Words That Are Used To Manipulate Us
When We Engage In A Home Improvement Purchase
The English language is an integral
part of shopping and everyday commerce.
Businesses know and understand this well. In fact there are even books written for
words that can sell to you, the customer.
We may not pay attention to these words and you may be tricked by them
into making a purchase that isn’t as good as you were led to believe. So in the war of words, here is a quick
manual for consumers when it comes to shopping for home improvement
products. Since I am a flooring expert I
will correlate many words with the flooring industry, but I am sure you have
seen these words and phrases used in other industries.
The total number of words that are
used in the market place far surpass what I will cover in this article, but the
true purpose of the article is to get you to pay attention to the words that
are used against you.
Words that are used to mislead you
Surplus: Something that remains above what
is used or needed.
Overstock:
to stock to excess.
How many of you have seen signs for
flooring companies or the company itself uses the word surplus or overstock in
their name to sell their products. There is no such thing as surplus or
overstock flooring. With inventory
controls and the high costs of making a mistake in ordering materials, who
makes a big enough mistake where a store has thousands of square feet of
flooring that is surplus? Every builder and home owner I know measure every
square foot to the inch, so I know the surplus isn’t coming from them. When the
US
military says they have 10,000 boots as surplus I believe it. But not when a flooring store uses it to
promote the idea of discounts or cheaper pricing. How can a flooring company
that buys containers of flooring direct from China or from their distributor
knowing what they are buying (and in abundance) label their product a surplus
or overstock? Where’s the surplus coming from?
Seconds is a different story. Seconds
in the flooring industry means there is something wrong with the flooring in so
much that the manufacturer does not want to put their name on it. Be it a color variation, twisted or not so
straight boards, delamination and finish problems, the formaldehyde emittance
is too high for industry standards (the glues to bond most plywood engineered
floors emit this in low levels), the color changes color in the sun after time
and so on and so on. If you ask the
sales rep why it is seconds the majority of the time they will say it’s a color
variation because they really don’t know themselves. I wouldn’t believe it. For
the headaches and not really knowing why something is seconds I would run away
from seconds unless you’re a flooring expert. You will spend more money using
flooring that is seconds than just buying the factory approved product. I have known many contractors who have had to
buy 150% or more of material just to finish one area as they had to discard
material that didn’t lay straight.
Factory Direct: Direct: proceeding in a straight
line or by the shortest course.
Factory Store: A store that is owned & run by
the manufacturer.
Distributor: A wholesaler who has exclusive
rights to market, within a given territory, the goods of a manufacturer or
company.
Dealer: a person who buys and sells
articles without altering their condition; trader or merchant.
These are used all the time in the
flooring industry. Used and abused. There are only a small handful of
distributors that get their product factory direct compared to the number of
stores that say they are selling to you factory direct. The usual chain of events in a factory direct
purchase should be: Manufacturer: Approved Regional Distributor: Flooring
Store. Only three Mark ups. This is how I have positioned my company;
http://www.californiasbestflooringcompany.com.
When
this phrase is abused you get:
Manufacturer: Approved Regional Distributor: Another Distributor:
Flooring
Company: Smaller Flooring Store, Dealer, Builders: Fully five Mark ups!
Not every company or distributor can get
every flooring product, factory direct. If they say then can then I
would not
believe it. Manufacturers preselect who
they want to distribute their product in a selected region. That
distributor then picks reputable companies
in which to sell their represented manufacturer’s goods. It’s a form of
quality control. So by the time your builder or installer
tells you they can get wood flooring factory direct I’d need some
proof.
To follow the chain of anything
factory direct you go to the manufacturer’s website and look for approved
distributors. Then you call the
distributor in your area and ask them what flooring store offers the product
you are looking for. Some distributors
are the flooring store thus being a one- two mark up. This is the most cost
effective way. Work from the source out not start at the store and work
backwards. So the next time a flooring
company or someone else claims to be a distributor, misleading you the consumer
into thinking you’re getting a product direct form the source, verify this,
contact the manufacturer.
Outlet: a store, merchant, or agency
selling the goods of a particular wholesaler or manufacturer.
Wholesale: the sale of goods in quantity, as
to retailers.
As far as I know there is no such
thing as a flooring outlet store in the true meaning of what an outlet is. Clothing stores have outlets where the
factory makes mistakes and the outlets then offer the products at a discount.
