BPD

(Sister publicati1n Building ProducE Digest seNes the West)

PUBIISHER Alan 0akes (aloakes@aol.com)

PUBLISHER EMERITUS David Cutler

EDIT0R David Koenig (dkoenig@building-products.com)

ASSOCIATE EDITOR Karen Debats (kdebats@building-products.com)

CONTRIBUTIiIG EDII(IRS

Carla Waldemar, James 0lsen

ADVERTISII{G SALES MANAGER Chuck Casey (ccasey@build ing-products.com)

ADMII{ISTRATIOI{ DIRECTOR/ SECRETARY Marie Oakes (mlpoakes@aol.com)

CIRGULATI0I{ Heather Kelly {hkelly@build ing-products.com)

How to Advertise

Contacl our adverlising olfices lor rates:

SOUTH, IilIDWEST & WEST: ChucK Casey, 4500 Campus Dr. #480, Newport Beach, Ca. 92660. Phone (949) 852-1990 Fax 949-8520231 Email ccasey@building-products.com

II0fiTHEAST: Paul Mummolo, 404 Princeton Ave., Brick, N.J. 08724. Phone (732) 899-8102 Fax 732-899-2758 mummolop@c0mcast.net lllTERllET ADS: Alan 0akes, www.buildingproducts.com. Phone (919) 852-1990 Fax 949-852-0231 Email aioakes@aol.com.

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@or send a check for the following amount t0 Building Products Digest,4500 Campus Drive, Suite 480, Newport Beach, Ca. 92660-1872: U.S.A.: One year (12 issues), $24

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About the Cover

BUIID|I{G PR0DUCTS DIGEST is published monthly at 4500 Campus Dr., Ste. 480, Newport Beach, Ca. 92660-1872, (949) 852-1990, Fax 949-852-0231, www.building-products.com, by Cutler Publishing, Inc. (a California Corporation). lt is an independently owned publication for building products retailers and wholesale distributors in 37 states East of the Rockies.

Copyright@2o09 by Cutler Publishing, Inc. Cover and entire contents are fully protected and must not be reproduced in any manner without written permission. All Rights Reserved. Building Products Digest reserves the right to accept or reject any editorial or advertising matter, and assumes no liability for materials furnished to it.

The front cover is a paid advertisement, this month sponsored by Arch's Dricon fire retardant treated wood.

Who's not listening?

The other day, a wholesale buyer mentioned to me how short-tempered customers seem to be lately. When I brought this point up to another business owner this moming, he said the same people who were always short tempered who had now gone a few steps further up the explosion meter. My sense is that we are all under much more business and personal pressure than ever before, and even the smallest things that go wrong seem large.

Whatever the situation, the one thing I know that I have to learn to do better is what we used to teach in sales training-practice that silence is golden. The biggest complaint about sales and customer service people is that we do not listen. Most salespeople would argue that buyers are only interested in price, discounts, quality and service. But according to a recent survey, number one on the list is that salespeople talk too much and do not listen enough. And that same survey showed that this has been the No. I issue for many, many years.

At no other time is it more necessary to shut up-taping your mouth shut to allow for only the occasional nod and grunt of understanding-than when a customer has been wronged or thinks he has been wronged. As none of us can