There’s a New Middleman in Building Materials

Everyone in the building materials industry is familiar with the old middlemen. I’m talking about the dealers, distributors and big boxes that helped you get your product out of your warehouse and to the customer.

The traditional role of these middlemen was simple: make the product available to those who want it.

But now, there’s a new middleman, and they’re doing more than just funneling products to customers.

The New Middleman

These new middlemen see their job as helping the customer make better, smarter choices about building material products.

Customers interact with these middlemen primarily through online interfaces designed for the customer’s convenience and ease of use.

When you visit their websites, you can practically feel the difference. Unlike traditional middlemen, these guys have put a lot of thought into the customer experience.

They give the customer the information they need without asking them to jump through hoops, and they point them to products that will solve their problems and make their lives easier.

What You Should Do

This new way of doing things is a win for customers, but it will only be a win for manufacturers and suppliers who don’t rely too much on traditional distribution models to keep their sales up.

The most important thing you can do is take a page from the new middlemen’s playbook. Make it easier for your customer to buy your product. Ask your customers what it’s like to buy products from you and take steps to eliminate any points of friction in that process.

And pay close attention to the way customers are sourcing and purchasing products. Many of them will move away from traditional dealers and distributors and start working with startups instead. Take steps to meet their needs now. If you wait until you start losing customers, it will already be too late.

Learn about 3 of these new middlemen in my full blog post.  

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