Building Long-term Relationships With Your Customers

By Cass Jacoby, RCS Reporter.  

Despite being a great way to garner referrals and create a dependable year-round income, contractors often forget about residential service programs. Here is why you shouldn’t. 

Darci Kunard from Franklin International/Titebond sat down with Heidi J. Ellsworth in Season 3, Episode 29 of Roofing Road Trips for a conversation on how residential roofing companies can easily expand their residential service programs. 

Darci, an experienced marketing professional with a demonstrated history of success working in the building materials industry, shares how contractors can utilize products such as Titebond’s new Ultimate PVC Trim Adhesive and Sealant to provide maintenance benefits for customers across every part of the home. 

“If you're known as kind of that connector and hub of knowledge, I just think that's so powerful, especially in a community where you don’t just work, but also live,” says Darci.  

She talks about the importance of developing relationships with your customers because you will likely be working with them for years down the road. You will want homeowners to see you as a trusted partner in keeping their home in top condition. 

“It's just that nice circular touch point with your regular customers, so they know that you're really going to take care of them,” says Darci. “It is building a long-term relationship.” 

Contractors all know the importance of regular check-ups on the roof  to avoid costly damage down the line. Darci also explains that contractors have a huge advantage of having their pulse to the industry, and are thus able to give advice and product recommendations to homeowners for their home maintenance better than anyone else.   

“Contractors are able to bring new ideas to their customers,” says Darci. “Like what we're seeing with the PVC trim is that people don't know that it's out there. They think that they're stuck with something like wood, which will rot over time, that needs a lot of maintenance and repair, whereas PVC trim is super easy to install and maintain.” 

Darci explains that with the right products and training, you and your company can give homeowners the professional service they need to keep their homes in great condition and circumvent more expensive maintenance issues. 

After all, people always need help maintaining their homes, so there is no better time to start a maintenance program than now! “It's all about making sure that your customer feels that they have peace of mind when they call you,” says Darci. “Even if you yourself can’t handle a particular job, you can always refer them to someone who can. You can give them some advice, say that you can't get there today, but they can go to the shop down the street and grab a supply. Or perhaps you can recommend a way to mitigate the issue until you can get there.” 

Learn more about Franklin International in their RoofersCoffeeShop® Directory or visit www.titebond.com.

Listen to the entire podcast to learn more about why you should create a service program and the products you’ll need to do so.