Spread the word – it’s time to get tough!

As the economy begins to recover, the influence that installers can have on the entire supply chain should not be underestimated. Mark Richmond, Sales Director at Selecta Systems, shares his views on a highly influential industry group.

It’s often said that the last person to touch a window has the greatest impact on its performance. A good fitter can make an average window perform well by setting it up correctly, ensuring it is installed squarely and adjusting the hardware properly. Conversely, poor fitting will speed even the best made window on the road to failure.

When you think of the numbers, it’s no surprise that this group has such an impact on the whole supply chain. According to Insight Data’s latest figures, there are 8,248 installers and a further 2,295 companies who fabricate and install. That’s almost three quarters of the industry! The single most important person in this group is the salesman who sits in the home of Mr and Mrs Householder and makes the pitch. If he wins the sale, then someone gets to fabricate a window frame, make a sealed unit or two, cast some hinges and handles and several metres of profile is extruded. That’s fine for the volume, but what about the profit? If he’s selling on price then the inevitable will happen, with costs driven down to the point where someone goes bust and - more often than not in this industry - sets up again the very next day.

If, however, he’s selling on features and benefits, then we all stand a chance of seeing a return on our various investments. So what can we do to help our retail sales people to reduce their reliance on discounting, sell the benefits of their products and services and deliver the margins that we all need, even in a market that is only just beginning to recover?

Perhaps the first thing is to understand what the householder actually wants and then explain our features and benefits in those terms. Lead-free profile like our Advance 70 system, for example, means that as a company, Selecta is ahead of schedule with regard to the Vinyl 2010 voluntary commitment. But to a householder, that probably means nothing. If, however, we present lead-free in the context of recyclability and sustainability, these will be terms that environmentally conscious homeowners will relate to.

Similarly, WERs are the single hottest topic in the industry right now. With just over 10% of all PVC-U fabricators registered on the BFRC website (310 out of a possible 2,877 according to Insight Data), that means 90% of the industry is not yet ready for the implementation of Part L.

Advance 70 can easily achieve A, B or C ratings depending on specification and we have publicised this widely amongst our customer base. But it’s the message that gets to the homeowner that is important. True, WERs are still only voluntary and the scheme is designed to be a comparison reference only. If we can provide clear, unambiguous facts and figures that are readily available not just from installers, but also impartial sources such as the BFRC or EST, then we stand a chance of being able to pitch the sale at a sensible level which will reflect the difference in cost between C and A rated products.

There’s no better way of extolling the features and benefits of our window and door range than taking the products out to the market. The Selecta demonstration vehicle is well known to our customers as we take the latest innovations out on the road to them. Talking face to face, often with their customers involved as well, helps to clarify the sales message at the front end and is well worth the £90k investment.

If our sales people are trained to demonstrate the potential reduction in fuel bills and carbon emissions that a WER frame can generate, then we will be able to justify a price premium. If we don’t, then all that will happen is margin erosion throughout the supply chain and all the investment made by fabricators and systems companies in getting their frames accredited will have been for nothing.

This industry has a fantastic track record for innovation, driving down costs by implementing high-tech manufacturing processes, shortening lead times, increasing thermal performance and enhancing customer choice with coloured finishes. But we are tarred with the reputation for hard-sell tactics that, whilst justified in part, clouds the householder’s true perspective. It is up to all of us throughout the supply chain to change this view so that we generate the sales and returns that will pay for future developments.