Start With the Customer You Expect to Serve

Before choosing siding products, think about the homeowners you expect to meet.

Are you primarily working on:

• Entry-level replacement siding projects?
• Midrange remodeling projects?
• Higher-end exterior renovations?
• Storm restoration projects?
• Older homes requiring specialty products?
• New construction?

Your initial product lineup should fit the projects you are actually likely to sell.

Product #1: Start With a Quality Vinyl Siding

For many new residential siding contractors, quality vinyl siding is a logical starting point.

Why?

It gives contractors access to a large portion of the replacement siding market while providing homeowners with a broad range of colors, profiles and price points.

A quality vinyl siding line can provide:

• Multiple colors
• Traditional clapboard profiles
• Dutch lap profiles
• Board & batten options
• Coordinating accessories
• Relatively straightforward installation
• Low-maintenance exterior options for homeowners

Learn one good vinyl siding system extremely well before trying to sell five different vinyl brands.

Consider .046 Vinyl as a Strong Core Offering

If your market supports it, a premium .046-inch vinyl siding can give a contractor a strong core product around which to build the presentation.

At Suburban Wholesale & Supply, we stock 29 colors of .046 vinyl siding, giving contractors a locally available siding option without requiring the contractor to warehouse a large color selection themselves.

Local inventory can be especially important for a new company that does not yet have the cash, warehouse space or project volume necessary to maintain substantial siding inventory.

Product #2: Add an Insulation Upgrade

Once you have a core vinyl siding product, consider giving the homeowner an insulation upgrade.

This provides an easy way to move beyond a single siding-and-price presentation.

Products such as Progressive Foam siding insulation can give contractors another solution to demonstrate when discussing wall systems and exterior improvements.

The important part is understanding exactly what you are offering.

Learn the product's published performance information, installation requirements and compatible siding applications before presenting it as an upgrade.

Product #3: Offer Board & Batten as a Design Upgrade

You do not necessarily need an entirely different siding material to increase the value of a project.

Design upgrades can accomplish the same thing.

Board & batten can be used on:

• Front gables
• Garage elevations
• Entry areas
• Accent walls
• Entire homes when appropriate

Teaching your salespeople how to combine horizontal siding with vertical accents can create additional design choices without requiring the company to master a completely different cladding category immediately.

Product #4: Add Steel When You Are Ready for a Premium Metal Option

Steel siding can be a strong next category for contractors who want to offer homeowners something beyond vinyl.

But do not simply add steel to the price sheet.

Before selling it, learn:

• Available profiles
• Finish systems
• Cutting requirements
• Fastening requirements
• Handling procedures
• Scratch and repair procedures
• Corner details
• Window and door transitions
• Warranty terms
• How to demonstrate steel to a homeowner

Steel can become a valuable premium option, but your sales and installation teams should understand the product before your company begins aggressively promoting it.

Product #5: Aluminum Can Still Have a Place

Aluminum siding is not necessarily the first product a new contractor needs to build a business around.

However, there are markets and existing homes where aluminum remains useful.

A contractor familiar with aluminum may have additional options when working on:

• Existing aluminum-sided homes
• Repair projects
• Insurance-related work
• Homeowners specifically requesting metal siding
• Projects where aluminum characteristics fit the application

The advantage of knowing aluminum is not that you must recommend it to every homeowner. It is that you have another tool available when the project calls for it.

Product #6: Add Composite Cladding as a Premium Upgrade

Once your company is comfortable selling and installing its core siding products, composite cladding can create another step in the presentation.

ASCEND Composite Cladding gives contractors a distinct product category with a wood-inspired appearance and multiple design profiles.

Current ASCEND offerings include horizontal plank and board & batten profiles, giving contractors opportunities for both full-house applications and accent designs.

Before adding ASCEND or another premium cladding system, your company should understand:

• Product construction
• Profiles
• Colors
• Accessories
• Wall preparation
• Installation clearances
• Fastening requirements
• Window and door detailing
• Warranty
• How to position the product in your sales presentation

ASCEND currently provides professional product literature, technical information, installation resources and trade sales materials that contractors can use when learning the system.

Build a Good-Better-Best Presentation

Eventually, your goal should be to avoid showing every homeowner one product and one price.

Instead, build several clearly defined options.

A simple example might be:

• Good: Quality vinyl siding
• Better: Premium vinyl with an insulation upgrade
• Best: Steel or composite cladding depending on the homeowner's priorities

That does not mean the most expensive product is automatically the correct choice.

It means your salesperson can explain several solutions and help the homeowner understand how they differ.

Don't Offer a Product Until You Can Demonstrate It

This is a useful rule for a new contractor.

If you cannot explain it, demonstrate it and answer basic questions about it, you probably are not ready to sell it aggressively.

Before adding a product line, obtain:

• Physical samples
• Color samples
• Product literature
• Warranty information
• Installation instructions
• Accessory information
• Technical information
• Sales demonstration materials

Then practice the presentation before using it in a homeowner's living room.

Don't Offer a Product Until Your Crew Understands It Either

Sales growth without installation knowledge can become expensive.

Every new siding system may have different requirements regarding:

• Wall preparation
• Fastening
• Cutting
• Clearances
• Expansion and contraction
• Water management
• Corners
• Openings
• Transitions
• Accessories

Read the manufacturer's current installation instructions and use available training before installing an unfamiliar siding system on a customer's home.

Avoid the One-Product Contractor Trap

There is another extreme to avoid.

Some contractors become so comfortable with one siding product that they try to make it the answer to every project.

That can limit your sales presentation.

A homeowner may care most about:

• Budget
• Low maintenance
• Appearance
• Impact resistance
• Energy performance
• A particular architectural style
• A premium exterior appearance

The goal is to learn enough products that you can recommend the right siding for the customer—not simply the siding your company happens to know best.

But Don't Go From One Product to Twenty

A new contractor does not need every siding brand in the market.

Every additional product means more:

• Samples
• Literature
• Pricing
• Training
• Estimating knowledge
• Installation knowledge
• Warranty information
• Accessories
• Ordering procedures

Build depth before adding breadth.

Your Distributor Should Help You Build the Product Line

A new contractor should not have to figure all of this out alone.

Talk with your building material distributor about:

• Which siding products sell well in your market
• Which products they stock locally
• Available colors and profiles
• Samples and literature
• Demo-kit materials
• Installation training
• Sales training
• Manufacturer representatives
• Ordering procedures
• Jobsite delivery

A strong distributor can help shorten the learning curve when you add a new product category.

Use the Showroom Before Building Your Own

A new contractor may not have the money or space for a large showroom.

That should not prevent you from demonstrating better products.

Ask whether your distributor has displays your salespeople or customers can use.

The Suburban Wholesale & Supply showroom gives contractors an opportunity to see and compare exterior products without requiring every new contractor to build a complete showroom of their own.

A New Contractor's First Sales Kit

Once you choose your starting products, build a basic professional presentation.

Your first siding sales kit should include:

• Your primary vinyl siding sample
• Color samples
• Clapboard and Dutch lap examples
• Board & batten sample
• Insulation sample
• Your premium siding sample
• Manufacturer brochures
• Warranty information
• Before-and-after photographs
• Product comparison sheet

You do not need 100 samples. You need the right samples and the knowledge to demonstrate them.

Grow the Product Line as the Company Grows

A new siding company might begin with:

Vinyl + Insulation + Board & Batten

Then add:

Steel

Then:

Composite Cladding

And develop specialty knowledge in aluminum and other products as the business requires.

There is no prize for adding every siding material during your first year. The objective is to add products your company can sell profitably and install professionally.