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Pondspectives with Mike
Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2011, 4:30 p.m. EDT
5 Tips to Keep Pond Companies Profitable
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By Mike Garcia
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| Quality customer service on the phone, in person and by email will work wonders for your sales. (Courtesy of Sandy Chebat/BowTie Inc.) | Since I cannot build ponds without the products I buy from pond product manufacturers, I recently asked John Olson, CEO of Graystone Industries and president of the International Professional Pond Companies Association, what he sees as the biggest challenges to the pond and water garden industry. Here is John's response:
The pond and water garden industry has struggled for years with how to maintain profits and sales in the face of underpriced Internet items. While the cost of pond products continues to increase, the prices of the pond products offered online continues to drop. Many Internet sellers believe that offering the lowest price is the only way to attract business.
How does one make money and compete with these “low-ball” sellers?
John offered several ideas to help keep pond product companies profitable when competing with online pond product sellers.
- Give quality service. Whether you run a physical retail store or deal online only, service sells. On the phone, in person and by email, your time spent explaining products, offering suggestions and building trust with potential and existing customers will work wonders for your sales.
- Offer combination packages and up sell everything. If pond liner is a 20 percent markup item for you, then push the underlayment at 150-250 percent to go with it. Sell a skimmer and a waterfall and offer a deal on the pump and tubing. Water treatments are a must for every customer.
- Consider private label. If the name brand can be found at pennies on the dollar, then it is time to change its name. Consider offering private-label pond kits, pond-free kits, tubing, filters and water treatments.
- Push new items. When a manufacturer puts a new pond product on the market you have up to two years before that product becomes yet another low-price commodity. Sell while the selling is good.
- Promote accessories. Many online pond product sellers only carry the main items from a product line. They offer skimmers, filters, tubing, liner, pumps and more, but the real profits lay in the replacement parts for these items that few people offer.
What do you think? Can you ad to this list? Is implementation even possible?
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