Want to help increase your sales in 2020? The answer is simple; simplify.
Recent consumer research by Synchrony reveals that people are streamlining their product purchasing patterns. Data reveals that consumers value simplicity, efficiency and tend to make their buying decision more quickly.
What does this mean for the home improvement contractor?
Communicate clearly and simplify the process. The research over the past several years indicates that home owners and consumers in general are placing a priority on an easier purchasing experience.
Synchrony, one of the nation’s leading consumer financing companies, surveyed more than 300 home improvement and remodeling consumers in 2019 for their most recent study. The group included both Synchrony card holders and non-card holders.1
Fifty percent of non-cardholder respondents rated ‘ease of purchase’ as extremely important. That number shot up to 69 percent among Synchrony card holders. When you look at all the data, it seems clear that home owners want an easier experience.
Additionally, the home improvement consumers surveyed appear to be spending less time researching products than just two years ago. The average time spent in 2019 was 77 days, down from 84 in 2017. The only increase from 2017 to 2019 was in mobile phone usage; consumers are using their phones more in the decision process than ever before.
How can home improvement contractors use this information to help increase sales?
- Sharpen up your website. Clean design, clear explanations, easy navigation. Avoid clutter and fluff, customers want information, not hype.
- Mobile accessibility. People use their phones for everything, including research and scheduling. Make sure your website works well on the small screen.
- Strong social media presence. Today’s consumers often turn to social media for references and reviews.
- Offer financing. Ease of purchase is essential. Make it easy for home owners to finance their projects on-the-spot.
- Make in-home visits convenient. Everyone is busy. Try to make in-home presentations professional, easy and concise.
- Meet project deadlines. Missed deadlines add to the frustration and hassle of a home improvement project. Make realistic deadlines on the front end and do everything possible to keep the project on schedule.
To help address a simpler process, contractors may want to consider Synchrony Transact™, an online platform that makes the financing process easier by providing a streamlined way to estimate monthly consumer payments, help consumers apply for financing, complete transactions, complete contractor payments, and more2.
These are just a few tips that can help promote smoother selling. Try to remove anything from the sales process that is a hassle or confusing. Be considerate of the customer’s time. Make it easy for them.
1 Synchrony’s Major Purchase Consumer Study, 2019
2 Credit extended by Synchrony Bank