Getting the Goods Palatine IL

While technology companies in every segment must concern themselves with specifications, capabilities, new features, and upgrades, for custom installers thats just half the battle. Most will attest that what really matters is that you can deliver a working product, on time, at a reasonable price.

What dealers are selling is their ability to interact with a client, design, and install a system that is going to meet the individual needs of each client. They are very service-oriented and very market-oriented in terms of reaching the target for their customers and meeting the needs of each one, individually, said Jeanne Stiernberg, principal consultant at Stiernberg Consulting in Sherman Oaks, California. Custom electronics dealers are selling their own professionalism, and that is what they expect, too.

This has led custom installers to re-examine their relationships with manufacturers. There is less of an emphasis on the brands of gear that they carry, and more emphasis on the brand of the dealership, Stiernberg observed. Certainly they carry great brands and they stand behind them and thats importantbut they are getting away from the box-house, retail mentality where you focus on the brand and the price.

Which requires that attention is paid to something that is, presumably, a little less sexy in the minds of technophiles: the implementation of an effective product purchasing process. There is an emphasis towards choosing supplierswho still must have good productsfor the business relationship that they have with them, Stiernberg said. What manufacturers are starting to understand is that dealers need and want a good business partner in their suppliers. They are looking at factors such as terms, freight policy, warranty, customer service, technical service, order tracking and the things that make them more efficient. The leading-edge manufacturers are getting it and putting programs into place to address that.

As the industry is evolving, the relationship between dealers and manufacturers is becoming more collaborative, Stiernberg noted. Dealers need to approach suppliers as business partners and explain that they are looking for a long-term relationship, she said. Many manufacturers offer prompt pay terms. Many manufacturers will also offer floor-plan financing of demos. Many dealers dont have showrooms, but manufacturers that make really expensive, high-end gear, will oftentimes help the dealer finance getting the demos to help them sell. Its another part of being a partner with the dealers.

By developing and nurturing a partnership, custom installers better position themselves to get the best deal. When a dealer sits down with a manufacturer and the dealers own strategic plan, right away that puts them in the top five to 10 percent of all the dealers out there, Stiernberg said. A manufacturer is more likely to pay attention to that. Its more respectable and its more considered.

This also helps to promote compromise; dealers that present...

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