The secrets of selling decking products online

tT"t DECK AppEARs to be stacked against selling decking I online. The products can be long and heavy, and are typically purchased in full-project quantities.

Currently, most LBM dealers use their websites to provide product information to "physical customers." E-commerce sales of decking are "maybe, one day."

"I do see us selling decking online to local (25-mile radius) customers in the near future," predicts Eric Murphy, sales manager for East Coast Lumber, East Hampstead, N.H. "I see (an e-commerce site for decking) as mostly a pro tool, since these guys are already familiar with the features and benefits of the products we carry. I don't see any potential at this point for selling to long-distance customers, 'Amazon style.' Shipping and purchase requirements from the manufacturers would mitigate any perceived savings for the customer."

Yet a number of companies have already found a way to make online deck sales work. BPD asked several to share the secrets of their success:

BPD: How long have you been selling decking products online?

Jim Sweet (president/c.e.o., VinylFenceandDeck.com, Rochester, Mn.): Seventeen years.

Dqn Ivancic (director of marketing, Advantage Trim & Lumber Co. and IpeDepot.com, Buffalo, N.Y.): Our e-commerce website research and development started back in 1993. We have been investing in our web presence long before having a company website became standard practice. These efforts have paid off, as online search engines tend to give preference to well-aged domain names. Since then, we have reinvested a substantial portion of our revenue into programmers and online marketing.

Jim Hourigan (v.p.-supply chain, BuildDirect, Vancouver, B.C.): We have been selling decking for over eight years.

Paul Boehlke (general manager, Deck Builder Outlet, Palos Heights, Il.): We have had a website that sold deckrelated products online since 1997 , but the Deck Builder Outlet name and website were introduced and began selling products in 2005.

BPD: What are the primary advantages to buyers of purchasing decking products online?

Boehlke: The biggest advantage is convenience. Customers can sit at home on their computers and shop through the different items available on our site. We carry a number of different manufacturers' products, so there are a lot of options to choose from.

A second advantage is the amount of inventory available. Most big box stores carry one or two manufacturers' products, but in limited colors, quantities or sizes. Our site offers every size and option the manufacturers offer, and 907o of purchases are shipped within a day of order placement.

Ivancic: Customers can have access to a variety of sizes, lengths and species not available at their local yards. Customers who want a few boards to finish a job or do a small project can shop online at their leisure when our phone center is closed. Customers can also take advantage of substantial savings, since many online companies are often structured with lower overhead cost.

Sweet: Customers receive wholesale pricing and can work with experts in fence and decking. Unlike a big box retailer that sells thousands of items, we only manufacture and sell vinyl fence and deck.

BPD: Is there anything unique to decking products compared to other building products that makes it easier or more dfficult to sell online?

Ivsncic: Decking, or any wood material for that matter, can be challenging to sell online since wood is a natural material and, of course, no two pieces look exactly the same. So the challenge is often to convince the customer that they will be happy with our staff selecting the product for them.

The long lengths of decking, up to 24', are also a shipping and handling concern, as some LTL caniers are not fully equipped or used to handling such long freight. Conveying a company's rock solid local reputation to a national level is an everyday effort, as Internet scam artists can taint the customer's willingness to trust Internet retailers in any industry.

Hourigan: We make it easier for customers by providing a sample and delivery to the project site. So a customer can order online, check the sample the next morning for color and physical properties, and then have the product delivered without the hassle of going to a store or having to arrange delivery. Decking, especially 16-ft. boards, is a challenge to transport. We, with our freight partners, take the hassle out of getting the product home.

Boehlke'. Most of the deck-related products you find on our site are packaged by the manufacturer, so they can be shipped UPS. Post caps, balusters, deck lighting' screws' connectors and similar products are packaged in small sizes. They can be purchased online and shipped to a customer's home. A customer doesn't need to worry about walking the aisles in a home center looking for these items and hoping they have them in stock.

The cost of shipping is somewhat offset by the savings in sales tax. Building products like framing lumber and bags of cement are too expensive to ship and are almost impossible to sell online.

BPD: Weight would seem a possible issue with actual decking. Are a large percentage oJ your customers located

Hourigan: Yes, we agree that weight and the length of certain deck products may be an issue for some retailers, but we used our demand data to determine the best place for our multiple distribution center system. This system helps us provide the customer with both reduced freight costs and lead times. Also, because of the amount of freight we move, our freight rates are among the best in the industry so our products travel efficiently from our warehouses.

Ivancic'. Weight is a major issue. We went through great pains to ensure we were using accurate freight quotes, as tight margins can easily be eaten up by a misquoted freight price. The last thing a customer ever wants to hear is that their price changed because of inaccurate shipping figures, so it's typically on the dealer to absorb any freight cost discrepancy. As for geographic locations, our customers are spread across the entire U.S. and the world, so it entails searching many carriers to maintain competitiveness.

