Always looking for that edge
Craig Roberts, NSW Technical Representative with the team at futurebuild has found an extra marketing edge for edgeFORM. Drawing on an idea implemented by Newcastle Timber Trading, they have been placing the unique formwork product edgeFORM with steel reinforcement suppliers and the response has been very encouraging.
The idea is a simple but effective one - place samples of the product at 'visual locations,' on or near the counter at the suppliers' outlets, and spark customer interest this way. Concreters coming in needing formwork anyway are reminded that edgeFORM is available specifically for concrete edging jobs and register their interest with the supplier. This set up works as a kind of informal 'test marketing' situation. The supplier can then gauge the interest out there for the product and can then stock accordingly.
This approach differs from methods futurebuild had relied on previously, approaching timber merchants or waiting for interested people to come to them. By targeting steel reinforcement suppliers who in turn reach the concreters, Craig and team are tapping the same market but from a fresh angle.
Suppliers have been keen on the idea, with the first initially having product provided on a consignment basis. The supplier only paid for what was sold. Then, once the product was placed in a prominent position and interest from customers increased, the supplier began to stock more and more according to the demand.
One of the first stockists was Saddingtons Specialist Building Supplies in Broadmeadow in Newcastle. A move-ahead operation themselves, with a convenient early morning drive through and 'pick up' service in place for trade, they recognised the advantages of the edgeFORM approach. ARC-Smorgon too, one of the biggest steel reinforcement suppliers in Australia, has shown interest in this scheme, along with others.
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