Article Number : 1307 |
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| Date | 9/5/2006 12:21:24 PM |
| Written By | LGM & Associates Technical Flooring Services |
| View this article at: | //floorbiz.com/BizResources/NPViewArticle.asp?ArticleID=1307 |
| Abstract | By Steven Feldman Denver—Management of Flooring America and Flooring Canada last month unveiled their greatly anticipated five-year plan as membership gathered here as part of parent company’s CCA Global Partners’ first-ever Global Summit... |
| Article | By Steven Feldman Denver—Management of Flooring America and Flooring Canada last month unveiled their greatly anticipated five-year plan as membership gathered here as part of parent company’s CCA Global Partners’ first-ever Global Summit. Compiled with member input, the ultimate goal of the plan is “for more people to live, work and play on our floors than any other brand in North America.” According to Vinnie Virga, president of Flooring America, and Jim Duff, president of Flooring Canada, everything about the five-year plan centers on doing anything and everything to strengthen the buying group’s brand. “Branding is what will drive our success,” Virga said. How does Flooring America and Flooring Canada expect to build the brand? “It’s all about differentiation, said Deb Binder, vice president of marketing. “It’s about making the Flooring America and Flooring Canada brands rise above and stand out from the competition. We must cut through all the clutter.” As an example, Binder cited research that reveals flooring consumers will visit their nearest Home Depot and Lowe’s or call Empire Today simply because they’ve heard of them. “These companies have top-of-mind awareness. They advertise consistently. They are getting their brand out there in front of the consumer.” She noted how those three companies spent more than $1 billion in advertising in 2005. To that end, Binder noted that if every Flooring America and Flooring Canada member invested 5% of its sales volume in advertising, that would amount to $50 million. “Add that to Flooring America’s national advertising and we can create a national brand. We must get our message out there consistently. It is the most important tool to grow a business. Circulars and direct mail do work.” With the goal of enhancing and expanding the brand, Flooring America and Flooring Canada are developing a number of initiatives. “We will become the top-rated Internet site and develop niche marketing for residential designers, shop at home and tenant replacement,” Binder said. She also touched on an e-commerce strategy, a targeted direct mail campaign, partnering with a national company for cross-promotion activities, a vendor partner advertising blitz, developing multilingual marketing materials and a national trade magazine public relations program. Virga cautioned that nothing happens overnight. Hence, the five-year plan. “The beauty of a five-year plan is you don’t need to have all the answers on how you are going to do things. You just need to know where you want to go. Then each year we break down the plan and decide what we’re going to work on as it relates to importance to members, and we get it done.” But if the company can deliver on all aspects of the plan, members’ long-term success is virtually guaranteed. He cited the Walgreens drug store chain as an example. “Walgreens’ goal was to become the most convenient drug store in North America. Its competitor was Eckerds, but Walgreens blew it out of the water. Walgreens would relocate a store 100 feet down the road if it meant it was more convenient. It may have cost the company millions of dollars in the short term, but it stuck to its long-range goal and is now the dominant drug store chain.” Virga outlined for Floor Covering News a few components of the group’s five-plan. They include: • Technology: Flooring America and Flooring Canada are producing a database where members can gain access to all the group’s products and incorporate them into either their or Flooring America’s software. “The average member has a full-time employee spending about 20 hours a week managing a product data base, maybe more for a larger store,” Virga said. “Product data includes pricing, specifications and ensuring all the trims and accessories are in the library. This will eliminate that manpower function.” The technology module also includes a virtual decorator and e-commerce component. “Our focus is grabbing leads and driving them into retail stores,” he said. “Over 50% of customers preshop online but still want to go into a brick-and-mortar store. Our focus is maximizing the lead pipeline.” • Merchandising: Flooring America has been working on the prototype for what it believes will be the perfect showroom. The concept is being dubbed Vision 2008. “We are forgetting about conventional wisdom and building it from the ground up: exterior, interior, lights, walls, floors, bathrooms, displays,” Virga said. “It is designed to create a memorable experience and the highest level of satisfaction with the customer. We want her to feel comfortable in the store first and make her aware of our brand story. We understand she wants to compare products and know how they’re different. We understand she then wants to be reassured the product she lands on has the right features and benefits for her. And before she leaves she wants affirmation she made the right decision. The hierarchy of our POP graphics does that and is in place before a single display is in the store.” He added that the concept will not be introduced to members until 2008. The first pilot is opening within 40 days, and two more will follow. “We will tweak until its perfect.” • Education: Flooring America is seeking to ensure its members have everything they need to execute the brand strategy. “That means more comprehensive online training,” Virga said. “We want to teach them how to find, screen and retain quality employees.” Another focus is helping members find qualified installers and have a meaningful apprenticeship program where mechanics are trained and certified. But certification goes beyond installation. “We are creating certification for every part of the store, especially sales managers,” he said. “We have found that our stores having certified salespeople score significantly higher than stores that don’t. In mystery shopping surveys, stores that execute the brand strategy and have certified sales professionals are 37% on average more likely to get higher scores than our competitors do.” • Culture: Three years ago less than 35% of members flew the name Flooring America or Flooring Canada on their banners. Today it’s up to 80% with a goal of 100%. “We don’t believe in requiring them to do it; we believe in creating enough value where they want to do it,” Virga said. “Now we want to see them execute the brand strategy in the store. That is about getting salespeople certified, high customer satisfaction ratings and creating customers for life.” • Product: One of the keys for the group is consistently seeking out exclusive technology it can leverage for its members so they can have differentiated products. “A good example is our Downs Decade program where we have a 10-year no exclusions stain warranty that we did in partnership with 3M,” Virga said. Another example is the return of Gulistan to the group after a five-year absence. “The significance is they’re all about differentiated branded products, which allows members to be more profitable.” Gulistan’s presence couldn’t be more apparent than with the new Stainmaster Fashion Showplace, which offers 40 new wing cards—half from Gulistan. “The Fashion Showplace was a way to blend some of the best cutting-edge fashion in the industry with Invista fiber and leverage those relationships for the members’ profitability.” In other Flooring America related news: • A new hardwood flooring collection is joining the Flooring America stable of brands, courtesy of Anderson Hardwood Floors. The Biltmore Collection is a high-end assembly of textured planks in rich tones based on styles found in the Biltmore Estate in Ashville, S.C. Dubbed Biltmore For Your Home, the line is exclusive to CCA Global. • The bar was raised on customer service when Flooring America and Flooring Canada announced a new self-inspect program for laminate and vinyl floors. Customer claims can now be taken care of on the spot instead of a lengthy wait until an adjuster arrives. Customers get to deal with the retailer from whom they bought the floor vs. the manufacturer. • With Internet shopping growing by the day, Flooring America and Flooring Canada will improve online visibility. Among the initiatives: search engine optimization, simplifying site navigation and ease of use, and adding a myriad of product information. The idea behind this is to maximize lead potential for members as opposed to e-commerce. |