Renovation Revolution:
How the Media Makeover Educates Consumers in Purchasing Home Improvement and Remodeling
Remember Tool Time on Tim Allen’s TV show? Things have changed in the home improvement industry since that popular bit about renovation contractors. A generation of new shows, networks and even social networks specializing in renovation has changed the way everyone approaches home improvement and remodeling.
For people in the renovation industry, or those who specialize in maintenance and repair, the world is divided between BC – before computers (and cable specialty networks) – and today’s instant, always-available access to the latest home improvement and remodeling information and trends.
The first renovation show, This Old House, debuted in 1979 on the U.S. Public Broadcasting System. It’s still on the air, but now it’s joined by everything from Extreme Makeover to While You Were Out to all kinds of shows in between.
People are watching and tweeters and bloggers are following. Renovation contractors find they now need to stay a step ahead by keeping up with what viewers are seeing on TV and will likely ask for, and by making sure that their own home improvement and remodeling services are accessible online.
Companies like Centah, Inc., offer the next step, connecting consumers armed with knowledge and information with renovation contractors and maintenance and repair firms. Using Centah, retailers set up customers with contracting and home improvement firms who are verified on Centah’s Software as a Service (SaaS) system.
Verifying the quality and reliability of a renovation contractor is more important in this era of 24-hour home improvement and remodeling channels. The renovation contractors on a system like Centah’s are individuals and firms who have worked with retailers and homeowners before; unlike people whose names are simply on the Internet, if they’re on the Centah system they’re dependable.
Renovation-savvy viewers are watching more and more, and they’re learning the ins and outs of contracting from television. Canada’s HGTV network, for example, last year enjoyed a 30 per cent year over year ratings increase. Everything you wanted to know about maintenance and repair is on-screen, all the time. As one renovation blog puts it, you can watch an entire home improvement project from start to finish—normally months of work—"in less time than it takes most of us to re-tile a small bathroom."
The flood of information means huge changes for people considering a renovation, and also for renovation contractors and those in the maintenance and repair and home improvement and modeling businesses.
The first change is that customers and potential customers know more. The number of renovation shows, and generally, their quality, gives viewers a window into every aspect of contracting, from the terms of the deal to the mouldings and floor finishes they might consider.
Renovation consumers are not just more knowledgeable now, they’re also more demanding. After watching shows ranging from Holmes on Homes to the DIY Network’s Vanilla Ice Project, viewers see home improvement and remodeling ideas they like on TV, and then they know what they want and what to expect.
Gone are the days when it was simply enough to call a few renovation contractors from the phone book and hope they had the knowhow and access to materials needed for a particular home improvement. Anyone in the contracting business today needs to anticipate what customers want and expect.
Anyone interested in renovation, home improvement and remodeling or maintenance and repair -- consumers and everyone who sells to consumers –needs to keep up on the latest trends in the industry, and that includes what is being shown on TV and online. Take best advantage of the explosion of home improvement media. Here’s how:
- Watch - Tune in to at least some of the shows on networks like HGTV and the DIY Network. Just as you’d thumb through industry magazines or look online to see what other renovation contractors are up to, you should see what your customers are viewing too. Renovation shows are entertaining as well as informative, so watching should be enjoyable as well as helpful. Besides, it gives you something else to talk about with potential customers and clients.
- Absorb information - The home improvement shows you watch are probably coming up with some good ideas - that’s what keeps people tuning in. You should take note - and even take notes if you see something particularly good. What are the TV show renovation contractors doing especially well? What home improvement and remodeling ideas are especially popular right now? You should be able to tell your customers this information before they even ask.
- Connect - Not all renovation contractors will get their own TV show. But there are many other ways to connect with customers, retailers and suppliers. Using the solutions of a company like Centah is a fast, effective way to ensure that potential customers can find you. Centah also lets you keep track of jobs once they start - you can access work orders, process payments and check on the status of a job from your laptop, tablet or mobile device.
Remember, a generation of home improvement TV has changed peoples' perception of the industry – people know more and are better at asking for what they want. The more you know about their preferences, the more you can help them.
And you'll have more spare time to watch those funny Tim Allen reruns.
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