Offering Value

I think the most important tool in the fight against commoditization is to look at how you supplement your product offering with value. Hidden costs to your customer are difficult to measure, that's why they are "hidden." The more you work to understand all the components of your customer's process the better chance you have to see and remind them of how your offering saves them time and money. Usually your competitor who competes on price HAS to because they offer inferior value. It's easy to compare on a line item basis the unit price of products, but it is critical to communicate to customers the other intangibles your solution provides. Do you save them money with just in time delivery? Do you save them time by having a superior fill rate, reducing backorders? Are you proactive in addressing potential supply issues to avoid problems later on? Does your product quality ensure smooth project execution and lower warranty costs? Have you explained to your customers how line item purchasing INCREASES their costs? Some customers are an uphill battle in this regard, no question. Don't give up! Habits, especially bad ones, are very hard to change and you have to keep up the drum beat. It holds true today as much as it ever has, the key to success for the contractor lies in the execution of the job and eliminating mistakes. We try to make the deciding factor our performance, this is our advantage.