A radio station sales manager asked if I had any ideas for a relatively new client: a small, independently owned hardware store. Just one location, in the center of a small town. The store didn’t seem to have any obvious Unique Selling Proposition.
So I thought about my own rare ventures into hardware stores and quickly realized a key emotion that I suspect is felt by many customers: Fear.
Not heart palpitating, sweat producing, shortness of breath inducing fear. More like uneasiness, a pronounced uncomfortableness.
Will I be able to find the tool or accessory I need?
How will I know which item to buy?
How will I know how many or what size I’ll need?
If I can’t find what I need, will a store employee be able to help me? Will they laugh at my ignorance?
This immediately led me to suggest a very powerful strategy utilized by too few advertisers: Education.
I suggested a series of commercials in which the store owner answers the most common questions posed by do-it-yourselfers in a relaxed, conversational, non-threatening manner….
Hi, I’m Ed Proprietor of Ed’s Hardware Store. A wrench is a pretty simple tool. But if you ask someone to hand you a wrench, they might say, “Which wrench do you want? Pipe wrench? Monkey wrench? Crescent? Open-ended? Box wrench?” Here’s a quick & easy explanation of the differences. (EXPLANATION GOES HERE.) The reason we carry so many different kinds of wrenches…and hammers, and saws, and screws & nails all kinds of thingamajigs and whatchamacallems… is because we want to make sure we have exactly what you need. Having helped thousands of (LOCAL) handymen & women, carpenters, electricians, and part-time fixer-uppers over the past 15 years, you can pretty much count on our having what you’re looking for. And if you’re not sure what it’s called, don’t worry; we’ll know. I’m Ed Proprietor of Ed’s Hardware Store on Main Street in Smalltown. Stop by today; we’re here to help.
Where would YOU rather shop: At a hardware store where the clerks don’t know and don’t care…or at a hardware store where the clerks are eager to answer your questions without making you feel stupid?
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So Simple Dan….which is a positive. Now if the Owner asked to Read the commercial himself? If the Owner actually went for that?
I so appreciate the soft -conversational-sell but still running into that
“ANNOUNCER-mind-set delivery” for local anything.
It is getting silly to me… I guess my ears are trained but I switch off when listening. So to initiate something that simple as you say DOES rock the boat..but I like it.
-adam
I'm wondering if that would alienate those who aren't ignorant about tools. What happened to the maxim of filling the need? As someone once said; 'Nobody wants a 1/2" drill bit, they want a 1/2" hole'.
Off the top of my head I'd adjust that script to something like "When you ask for help in a hardware store you don't want someone who knows the exact tensile strength of a 6" tungsten steel tipped skill saw blade, you want someone who understands your problem and knows what you need to fix it. Hi I'm Ed Proprietor of Ed's Hardware Store on Main Street in Smalltown. The reason I carry so many different kinds of wrenches…and hammers, and saws, and screws & nails and all kinds of thingamajigs and whatchamacallems… is because I want to make sure I have exactly what you need WHEN YOU NEED IT. WE'VE helped thousands of (LOCAL) handymen & women, carpenters, electricians, and part-time fixer-uppers for over 15 years, so you can pretty much count on our having what you're looking for. And if you're not sure what it's called, don't worry; we'll know. So if you're in need of a hammer, or an axe or a whatchamacallem… come and see us at Ed's Hardware Store"
That's off the top of my head but it's only 6.20 in the morning here so my head may not be working right.
rob@rhema
aotearoa/new zealand
Personally, I’m not a fan of clients reading their own spots because 99% of them come off sounding like a robot, subsequently killing the effectiveness of the spot they just paid for……I don’t go to a hardware store and try to sell someone hammers, because I have no idea how to do it, so don’t let clients come in and read spots, because they don’t know how to do it.
And Rob, I get your point, I just don’t think that spot Dan wrote would alienate people who actually do know about tools…those people already know that they can get what they need at the local hardware store. What the radio station is trying to do is appeal to those who DON’T know about tools and DON’T know where to get them, expanding the customer base for the client, and hopefully encouraging the client to spend more for advertising. Because really, the average handyman isn’t going to be looking for exact tensile strength of a 6″ tungsten steel tipped skill saw blade……the contractors will and they’ll already know where to get it. Just my 2 cents, guys….I could be wrong, and as my wife says, I usually am.
Jeff Cogswell
Z103.5 – Halifax, NS