By Jerry Mason, HornerXpress / jerry@teamhorner.com
Do you want to grow your business revenues and profits, but not sure how? The answers may vary slightly based on what segment of the market you serve, but there is a common theme.
Here are a few of the “easy” answers. If you build or renovate pools – you can sell more, sell more expensive pools, add fancy features, increase your prices or explore additional revenue streams.
If you are a pool service provider you can raise your price, but what if that puts your company out of consideration? You can service more pools, but doing so probably means you will have to hire more personnel and invest in additional equipment. So, how many additional pools are needed to breakeven or gain profit considering the added expense? You can provide additional services and or find additional revenue streams.
What’s the common theme? Additional revenue streams. You are already a trusted service provider if your company was chosen to build / renovate their pool or provide them service. Why not capitalize on that trust? Your current customer base is a huge asset, competitive advantage, and opportunity to grow your business. Tell your clients now you can do more for them than they may be aware of. Get your company and your clients thinking beyond the pool and into outdoor living and an entertaining space.
There is a steadily increasing desire for outdoor kitchens and outdoor living spaces. Think about where you are sitting right now. How many houses are there within a 10 mile radius of you? How many of those do you think would like to have a beautiful outdoor cooking or living space? I know it’s a very large percentage. If you don’t believe me just ask your neighbors or better yet… your customers.
Now think about your customer base. If you are a pool builder or design consultant, how many of those pools sold in the past years now have an outdoor kitchen in their backyard? Why didn’t you capitalize on that opportunity? If you are a weekly service or repair provider how many times do you go into a backyard and see a newly installed outdoor kitchen or living space? Why didn’t you capitalize on that opportunity?
Here is some data demonstrating how huge the opportunity with outdoor living and outdoor kitchens really is.
From the American Institute of Architects:
Though the desired size of a home’s kitchen may not be growing, architects have seen an increase in demand for outdoor kitchens. “Homeowners continue to find new ways to add value to their homes by creating more functional space, which is apparent in the rise in popularity of outdoor kitchens,” said AIA Chief Economist, Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA. “Kitchens have become a hub for the home, now homeowners want to bring some of that activity to their outside.”
From the National Association of Home Builders website:
Why outdoor kitchens are so popular: This question prompted us to conduct proprietary research to discover the “why behind the what.” We surveyed several hundred homeowners across the U.S. who either had purchased or intended to purchase an outdoor kitchen and here is what we found, an outdoor kitchen is viewed as an experience, while the indoor kitchen is viewed more as a room.
Our research indicated that consumers view indoor and outdoor kitchens very differently. The outdoor kitchen is all about fun, whereas the indoor kitchen has a higher focus on functionality. When planning and selling an outdoor kitchen, get the homeowner to express their ultimate outdoor experience, and design the space around their dreams.
Consumers are willing to spend big money.
When an outdoor kitchen is included in the cost of new home construction, the median investment is over $40,000. When adding an outdoor kitchen after new home construction the median cost is between $10,000 – $20,000.
View the full article, written by David Brown, in the Fall 2016 issue of Best in American Living.
The fact is many consumers want outdoor living experiences including outdoor kitchens. If your company isn’t focused on this growing demand, you are missing a huge opportunity. You have a huge competitive advantage over anyone else they can choose because they already know and trust your company. Use your existing customer base, sell them what they want, and increase your company’s revenue and profits.
