Reading Roundup

Lutron, Leviton, Philips, the hardware industry and North Dakota were in recent articles we’ve read. Below are the items of interest:

1. “Lutron says dimmed halogen bulbs are better than compact fluorescents ” was the headline on www.dvice.com. The article goes to state that “dimmer maker Lutron is trying to convince everyone to forget CFL bulbs and just use halogen bulbs, but dim them”. In fairness to Lutron, they were trying to make the point that the “right bulb should be used for the right application“. There are, however, dimmable CFLs on the market (they’re expensive); the leading CFL manufacturers are developing dimmable CFLs that will meet customer expectations; and other dimming companies are working on compatible fluorescent dimmers. One company, Purespectrum, claims to have technology for both. Perhaps Lutron’s engineers are not too close to developing their own dimmer? With green being an opportunity for distributors, every feasible product is important.
2. Congratulations to Leviton for winning the hardware industry’s Golden Hammer Award in the electrical supplies category. Philips earned the Silver award according to Home Channel News.
3. According to HCN, the June 16th issues, electrical supplies represents 3% of sales for the Top 500 hardware dealers in the U.S. The Top 500 of all hardware/pro/retailers represent $17.3 billion in electrical sales (or 6.9% of the Top 500’s revenues).
4. An article in The Wholesaler by Morris Beschloss focused on the growing oil industry in North Dakota (yes!!) based upon the Bakken Belt shale findings. With the price of oil high and new production techniques, expect to see areas that have shale (which includes North Dakota, Montana and other Rocky Mountain states; Pennsylvania and other Applachia areas; Louisiana and Texas (and probably more). This can represent an opportunity for electrical distributors with petrochem expertise to either open remote locations, acquire distributors or drop ship materials with remote storeroom management capabilities. Or, if you are already in these areas, it could represent a growth opportunity.

And a tidbit from Professional Remodeler regarding selling:

“The first 10 minutes of an initial prospect (new customer) meeting is spent telling them why you are the best. What if you spent that same 10 minutes finding out what would make you the best in their eyes?”

Perhaps ask yourself “Does my sales organization know why customers should do business with us? Are we asking our customers why they do business with us? Are we doing any prospecting? Which of my “small to mid-sized” customers are really much more important (revenue-wise) to my competitors?” In a tough economy it is important to uncover the missed opportunities.