3 Essential Things Building Materials Customers Now Expect

The last year has brought big transformations to the building materials industry. Mainly, it has sped up the rate of progress. No one could afford to drag their feet anymore. Everyone had to go digital or fall behind.

Because of those changes, there are three things that customers no longer tolerate.

They used to put up with how inefficient or inconvenient things were in building materials because they didn’t know they could expect more.

Now they do, and some things that were once considered extra have become basic. These are three of the things your customer now expect from you.

1. Virtual Selling

There’s still a place for in-person selling, but virtual calls aren’t going anywhere.?

Your customers got a taste of how convenient it can be to do business remotely. It has saved them hours of their time and they’re not going to give those hours up without a fight.

They not only expect that you’ll offer virtual presentations but that you’ll put just as much effort into them as you do with in-person sales calls.

That means every building material salesperson should know how to pitch remotely. And every company should be offering their sales teams the training and equipment they need to make sure they look and sound great on camera.?

2. Fast Response Times

If you feel like your customers are getting more and more impatient, you’re not wrong. We all are. It’s a natural response to being able to get things instantly in most areas of our lives.

If it takes more than a few minutes to get an answer, most customers move on. Because of that, the company that responds to customers most quickly has a significant upper hand over their competitors.

Your response time might be good, but chances are it’s not good enough. The optimal response time is under five minutes. Most B2B businesses take about 48 hours to respond.?

If you’re not lightning-quick with lead inquiries, you’re losing more business than you realize.

3. An Amazon-Style Product Page

We’re so used to clicking on Amazon product pages that most of us don’t ever stop to think about how well designed they are.

All the information you could possibly want is there, but it doesn’t feel bloated because it’s organized perfectly.

At the top, you have all the information most customers need to make split-second decisions. There are product images, the price (including those on Amazon Marketplace), and a bullet point list of the product’s key features.

If you still need more convincing, you can scroll down to read detailed product information, find customer reviews, and see similar products you might also want.

Building materials product pages are rarely constructed like that. They’re more like a jumble. Some of the key information is buried somewhere in the middle. Some of the features are hidden inside dense paragraphs.

Customers want to make split-second decisions about whether your product is right for them. If the top of your product page doesn’t give them everything they need to do that, there’s a good chance they’ll click away and you’ll lose a sale.

Convenience Is Essential

Making things convenient for your customer isn’t a luxury anymore. It’s essential.

Customers have more options to choose from than ever and they can find them with only a few quick searches and clicks.

If you don’t make it easy for them, someone else will. If you offer them the ease, speed, and convenience they expect you’ll be far more likely to turn a curious customer into a paying one.