Sweet: We ship worldwide. Location is not an issue. All of our quotes include shipping.

Boehlke'. We sell composite decking, but only in the Chicagoland area. It's simply too expensive to ship nationally. Most brands are available locally throughout the country, so even if we have lower prices, the cost of shipping puts the price above what a local store may sell it for.

I had a customer on Long Island that compared our composite decking prices to his local supplier. Our cost on the decking alone was over $800 less, but the cost to ship it to him from Chicago would have offset those savings. We offer composite and vinyl decking comparisons on our site, but due to shipping costs, don't offer (vinyl) for sale.

BPD: Do you accept returns if customers order too muc'h?

Hourigan: We do not accept returns of, say, a single board. We encourage customers to keep any small pieces left over in case they may need to replace a piece that may get damaged in the course of use. Our product experts talk with customers to get the right amount for their job. If they have a significant overage and the product is able to be resold, we will accept a return with certain conditions.

Ivancic: Yes, we accept returns. Returns are often remilled into smaller sizes to remove scratches and dings from excessive shipping across the country and back.

Sweet: For most deck projects, we suggest ordering 107o extra for cuts and unforeseen modifications. We work with each customer on their project, so that the order is usually right on the mark. This is an advantage with working with an expert company that sells only fencing and decking. Each project is unique, and our job is not done until the deck is installed properly. We provide 2417 install support.

Boehlke: We allow our customers to return unopened products for a refund. Our policy states that the customer has 30 days to return the items, and there will be a l57o restocking fee. We allow some flexibility on those rules.

BPD: Decking can be an intimidating prodtrct to buy sight unseen. Does the "typical cttstomer" seem to have done his/her homework, shopped around, and know exactly what (s)he wants, or does (s)he typically have question after question before ordering?

Hourigan'. We have customers that are very knowledgeable, including many contractors who buy from us for all their jobs. They know what they want, but also want to know of new products or trends that we see that can help their business. We also have d-i-y customers that need a lot more information to ensure they have a successful project. We advise on things like spacing, clearance, etc.

Ivancic: We deal with a variety of customers, from wood experts to first-time users. Purchasing any product online can be scary, but typically our customers are comfortable with our strong reputation of supptying products to the "sight unseen" buyer, as they have often seen a job we supplied in their area, previously visited one of our milling facilities, and have done extensive online research.

Educating the customer can be a big investment, as it often takes the same amount of time to talk a new customer through an order of a couple boards as it does an order of several bundles. This makes customer retention an even more important part of everyday business, as repeat customers become the true profit center.

Sweet: Some customers know exactly what they want, others require full support. Our typical customer already has a rough idea of their needs, and we then help them to provide a detailed quote for their project.

Boehlke: The majority of our composite decking sales are to deck builders who know about the different manufacturers and their respective lines, so they know exactly what they want. Composite decking is very uniform and does not have to be picked through like cedar or treated decking.

A homeowner usually does have a lot of questions and needs guidance in differentiating the types of composite and vinyl decking that are available. Even after explaining the differences, we still recommend that the customer stoD by to pick up samples to compare the colors.

BPD: What are the prospects for future growth in online decking sales?

Hourigan: We are seeing huge growth online for this category and forecast much more. Building products and decking in general have not yet achieved a significant percentage of sales online compared to other categories, but the trend is unmistakably clear. Every day more and more people are becoming more comfortable buying building products online, and this is due to how we treat customers and deliver great products and great prices with no hassles.

Ivsncic: We see continued growth for online decking sales as the overall economy improves; however, the risk of rising freight cost, government regulation on Internet sales, and increased competition are always looming issues.

Sweet: We are of the opinion that the market will continue to grow. The majority of consumers are committed to receiving the best price, along with the best service available and are unable to find this local, so going online and working with an expert in the field can provide a solution to the problems of buying local from big box retailers.

Boehlke: We were one of the first websites to offer deck-related products online. Back in 2005, our best-selling products were wood post caps, deck screws, and connectors that were used on wood decks. Now with the popularity of low deck maintenance growing, our site has seen large sales increases in aluminum balusters and post caps, along with composite and vinyl railing systems, which are replacing their wooden counterparts.

Many people building new decks and those rebuilding their old ones are looking for low maintenance, not necessarily on the decking but more so on the railings, which is what most of the products on our site offer. The new lines of LED deck lighting are also catching on. As the economy builds more steam and the low deck maintenance and LED lighting ideas grow, I think the online deck product sales can see additional growth. At least I hope so.

-4t7-2,47