Situation
TimberTown contracted us in 2022 to provide market research and business development strategy. The company had passed its 40-year anniversary, and was looking to position itself for future generations.
Solution
We conducted market research which included interviews with buyers and prospective buyers, indicating that the company’s strengths were in its ability to guide customers through their home renovation projects. But the research also revealed confusion about which product lines TimberTown sold – the stores aren’t as broad as big box store, so what could people expect to buy at a TimberTown? After rigorous analysis, we determined that TimberTown wasn’t one incomplete offering (vs. the big-box all-encompassing offering), instead it was three complete, specialized offerings: decks, doors and floors.
To highlight this, we developed sub-brands for each area of specialization, so consumers could easily understand this. guiding them to how this could be rolled out into new store branding and signage, and implemented in-house.
We then developed a nearly e-commerce website for them – one that allows users to fill their carts and price their projects – but since renovation materials are complex, the cart is then sent to TimberTown’s Pro staff to review, avoiding the risk of online mis-purchases. We also reworked their digital marketing program, and provided extensive training so they can handle the updating of their new website independently.
Results
TimberTown’s team is extremely pleased with the results of this endeavour. The entire process brought their executive team together on the same forward trajectory. Although they have no plans to sell the company, one of their owners’ most revealing comments was, “Not that I want to sell, but we look sellable now!” Not even knowing what his business partner had said, the owner commented, “This looks like a company I’d want to buy!”
They are also getting very positive feedback from employees and customers, with website leads, and lead quality, up significantly. The owners also invited our team to assist them in another business venture (info on that coming soon). We invite you to visit their new building products website (featuring the doors, floors, decks), or read more about the process.
