What flooring claims or problem issues are you likely to face in this year that you should be aware of and prepare for? This is not to make you think a whole new series of problems are going to present themselves that you may not have already faced. But then again, they may if you are planning on carrying products you haven’t dealt with before or have had little experience with.

One of the most obvious sources for preventing product problems is from the people you think cause many of them: the manufacturer. Most of the larger mills have a multitude of information online about their products, including what the warranties say and the categories of performance. You should be aware of this.

It’s amazing what you can learn from the source which provides the product. It can keep you out of a great deal of trouble if you understand more about the goods you’re selling. Remember, the biggest problem dealers face, all of you, is ignorance. You don’t know enough about the products you sell. It’s not installation or defective material that causes most complaints, it’s from not being aware of the performance characteristics, quality categories and what colors work best and why.

Simple carpet complaint issues such as soiling, for example, and the fact that a spot comes back several times after cleaning have many of you running to file a claim when the real problem is maintenance, use and abuse related. Most of the time there’s a simple fix.

Two growing product categories likely to expand are wood and ceramic. Ceramic products, as long as they are installed properly and applied over a correctly prepared substrate, will give you few, if any, performance problems or claims.

Chips or cracks may be the worst you might face and they are easily replaceable. Make sure to sell some overage on every job in case a repair is necessary. This way you’ll have the same lot to work with and the replaced tile won’t be as obvious as a neon sign.

You have to understand, wood is a tree. Trees absorb water; they move, expand and contract; can be dented, gouged and chipped when struck with a sharp, heavy or hard implement, and they vary in shade and color. These are natural characteristics of the material that have nothing to do with the mill. Certainly a company can cause problems in the manufacturing process, but it cannot change its natural and inherent characteristics.

With experience and making yourself aware of different types and species of wood flooring, you will get an understanding of what will work for a particular application and be the most problem free. If heavy furniture is dragged across wood or large dogs with long nails walk on it, be prepared to see scratches and gouges. The softer the wood, the more evident indentations and scratches will be. Spiked high heels will also create marks regardless of how heavy the wearer is.

Aside from the mills, the associations, such as the Tile Council of America (TCA) and the Wood Flooring Manufacturers Association (NOFMA), that set standards and provide general and detailed information for flooring categories, offer you a wealth of information. So much so, that if you are aware of the guidelines and standards for installation and the performance characteristics of the products, you may never have a problem.

You should use this information in meetings to train your staff, including the installers, and have the information available to consult with your customer to help you get the correct product in the right place.

More of these products will be sold by you this year and you’ll have to know more about them. We get complaints forwarded to us regularly from retailers who don’t understand the product. If they knew more about them, they could avoid most complaints or claims. Being aware of the multitude of information available to you simply by going to the Internet will benefit you immensely.

Having this information will make you better than your competition and as smart as many of your customers who often check online prior to visiting your stores.

Another key to preventing problems is providing genuine excellent service. This will separate you from the rest of your competitors and certainly the big boxes. Did you ever notice that one dealer in town, in every retail product category, stands out? Why do you think that is? Find out and emulate them. I’d bet that it’s excellent service and customer satisfaction, not price, that makes them the best. It almost always is.

You can make more money this year with few if any complaints or claims if you’ll take some of this information to heart and use it to your benefit. It’s free, easy and it works—and it applies to all the flooring materials you sell.