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KI International Sales Meeting

KI International Sales Meeting. Specification Marketing to Design Professionals. Defining Customer Requirements and Protecting Specifications Michael D. Chambers FAIA FCSI CCS MCA Specifications Construction Product Marketing Group. "We are continually faced by great opportunities

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KI International Sales Meeting

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  1. KI International Sales Meeting

  2. Specification Marketingto Design Professionals Defining Customer Requirements and Protecting Specifications Michael D. Chambers FAIA FCSI CCS MCA Specifications Construction Product Marketing Group

  3. "We are continually faced by great opportunities brilliantly disguised as insoluble problems.“ Lee Iacocca (1924 - ) Former chairman of the Chrysler Corporation

  4. Learning Objectives • Understand How to Work Effectively with Design Professionals • Discover Effective Sales Call Strategies with Specifications • Developing Specifications that can be Protected

  5. Defining Customer Requirements Effectively

  6. Why Call on Design Professionals? • Branding: • Develop a strong system/product identification • Identify KI brands by demonstrated competence • Trusted Expert • Relationships

  7. It is all about SOLUTIONS, not about products

  8. What do Design Professionals Want? • Use and Application—Design Solutions • Problems identified and solved • Guide Specifications • Excellent educational tool

  9. What do Design Professionals Want? • Recommended uses and application of products (92%) 2. Guide specifications (88%) : : 17. Life cycle costs (42%) 18. Manufacturer’s history, experience, overall capacities and range of products (40%) McGraw-Hill Research 1984

  10. Perceptions, Needs, and Hot Buttons • Ask leading, opened-ended questions • Don’t lecture, have a conversation

  11. Perceptions, Needs, and Hot Buttons • Active Listening • Intense focus on the design professional • Responding without interrupting • Asking open-ended questions • Take notes

  12. Open-Ended Questions • information gathering… • What prompted you/ your company to look into this? • What are your expectations/ requirements for this product/ service? • What process did you go through to determine your needs? • How do you see this happening? • What is it that you’d like to see accomplished? • With whom have you had success in the past? • With whom have you had difficulties in the past? • Can you help me understand that a little better? • What does that mean? • How does that process work now? • What challenges does that process create? • What challenges has that created in the past? • What are the best things about that process? • What other items should we discuss? • qualifying… • What do you see as the next action steps? • What is your timeline for implementing/ purchasing this type of service/ product? • What other data points should we know before moving forward? • What budget has been established for this? • What are your thoughts? • Who else is involved in this decision? • What could make this no longer a priority? • What's changed since we last talked? • What concerns do you have? • rapport, trust & credibility… • How did you get involved in…? • What kind of challenges are you facing? • What’s the most important priority to you with this? Why? • What other issues are important to you? • What would you like to see improved? • How do you measure that?

  13. Better QuestionsCreate Better Solutions • Establish industry credibility • Demonstrate industry expertise • Trusted Expert

  14. Be so good that they can’t ignore youSteve Martin

  15. Sales Calls are Presentations • Must focus on use and application, problem solving, design ideas, and competitive specifications

  16. Sales Calls are Presentations • Immediate project applicability • Information must useable not just useful • Don’t force design professionals to make application decisions • Focus on system solutions not product solutions

  17. Competitive AdvantageTrusted Expert • Know the limitations of your products • Know competitive products as well as your own • Sell yourself, not your product—develop relationships

  18. Project Cycles • Programming • Pre-Design • Schematics • Design Development • Construction Documents • Bidding/Negotiation • Construction Administration • Commissioning/POE

  19. Specification Marketing

  20. Highly Effective Marketing Tactic • Critical Specification Issues • Appropriate quality levels (apples for apples) • Real technical issues • NO FEATURES AND BENEFITS

  21. Highly Effective Marketing Tactic • Competitive specifications are best • Eliminate substitutions • Minimize field problems • MUST be equivalent products or systems

  22. Product Marketing • Goal • Getting specified: specifications are your number 1 marketing tool • Objective • Getting specified correctly and competitively • Task • The right information at the right time

  23. Product Marketing • Proper specifications substantially reduce substitutions • Primary reasons for substitutions • Substitution procedures and processes

  24. Remember, a typical specification is not about the highest quality products; it is simply the lowest common denominator acceptable to meet project requirements.

  25. Protecting Specifications

  26. Role of Specifications, Drawings, and Contract Provisions • Roles of Parties to the Contract • Design Professional • Owner • Contractor • Subs and suppliers

  27. Role of Specifications, Drawings, and Contract Provisions • Project Manual • Drawings • Show quantities, location, layout, relationships, dimensions • Specifications • Show qualities, methods, materials, procedures

  28. Role of Specifications, Drawings, and Contract Provisions • Strategic Options • Substitutions • Alternates

  29. Part 1 - General • Division 1: Critical quality control procedures • Submittals • See before you buy • Ensure that what is specified is installed

  30. Part 1 - General • Quality Assurance • Manufacturer qualifications: Not necessary if Part 2 is done right • Installer qualifications: Must be enforceable to control quality • Mock ups: Extremely powerful and relatively inexpensive quality control procedure

  31. Part 1 - General • Substitutions • The correct procedures can reduce substitutions and resulting quality problems • Specify standard procedures that keep designer in charge

  32. Part 1 - General • Project Closeout • Material care data and directions • Owner demonstrations and training • Extra materials

  33. Part 2 - Products • Ensuring consistent quality of materials and fabrication • Correct products to solve the design concept in a cost-effective manner • Not the best product, but the appropriate product • It is always about solutions, never about products

  34. Part 3 - Execution • Specify results • If you do not indicate how something is to be installed, the contractor will do it according to the lowest possible acceptable industry standard or minimum local work rule

  35. Substitutions • Ensuring that specs hold • Reach and educate Specifiers • Early input and brand name • Provide apples for apples competitive information • List every qualified competitor

  36. Substitutions • Non-competitive pricing is the critical factor in breaking specifications

  37. Document Review • Specification Review Process • Addenda • Submittals • Substitutions • Specification Review • Alternates

  38. Document Review • Drawing Review Process • Plans • Elevations and Sections • Room finish schedule and notes • Notations on the drawings

  39. That’s just our design team image, the real design team is over here! Articles at www.mcaspecs.com\KI

  40. Michael D. Chambers FAIA FCSI CCSConstruction Product Marketing GroupDaly City, Californiamichael@mcaspecs.com www.mcaspecs.com

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