December 2008 Table of Contents

Every July, about 400 fishermen launch their boats at dawn onto the Kenai River in Alaska. Hosted by Spenard Builders Supply, the spectacle is arguably one of the biggest in the LBM industry and one of the largest fishing tournaments in the state. The weeklong bash includes catered meals, salmon barbecues, professional fishing guides, and free hotel rooms. Read more

The Simonsons have been in the lumber business since Danish immigrant Nels Simonson began selling timber he harvested around St. Croix Falls, Wis., in the 1890s. But it wasn't all they did. Over the years, various Simonsons have sold coal, gasoline, even old wood salvaged from barns. Now, Rick Simonson is selling knowledge--specifically, how to run an installed sales program. Read more

If you're an established LBM dealer with a small but growing installed sales business, it's OK to start out managing sales leads the old-fashioned way: on paper. Later, advance to personal productivity tools, such as spreadsheets or contact management systems. But as leads convert to customers, you'll need sophisticated tools that allow information sharing and data analysis among various departments in your company. Read more

In the first issue of this installed sales special, I laid out a method by which you could quantify the value of your services to your builder customer by tracking callbacks and the cost associated with correcting them. While this is still valid and many of my clients use it, I may have jumped the gun a bit. Read more

When the Southern Pine Council created its Raised Floor Living initiative, its objective was to sell builders more lumber for homes that were less prone to hurricane and flood damage. Today, through newsletters and e-mail updates, the Raised Floor Living initiative reaches about 1,400 dealers and builders, primarily across the South. Read more

The housing market in Minnesota's Twin Cities is deep into its second year of recession. Builders here are struggling to stay alive, as are their suppliers. "Some competitors, arrogantly, only sold new construction, and it's really killing them now," says Pat Hegseth, sales manager for Lamperts, a St. Paul-based pro dealer. Read more

For lumberyards, the credit crunch has been like a storm where lightning and thunder can be felt far and wide, but only a few areas get drenched, a new ProSales survey suggests. Read more

The people who do installations can be the difference between success and failure in the installed sales business. Training them can dictate the quality of their work and, therefore, may decide whether a customer returns to you for future business. Here are good, better, and best practices for training installers. Read more

Eyes Forward: You can add 10% to your bottom line, but you have to want it to get it. Read more