64 Years And Counting

Courtesy of Tim Hart from Duro-Last – Submitted by Ron Madsen

Here are the facts.  According to the “Brooks Group’s” Bill Brooks, your odds of closing a sale to a new customer are 1 in 16.  So, for every 16 bids you deliver, on average, one customer will buy from you.  Here’s some better news:  The odds significantly increase with customers you have sold to in the past.  One out of 3 will buy from you again.

The key to repeat business is planning and follow-up.  To begin the planning process, you will need a list of your past customers.  Confirm when you initially installed their roofing system; remember to always get a list of contacts on commercial, multi-family and HOA projects so you have multiple contacts when you follow up at a later date.

The next step is to communicate with your previous customers.  Don’t think of this process as “selling”.  Rather, you are strengthening your relationships and the integrity of your company with your customers.  They become your valued allies, and repeat business the reward.

Your communication plan should be simple.  Here is an example of how to conduct the call:

“Hello <customer name>.  This is <name> from <roofing company>.  We installed the roof that is on your building, and our records indicate that your roof is 1 year (6 months, 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, etc.) old today.”

Question:  “Are you as happy with the roof as the day we installed it?

Note:  If they are not happy, they are negatively impacting your sales.  This is an opportunity to offer your services to create a loyal customer.

Question:  “Did your friends or business associates ask you about your roofing project while we were installing it?”

Note:  Everyone who is having any type of work done will talk with friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, etc.

Question:  “Can we perform a free courtesy inspection when we are in the area?  You are an important customer, and I want to make certain that your roofing investment is performing as promised.”

Note:  Paying a return visit to the job site will not only give you a chance to address any rooftop issues, it will get you face-to-face with your customer again and possibly open the door to new sales opportunities.

Question: “Are you planning any roofing projects in the future?”

Note:  For owners of multiple buildings, offer to help with their “next year’s” budget. Many facility owners and managers begin their budgeting process in the fall, and they often consider which roofs will need replacing during the coming year.  In these cases, you can position yourself as their partner by providing preliminary estimates of what a roof replacement will cost for these facilities.  This is an effective way to remain in contact with your valued customers.

Question:  Can we use you as a reference?  Better yet, can you refer and business contacts to me?”

Note:  Reference from satisfied customers is the best source for new business leads.

This simple set of questions can be given to your sales force, along with a list of contacts your customer provides.  Document the responses for follow-ups.  The key to repeat business is to communicate on a regular basis with your customers.  If you forget about them, they will forget about you.  The power is in your hands to drive your success through repeat business opportunities.

Our Paul LeFevre had an interesting though and wrote about it:  “A sometime customer came up to our Santa Ana counter the other day and complimented our showroom.  We thanked him and said we were proud of it.  He asked where our corporate office was located.  We told him it was in the offices behind us.  He replied “Good, I am so sick of buying from out-of-state companies.  We need to support California”.

Hmmm, we worry about sending our dollars of the country but sending our dollars out of state?  We never thought about it that way.   We think it’s good for you to buy from a company that is small enough to take a personal interest in your company.  In fact you can personally talk to the President if you want to.  But, supporting the state we live in?  Nice idea

Not a Poem, Not a Haiku – It’s a Roofers Lament
“When shingles were $45 sq, I could sell jobs for $330 sq.
When shingles were $60/ sq. I had to sell jobs for $300 sq.
Now that shingles are $80 / sq I am giving away work for $260 and watching others go for about $220 / sq.
I am afraid that shingles might be near $100 per sq. this summer. I don’t think I can survive it!”

Tom in Indiana

Ron Madsen our outside sales rep is constantly try to find things to help his customers close the sale.  He submitted this for our blog:

I recently contacted So. California Edison to see if they had any information that would provide a history on the rising costs of electricity over the past decade.

Suggestion: Go to our website (see link below) to print out the graph and circle the residential cost per kWh in 2000, and the amount in 2011, showing the percentage difference in Red.

Upon viewing the graphs, take note of the cents per kWh on (PG&E) Residential dwellings from year 2000 approx. 10.7 cents compared to 15.7 cents in 2011.

Presenting this information to property owners, offers a very compelling reason as to why they can’t afford not to properly ventilate and insulate their roofs.

Attached you will see attachment containing various websites that can be a tremendous informational resource.  The best website for obtaining state rebate information is: www.dsireusa.org

This information puts further emphasis on the need for homeowners considering the purchase of a new roof to properly ventilate, insulate and install a roof system that features 50 year manufacture system warranties.

I think it is the rise in these same homes will be dramatically higher in the next decade with multiple families now residing in the same household and the increase in electronics devices: Flat Screens, Computers etc.

This year should be especially interesting since Mother Nature “Gypped us” with rain.I received  California Public Utility Commission graphs, which perfectly illustrates to homeowners the importance of integrating proper attic ventilation, insulation and LOW-E Reflective Insulation.

Hope you find this helpful!  Click here to get the information.

Ron Madsen
E-Mail: ron.madsen@structuralmaterials.com

Structural Materials is different than all the other roofing suppliers and we are really in a great position to be different.  We are a perfect size company.  Small enough to have a personal relationship with you, large enough to compete with the big boys.  We have a trusted name in the roofing industry.  We are established with 64 years of roofing history as a foundation.  Our grandfathers probably sold to your grandfathers.

Back then we did business without cell phones and faxes.  How did we ever manage?  But somethings never change.  The things that weree important to you as our customer then are still important today.   So how are we different from the other roofing suppliers?  We are willing to put it in writing.

Here is our Standards of Performance:

We will listen to you.
We will keep you informed of the status of your orders and deliveries.
We will not make promises we can’t deliver.
We will make deliveries with drivers and loaders that act and look professional.
We will respond to a dispute within 24 hours.
At our sales counter:
We will acknowledge you with a smile if we are on the phone or with another customer.
We will not make you feel like you are interrupting our work, you are the reason for it.
We will strive each day to provide you with the finest customer service in the industry.

We at Structural Materials Co. realize that it’s not so much the failure to meet these standards that causes major dissatisfaction among customers. Everyone makes mistakes – what can be upsetting is not being told in advance, not receiving any apology, not getting any explanation why, and not hearing what’s going to be done to put things right. Please let us know if you think we are not doing our best. We value your complaints and feedback.