11 06 Trusted Advisor

Trusted Advisor The Role of Product Representatives in Construction Joy Davis, CSI, CCPR CSI Communications & Web Community Manager jdavis@csinet.org 800-689-2900 x4795

About the Slides
I hate looking at a presentation after an event and not knowing what the speaker said with each slide.
I delivered this presentation in June 2011 at the CSI Phoenix Chapter’s Product Representative Academy. The small, italicized text on the following slides are the comments I made.

Do Architects Buy Products?

No.
What Architects Do:
Evaluate
Select
Specify
This is the first thing the specifiers told me to tell you when I asked them what to say in this presentation.

Don’t Believe Me? Actual comment from a specifier on Twitter:

So What is Your Relationship to an Architect?

Thought Leadership Share of Voice: Offer something useful Share of Mind: Gain their respect Share of Whatever You’re Looking for: Become their go-to resource, and they’ll spec you, give you their email address, recommend you, etc.

Relationship-Building
“ A product representative who exhibits detailed knowledge, competence, a willingness to consult, and has a history of honest and ethical dealings is an important resource for the design community.”
Project Delivery Practice Guide page 209 This is not my opinion – this is what CSI has taught Product Representatives for decades .

How Early In the Project Should You Approach the Design Team?

If the Project’s in Progress, You’re Probably Too Late. Reach them today for the project they’ll be working on tomorrow. Golden Reps have long-term relationships with architects and specifiers.

The Definition of “Network”
“ We know these reps through the process of researching the products we were specifying.”
– Liz O’Sullivan, CSI, CCS Denver Specifier
lizosullivanaia.wordpress.com/2011/06/
In CSI, by “networking” we don’t mean, “Buy me a beer.” We mean, “Be the person who has the answer to my problem.” Also, if you’re a product rep, Liz posted a blog entry for you. Look it up.

Can the Internet Do a Product Representative’s Job?

No, It Can’t. Architects Have Relationships with People, Not Websites.

But The Architect Won’t Talk To You?
“ I believe that the difficult architect-product representative relationship is greatly affected by surprise visits. I can’t tell you how infuriating it is to have people show up to my office and ask the receptionist, ‘Is Jori here?’” -- Jori Smith, CSI, CDT
What is a rep to do?

Where Social Media Fits In
Social Media Tools Support Your Relationship
Blogs
E-newsletters
Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
From Tradeshows to Twitter, there are many ways to support a relationship with speciifiers. Use these channels to show the design team you’re a teacher who can help them. Don’t waste them on market-ease that will be ignored. Present useful info. Lori Greene, CSI, CCPR, has a blog followed by architects. See how she’s a thought leader ?

Your Website Is You Online
Your Web Presence Must Support Your In-Person Presence & Vice Versa
This is my business card. See Twitter on the front? See the websites on the back? My web presence supports my in-person presence, and vice versa. Make sure yours does, too.

Encourage the Marketing Team to Only Require Login for Custom Information. If you have any pull with corporate’s marketing team, tell them the specifiers leave their website and look for someone else to put in the specification if they have to jump through hoops to get to basic information. Limit the use of logins and how much information they have to provide as much as possible. They’re going to list three products, and they’re just as happy to list someone else’s if it saves them 10 minutes of fooling with your website.

What Should I Know About the Architect?

Stalking As a Best Practice
Research the Targeted Firm
What Type of Projects Do They Specialize in?
Who is the Decision Maker?
What Types of Consultants?
Who is in Their Specifications Already?
Visit their website. Contact your colleagues on LinkedIn and ask what they know about the firm. Set up a Google Alert that looks for references to their company’s name. Do not try to sell curtain wall to a guy who builds houses (yes, that happened).

What Do You Need to Know About Construction?

“ Product Reps should understand the design process, including their role in the different stages and how that role changes, critical information about their product that must be included in specifications, what specifications are, and to some extent, the different risk/reward profiles of the designer and the contractor.”
John Guill, CSI, CCS, CCCA
www.twitter.com/specmonkeynorth
In other words, everything – from conception through construction and into occupation. Knowing how to speak this language is key to communicating with the design team. You must be able to pass for a native when you’re operating in their world.

What Do You Need to Know About Your Product?

You’d Better Know…
Country of origin, which can affect delivery time, availability of parts, maintenance, warranty service, etc.
Financial stability
Distribution network
Performance criteria and test results
Technical services and local representation
Warranty and service
Project Resource Manual, page 4.20 The PRM is the predecessor to the Project Delivery Practice Guide, and will still be the source for the CCPR exams in fall 2011.

