Samples are an essential marketing tool for building materials manufacturers. Despite today’s consumers doing a great deal of their research and shopping online, few of them will pull the trigger on a purchase as expensive and impactful as building materials unless they have seen and handled those materials. Enter Exalt Samples with a smarter product sample strategy.
Naturally, consumers normally examine several samples from more than one brand before they are ready to decide on a final product. Flooring, roofing, fencing, and siding materials are meant to last decades; making a poor decision has long-lasting effects on their enjoyment and even the value of their home.
With this in mind, consider how to drive product sales with a smarter sample strategy that will result in a robust conversion rate.
Populating Touchpoints
A touchpoint is anywhere your customer contacts your brand. At each touchpoint, the goal must be to present samples alongside information regarding your brand’s offerings. The challenge for building materials manufacturers lies in establishing a strong connection with prospective customers. Samples of your materials across touchpoints are the key to bridging this gap.
Consumers are increasing the number of touchpoints they encounter as they shop. Each device, app, and storefront present unique opportunities for you to connect with a shopper. The consumer today is spending more time researching products, but as we’ve discussed, they aren’t making building materials purchases until they have the chance to examine samples in person.
Your goal should be to present your customers with samples as quickly as possible. Take a virtual walk through your website and make note of the missed opportunities where there could be links to order samples. The sample request process should be as simple as possible to adequately hold the consumer’s attention long enough to click “Submit.”
Your social media pages, each page on your website, and even your email signature are all essential touchpoints. Offer a link to order samples at each.
Who Will Use Your Material Samples?
Your product samples will be used by more than homeowners seeking to remodel and renovate. Sales representatives, architects, builders, manufacturers, and contractors all need building material samples that meet their specific needs, whether for Business to Business (B2B) or Business to Consumer (B2C) use.
To create the most useful samples, consider where they will be presented. Some of the usual spots include showrooms, trade shows, big box stores, individual homes, and in a designer or architect’s personal library of materials.
Once you have a clear profile of your many and varied potential clients in mind, it’s time to work toward creating samples to meet their unique needs.
Create Samples with Clear Intent
Consider your target customer base and intentionally create samples with this specific audience in mind. Always keep technological advancements in mind (and how they have affected consumer shopping patterns, expectations, and their relationships with brands) when curating the messaging, design, and placement – both physically and virtually – of your samples.
How can your samples have the maximum impact on your customers? What are the challenges your customers are most commonly working to solve? How can your samples convey solutions to help them solve these issues?
Your building material samples must be impeccably designed and crafted to create a connection with consumers at each touchpoint. Striking samples will enhance a shopper’s experience, ultimately prompting them to purchase from you instead of a competitor.
With an emphasis in the building products industry, Exalt Samples provides hands-on marketing solutions to a wide range of customers here in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and around the US.
