TIMBER
TIMBER SECTOR MUST INVEST IN CUSTOMER RELATIONS IN 2020
Political and economic uncertainty has heralded delays and confusion which only a renewed focus on customers and customer service can solve, as BMJ finds out.
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his time last year, the timber industry was enjoying a positive start to the year – largely driven by demand from the private residential sector. People were opting to repair and renew aspects of their home in order to upgrade rather than move to a new house – and demand driven by private developers also helped bolster what was already a strong start.
That’s according to Guy Best, national key account manager at Arbor Forest Products, who says: “Companies like us were well- placed to capitalise on this, and in our case it was thanks to our reputation for supplying good-quality products to merchants in a timely manner – driven by our innovative ‘warehouse on wheels’ concept, which allows us to deliver multiple product lines to merchants on one vehicle.”
Last year, he adds, Arbor saw a growth in sales led by the MDF products range, with its twice-sanded and twice-primed MDF products becoming market leaders. This, he explains, was partly driven by a change in the construction sector, with more building firms moving away from employing traditional carpenters – and generalists typically preferring to work with MDF skirting and architraves, rather than their timber equivalents. “However, the strength of our relationships with our customers was equally important to the quality of our products and customer service, and it is these relationships that will inevitably come to the forefront in what promises to be a more challenging first half of the year.”
Responding to market conditions
Best says that there has been much political and economic uncertainty in recent months, which has caused delays in overall construction and led to a heightened degree of caution with projects of all sizes. “Even with the Brexit withdrawal agreement in place, there is still uncertainty around the impact Brexit might have on the movement of goods into the UK. “This means that we can
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expect the timber industry to be facing a difficult start to this year – which therefore bringing short-term challenges even if there are more settled times ahead,” he says. What’s more, Best adds, merchants are also continuing to face more competition from online providers, and this trend will remain a challenge for merchants and push them to find ways to overcome.
He points out that the responsibility for overcoming these challenges lies with the full supply chain: “We must all take positive steps in order to thrive despite the market conditions, and merchants will also need to ensure that they play their part by adding value for their customers too. “In our decades of experience, the best way to add value, even in the face of cheaper competitors, is by offering excellent customer service: for example, our recent growth is definitely down to working as a partnership with our customer base, particularly in areas such as range reviews and training. This will also make a difference for merchants too.”
Working with the supply chain Merchants can work with their suppliers to invest in good customer service, Best
believes, taking up opportunities for their staff to gain invaluable product knowledge through dedicated training, both in-person and online. He says that past experience shows that this works: the feedback from merchant customers who have completed Arbor Forest Products training programmes in the past year is that it directly impacted their growth, which shows that more knowledgeable merchant staff are better able to upsell and encourage repeat custom.
“In a digital world, merchants need to be able to compete in the online sphere as well as with customers who come into the stores. That means making it easier for customers to find product information and pricing, whether that’s on a good-quality website or even through responding quickly and knowledgeably on social media channels,” Best says.
“For our part as a supplier, we are currently working on a new digital offering which will make it easier for our customers to download assets like high-quality product images, which we know is very important to merchants as they continue to grow their online presence. “Merchants who utilise these tools to make their customers’ lives easier will be the ones who earn repeat business even in challenging times. The merchants who will ultimately thrive, even through tougher market conditions, are those that put their customers first and look to add value for them.”
BMJ
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net February 2020
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