My fiancée Gaetana thinks that we should own a home, rather than rent as we do.
And I think that’s because Guy has never sat at my desk on a Sunday afternoon and watched our landlord Betty cut the grass!
Looking closely at the picture, it seems that while I wasn't watching, Betty has been doing a fine job keeping the gutters clean! Which I appreciate, because it would be "awks" for me to watch her climb the ladder while I was sitting here sipping my caffeine and writing to you.
By renting, I avoid more than just taking Betty's place in that picture. I don’t cut the grass in the summer; I don’t blow the leaves in the fall; and I don’t shovel snow in the winter.
If I took on all the homeowner-weekend tasks myself, my Monday blogs would be a banal pile of whiny-ness instead of the refreshing sharp-wittedness to which you’ve become accustomed!
I have owned homes before. A decidedly unprofitable experience which to this day supports my inner-renter! But even as a homeowner, I used to “sub-out” the weekend-busting work like dealing with the grass, snow and gutters.
The idea of having someone do the work is hardly a new one, nor is it unique to just me. If you’ve ever gotten take-out because you didn’t feel like making dinner, I know you feel me!
If you’re an independent paint dealer, you do the same thing around your stores as I do around my house: you sub it out!
While always willing to help at the counter, tint a gallon or even make a delivery, you generally don’t! You pay counter help, tinters and drivers to do that work for you.
Prioritization of your time is one reason to assign work to others but it’s far from the only one.
Expertise is another reason to assign a task, particularly a mission critical one. You could take the time and learn the tax code; but wisdom dictates that you hire an accountant instead! You’re free to learn the law and represent yourself in court or a in a business dispute. But that’s as practical of a solution as studying to be an orthodontist when your kid needs braces!
E-Commerce, Again
The thinking on that brick and mortar retail also requires a pairing with e-commerce is fairly ubiquitous. In 2017, three years before you first heard the word Coronavirus, NASDAQ reported that by 2040 they expect 95% of ALL purchases to be facilitated by e-commerce.
While it’s true that e-commerce will be required to survive in the not-too-distant future, in the present, e-commerce provides the best opportunity in a generation to grow your sales and market share.
Maybe two generations!
But that doesn’t mean it’s time to learn to write code!
THE Revolution! The web and e-commerce sites which I designed and built for independent retailers will save you that step!
In less than two-weeks my first site, TownLinePaint.com will go live. And the era of the level playing field begins!
Or even better, THE Revolution will slope the field our way! By that, I mean your way.
Without ever learning to write any code!
While I’m not quite ready to show off the (almost) finished product, I am prepared to share some of the goals I had as I began building these sites.
The sites needed to be turn-key for the dealer. It will take more than writing a check to get your site up. But not much!
The sites needed to address the significant differences in shopping preferences and needs of the two consumers independent paint dealers serve: the DIY and professional segments. I spent far too many years behind to a counter to think that a painter and a consumer have the same needs as consumers.
They needed to pop-up quickly: because projects that take too long cost too much! I’ll be promising four-week delivery time from signature to launch. I won't be late.
ROI. At $15,000 a site, closer to $7500 out-of-pocket once you apply for coop reimbursement, the ROI calculation on these sites is done in weeks, not years.
Color, Color, Color!
They needed to be your store, online! Not just a listing of paints and brushes, the dealers who join my Revolution will sell wallpaper, décor, flooring, paint and sundries. Online!
And they needed to be just the beginning!
Because the revolution is only how a story begins!
Dealers, email me here and I’ll arrange a sneak peek!