For example Polo clothing and Coach Hand Bags have outlet stores that just
offer their products. I don’t know of one factory-represented flooring outlet
store; anywhere in California. The next time someone claims to be an outlet
then ask them why they carry more than one brand and which factory or
manufacturer do they represent. I can
say with certainty that if you call a flooring manufacturer and ask them where
their flooring outlet is in California.
They are going think you are crazy; they may even laugh. They are going to probably ask you if you
mean distributor but an outlet and distributor are two different things. Bottom
line is there are no factory direct flooring outlets in California.
The word Wholesale is ridiculously
over used. Forget the word all
together. Flooring is sold per job pack,
per pallet price, then container price, and then multiple container
pricing. Job Pack is usually under
800-1,000SF, Pallets are 1,000- 2,500SF depending on the material, etc. Containers
are usually 9 or more pallets, and multiple containers reach up into the
hundreds of thousands of dollars. As a
consumer, the best price you can get, call it wholesale, discount, whatever it
is, is pallet pricing. This is your
commando word to fight the enemy. You
want pallet pricing on everything you can get since there’s no way you’re ever
going to need a container of flooring with 20,300SF. This is the term we use and so should
you. I don’t go to my supplier and say,
“Can I get some wholesale tile.” I ask what’s the pallet price and how much do
I have to buy to get it for xyz.
Sale and Discount Teasers
Save up to XX% Off!, YY% Discount!,
Price Break! Price Blowout! Prices Slashed, One Day Sale, One Day Only, Giant
Closeout Sale, Everything must go, We Must Move Our Inventory, Buy more save
more, Huge Discounts, Buy One Get One Free, Store Wide Clearance, Liquidations:
In sales these are called teasers. Whenever I see up to 50% off I think 50% off
of what? One million dollars? Prices change for suppliers and costs fluctuate
in the market. Yes, price increases get pasted on the public but not as extremely
as some companies would make it. I never
really have sales as my flooring company offers just low pricing year
round. Here is the scenario and you tell
me where the huge discount comes from:
The flooring manufacturer has a price that they set and sell to the
distributors. The distributors then mark
it up with a little wiggle room to only those who buy bulk. At this point this is a two markup scenario.
If a flooring company is sharp, they find a way to be in this position. If you as a consumer are dealing with, let’s
say three companies that are in the three markup situation then how can one
company offer a huge discount over everyone else when everyone buys form the
same distributor in that area? They can offer a huge discount because they
normally are over-charging customers to begin with. This is why they can offer 50% off and still
be profitable. Discount only really
truly comes into play in flooring when a product line is discontinued and the
manufacturer is going to discontinue that product. Even then you have to ask yourself why would
they discontinue a profitable item. Is there something wrong with it?
Going out of business sale:
If a company is truly going out of
business, wouldn’t you want a warranty on a product that you’re spending
thousands of dollars on? Some would say,
“Oh well, in flooring you get it from the manufacturer for the product”. True,
but trust me it helps when the person you buy the product from can help you get
your warranty. A flooring company that
sells thousands and thousands of dollars of a manufacturers product can have
some pull in helping you, the consumer, get your warranty if you come into
problems.
If you’re making a large purchase,
check to make sure the company is not in bankruptcy. (Store Wide Clearance=red
flag) Companies don’t have to disclose
to the consumer they are in bankruptcy as it is public information and it is up
to the consumer to do their due diligence.
If you do business with a company in bankruptcy or are buying from a
store wide clearance sale, get your product on the spot--don’t wait for
delivery or you may find your check cashed and store locked the next day. Depending on where you live and the company
is head quartered the bankruptcy court may vary.
I know this has nothing to do with
home improvements but it’s my all time favorite. Ever see the signs at pawn shops and other
places that say, “We buy scrap gold.” There’s
no such thing as gold that is scrap; gold is gold. The word scrap is meant to devalue the gold
you are trying to sell so you get less than fair market value. When they melt it down and reform it is it
marked, “Previously Gold Scraps”. No it’s not! Try going to these places and
asking them if you can buy scrap gold one oz bars. Somehow I don’t think they
will give you a discount.
The financial and banking industries
are examples of where you have to have a license or be what you say you are or
you risk fines and jail time. The flooring industry in California and many other states do not have
this federal regulation of checks and balances over the use of words to protect
consumers.
Remember: it’s ok to let words pique
your interest in a product or service, but don’t let it sway you away from the
most important aspect at hand: the final price and value of what you need or
want. Every industry has its phases and words and they have a purpose. Just verify the company you are dealing with
uses the words to convey their correct position and meaning in the marketplace.
Please visit www.californiasbestflooringcompany.com
for all your flooring needs!
