Jim Huston on What Consumers Want

Every month, our columnists give their take on a common topic. Last month they predicted what contractors could expect in 2011, and this month, it’s what consumers want.

Jim Huston | January 2011
Jim Huston Consumers are often difficult, if not impossible, to figure out. What exactly do they want? What are they looking for? You may not know what consumers want, but that makes it even more important that you, the contractor, know what you want. The following grid may help you figure out how to approach consumers, both residential and commercial. You need to “profile” your customers and build a base with ones that appreciate both your quality level and your price. You have to do your homework, and you need to know what your type of customer looks like and what they want.

Consumers don’t always want high quality/service, and a reasonable price. Probably most do not. Your job is to find customers who do value these qualities and who fit the profile in grid 1. This is a marketing issue. Marketing is all about finding customers who appreciate both your level of quality/service, and your price. Needless to say, this is a particularly difficult task in the current market.

Successful contractors, especially ones in the current economy, are constantly grooming their client list. They are weeding out the clients who are too price conscious. Most importantly, they are paying attention to the clients who want a high level of quality/service, and are willing to pay for it. These are the best clients, the easiest to work with and the most profitable ones for you.

Your objective should be to have 90 percent of your clients fit into grid  1. You’ll find that most of your “problem” clients will fit into grids 3 or 4. Identify them and eliminate them by raising their price. Don’t try to explain or justify your price, just increase it and “let your price do the talking.”

You may not be able to figure out exactly what a particular consumer wants. However, you can know what you want. If you do your homework and “profile” your customers, you’ll simplify your life and make more money. You’ll actually do less work and make more money. That sounds like a recipe we can all live with.


JIM HUSTON runs J.R. Huston Consulting, a green industry consulting firm. See www.jrhuston.biz; mail jhuston@giemedia.com.

 

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