What Should I know to Help Write a Spec? (11-point Checklist)

You Had Better Know…
Generic descriptions of products and systems
Understand the work done “by others”
Applicable Reference Standards
Required work to install
Options and accessories
Highlight necessary modifications
Delivery, storage and handling
Installation instructions
Limits of the system
Required certifications
Field Quality Control requirements
Project Delivery Practice Guide, page 210

The Right Info at the Right Time Page 4.30, PRM To give the design team the info. they’re looking for, you have to know what stage the project is in . Schematic Design Design Development Construction Documentation Bidding/Negotiating/Purchasing Construction Facility Management Activities Programming, Concepts, Budgets Products and Systems Decisions Working out details to incorporate products into Project Quantity take-offs and estimating Sales and Delivery Installation Start-up procedures Operation and maintenance services Examples of Decisions STRUCTURAL SYSTEMS: Concrete vs. Steel EXTERIOR ENCLOSURE: Aluminum curtainwall vs. Brick veneer BRICK VENEER: Systems and product decisions: Brick selection Mortar Type Backup systems Reinforcement system EXTERIOR WALLS: Wall sections & details Opening details Color and pattern selections Flashing details QUOTATIONS: Brick/1000 Insulation square footage Reinforcement and LBS flashing quantity QUANTITIES: Calculations SUBMITTALS: Shop drawings Product data Samples Mock-ups DELIVERY, STORAGE AND HANDLING INSTALLATION CLEANING CLEANING OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE STARTING AND ADJUSTING DEMONSTRATION TRAINING Documents Preliminary project descriptions Sketches Renderings Models Outline Specifications Preliminary drawings Project manuals Construction drawings Bid forms Contract Forms Bidding addenda Purchase orders Submittals Delivery slips Change orders and modifications Operations and maintenance data Record documents Warranties

Drawings Vs. Specs? What’s the Difference?

Drawings vs. Specs
Quantity vs. Quality ( Page 221, PDPG )
“ Drawings are graphic representations of the work upon which the contract is based… They show the quantitative extent and relationships of elements.”
“ Specifications define the requirements for products, materials, and workmanship… and requirements for administration and performance of the project.”
FYI – There is no such thing as “high” or “low” quality in specifications. There are only the products that meet the requirements, and the products that don’t.

Drawings Vs. Specs? Which Outranks the Other?

Drawings vs. Specs
Neither – They Are Complementary Documents ( Page 242, PDPG )
“ The drawings and the specifications are complementary, and both are needed to fully describe a construction project.”

Drawings Vs. Specs? What’s My Role With Drawings?

Drawings vs. Specs
You need to know ( Page 210, PDPG ):
Dimensions & Locations
Code Requirements
How to Detail Connections
What Standard Drawings to Provide

Where Do Specifications Come From?

Specifications
Guide Specifications – Your Company’s
Office Masters – The Firm’s
Masterguide Specifications – The Software’s
Contract Documents – What the Contractor Will Build From

How Well Should You Know Your Competitor’s Product?

Well Enough to Recommend It. Being able to fairly and honestly speak about the competitor’s products – even directing architects to them when appropriate – is a huge “trust-builder” for the design team. Besides, wouldn’t you rather compete against a qualified product instead of a cheap, inferior one? Specifiers usually need three products to complete a spec on a public project. Know which products can meet the needs of the project, and educate the architect about it. Never mislead the design team. You’re building a relationship, and trust is its foundation.

How Do I Defend Against a Substitution Request?

You Don’t. The A/E Does. “ The A/E determines the acceptability of proposed substitutions…” ( Page 422, PDPG ) So you had better make sure he knows exactly why he specified your product in the first place.

Why Is It So Hard To Get a New Product Specified?

New = Unproven
“ It is a good policy to use only those products that have been adequately field-tested…” ( Page 204, PDPG )
Respond With:
Test Results
Reports from Others
Responses to AHJs
Specifiers are often in a hurry, and always suspicious. The best you can do is make the specifier feel comfortable with the new product. Don’t hesitate to tell him about problems the product has had in other projects – it helps clarify what the product’s limits are.

Seen in the CSI Personals:
Wanted : Product Representative who is honest and trustworthy for long-term relationship.
Turn-ons : Detailed information about your product; Patience with last-minute calls.
Turn-offs : Sales-calls; Liars.
Ready to meet? I’ll be the one in the black-framed glasses at the CSI meeting .
I italicized “honest” and “trustworthy” because those words are used over and over by architects and specifiers describing the product representatives with whom they want to be in a relationship. Don’t answer this ad if you can’t be that.

By The Way…
Most of the questions and answers you read on the previous slides are drawn from the material taught to Product Representatives through CSI’s Certification Program.
So you’ve already started studying to get your CDT or CCPR!

CDT/CCPR
CDT
Before 7/26: Members $235 (Non-members $370)
After July 26: Members $295 (Non-members $430)
www.csinet.org/CDT
www.csinet.org/CDTStudyGuide
CCPR Before 7/26: Members $275 (Non-members $410)
After July 26: Members $340 (Non-members $475)
www.csinet.org/CCPR
www.csinet.org/CCPRStudyGuide
Fall 2011 Testing Window: Sept. 26 - Oct. 8 Early Registration Deadline: July 26 Final Registration Deadline: Aug. 26 Check out CSI’s Product Representation Practice Group at www.csinet.org/practicegroups

Contact Me!
Joy Davis, CSI, CCPR Communications & Web Community Manager 800-689-2900 ext. 4795
[email_address]
www.twitter.com/CSIConstruction
www.linkedin.com/in/joysdavis
www.facebook.com/CSIJoy

11 06 Trusted Advisor

by Joy Davis, CSI, CCPR on Jun 22, 2011

Accessibility

Tags

Upload Details

Usage Rights

2 Embeds 105

Statistics

11 06 Trusted Advisor — Presentation Transcript

http://www.buildingproductmarketing.com	104
http://www.google.com	1