your cool. In the above reference to a duck, DiJulius points out that a duck gracefully glides on the surface of the water while furiously paddling underneath, which creates the impression that what they are doing is easy.

 

If you call a customer to ask about the progress of their project or if they are satisfied with their tile and they say that it's just okay, you most likely have a problem. After all, you are looking for customers to have an enthusiastic reaction. If a customer doesn't believe that something you have sold them is out of this world, find out why.

 

We've all had problems with suppliers who let us down. If you look through your customer's lens, you will be reminded that your customer did not buy their kitchen from XYZ cabinet manufacturer. They purchased their kitchen from your showroom and if there is a problem, they expect you to fix it. Take ownership of problems and make them right.

The Sharing Economy Just Got Larger

For those DPHA members of a certain age, you may recall an Alka Selzer commercial with the mantra, "Try it you'll like it."  Best Buy is taking a page out of Alka Selzer's play book. The company recently announced a new try-before you-buy option on its website.  Those interested are then directed to a third-party administrator's site to lease the TV, iPhone, wearable or other electronic gadget that the customer is considering purchasing. 

Best Buy's motivation is to sell more open box items - merchandise that was returned that can't be resold at full price.  The new program is another means that Best Buy is using to connect with customers earlier in the customer journey in an attempt to capture consumer interest and wallets before they go to Amazon.  The giant etailer currently does not offer a rental program, but that may not be too far off.  Best Buy customers can either buy the product they have leased at a reduced price, purchase a closed-box item of the product they are leasing at full price or return the item. 

This week Amazon launched its new Wardrobe program that will enable its customers to order clothing and accessories and try them on at home.  If the fit is not right or the consumer simply does not like what they have selected, they can return the items freight free.  This is Amazon's attempt to gain more market share from brick-and-mortar retailers by allowing customers to use their own homes as Amazon's dressing rooms.  Obviously, Amazon's risk is a potential huge shipping bill for free returns.  However, just as Amazon is using predictive analytics for household items sold on Prime Pantry that has reduced the cost of returns, the company will use a similar model to control costs for Wardrobe to make more accurate and better product recommendations and thereby reduce the risk that customers will not keep the clothes they ordered.

Best Buy's trial testing program and Amazon Wardrobe are new disruptive attempts to challenge conventional brick-and-mortar retail practices.  What can your showroom do to capitalize on the sharing economy?  What's preventing you from trying?

Customer Service Lessons From the World's Most Customer-Centric Company

Amazon may be the most customer-centric company in the digital and brick-and-mortar world. That's because founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is laser focused on serving the needs of 164 million American customers. Why does Amazon stand out? Here are several important reasons why as well as lessons to learn.

Understand Your Customers

Amazon does not simply listen to its customers; it strives to understand them and their needs. Bezos and thousands of Amazon managers attend two days of call center training annually to teach and reinforce the concept that it is more important to not only listen to customers, but also to understand what they truly want.

Cater to Customer Needs

Bezos has said that Amazon does not focus on their competitors. Instead, the company focuses on customer needs and works backwards. That's how the Kindle came into existence. Customers wanted a tablet they could use to read books. It took a while for Amazon to perfect the technology. Lore has it that when one finance executive asked Bezos how much he was prepared to budget for the Kindle, Bezos responded, "How much do we have?"

Translate Bezos' philosophy and commitment into catering to your customers' needs. Brainstorm at your next staff meeting regarding what changes you need to implement to make your customers and their projects more successful.

The Most Important Person in the Room

In the early days of Amazon when it struggled, Bezos would bring an empty chair into meeting rooms and tell his fellow execs to pretend that a customer was sitting in that chair. Bezos wanted to emphasize that the customer should be viewed as the most important person in the room. This practices continues today to help assure that the customer is omnipresent.

100% or Nothing

Most companies the size of Amazon would be satisfied it if met its fulfillment goals 99.9% of the time. Not Jeff Bezos, who told his team they should not be satisfied until they hit 100%. Because Amazon's delivery goals are met so often, the company has created customer expectations that everyone should be able to deliver like Amazon. This is a customer mindset that needs to be addressed with every project.

Customers Own Your Brand

If customers are unhappy with product or service quality, there's nothing to prevent them from writing negative reviews on multiple social media sites or sharing their experiences on Facebook, Pinterest, Houzz, Instagram, et. al. That means decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms need to double down on service quality and respond immediately to negative reviews.

Align Your Interest With the Interests of Your Customers

Amazon's market capitalization is $98 billion higher than Costco and Target, which are also known for outstanding customer service. The primary reason for the valuation gap is Amazon's commitment to building a customer-centric company. Using data derived from customer experiences, Amazon can decide what is best for the customer and the company. In a profile in Forbes magazine, Bezos stated, "We don't focus on the optics of the next quarter; we focus on what is going to be good for customers."

Take Ownership of Mistakes

If you make a mistake, own up to it and apologize, which is exactly what Amazon did when it remotely deleted copies of "Animal Farm" and "1984" from Kindles in 2009.

Mistakes are opportunities to shine because so many companies play ostrich when something goes wrong. Most people will appreciate and forgive if you own a shortcoming and do everything in your power to make things right, even if you fall short.

Just My Imagination

Did you know that the origin of the word "store" is storage? Many decorative plumbing and hardware showrooms were developed as places to collect and arrange different components to sell new baths and kitchens. That makes sense. However, using your showroom simply as a place to show products no longer jibes with customer expectations. Remember, by the time a customer comes to your showroom, they have oftentimes traveled 75 to 80 percent of the way down their customer journey path. Retail expert Ken Nisch argues that today's retail environment calls for imaginative experiences such as those offered by REI or Patagonia, because those retailers help prepare their customers for future experiences they want to have. Kitchen and bath showrooms can take advantage of examples of successful grocers who are improving experiences by presenting the ingredients needed to make a complete meal together instead of forcing their customers to traverse aisle after aisle to find proteins, vegetables, fruit, spices, herbs, etc.

How can you use the space in your showroom to deliver experiences that will cause your customers to imagine they are sitting in their steam shower to relieve aching muscles after a hard workout or lounging in their soaking tub to wash away the stresses of the day? Can you take a page out of Best Buy's new loaner program that allows customers to test drive open-box products before buying them?  Amazon doesn't do that yet, but what stops you from offering showerheads, faucets and other easy to install fixtures to your customers so that they can try them out before buying? What prevents you from using your showroom as a meeting place for neighborhood groups to gather?

Dr. Carmen Simon writes in her book, Impossible to Ignore, that using the word "imagine" is a powerful way to create anticipation and emotion. Isn't it time to use your imagination to improve customer experiences and make them truly remarkable?