Online concept paints picture of success

By Helen Vause

When industrial paint manufacturer Scott Thompson thought about retailing paint to residential customers, he knew it would be difficult to break into existing retail channels locked up by big-name brands.

Maybe the store-within-a-store concept would be the way to go - his paint could be sold through a large retailer not involved in the same business.

But while moving down this track, an idea came to Thompson that had nothing to do with shops, overheads, shelf space, car parking or shop staff: the BankDirect concept.

If bankers could do it, Thompson began to think, why not a paint manufacturer? He researched the viability of this innovative way of targeting and capturing his market.

Now, after the first month of trading, PaintDirect looks like a smart concept indeed for selling paint.

Rotorua-based Scott and Bev Thompson are not newcomers to the paint business. They own Damar, a major player in industrial paints, with large commercial contracts and a number of awards for manufacturing and innovation. The company has twice been voted Bay of Plenty's Best Manufacturer, was dubbed Rotorua's Best Business in 1996 and in the same year got a Forestry Corporation award for innovation. Damar has the dominant share in road marking paint and 70 per cent of the market for a specialised forestry aerosol product.

The Thompsons believe their new venture is a world-first in selling paint to householders without having to lure them into a shop.

"Paint is just a commodity," says Thompson. "If you make it easy enough to buy direct, there is no need to invest in bricks and mortar or all the other things that traditionally go into selling it.

"From the consumer's point-of-view, a trip to the paint shop can be a confusing and stressful hassle. People find it very difficult to make decorating decisions from tiny colour chart samples.

"When they get home and put the paint on the wall, the colours they have chosen often don't work as well as they had hoped."

The PaintDirect concept combines remote control with carefully planned interaction and consultation over the phone.

When a potential customer calls the company 0800 number he or she strikes one of about eight consultants Thompson recruited and trained when he realised inquiries needed to be handled with more expertise than would be offered by a typical call centre.

Callers are questioned about their decorating preferences. They are then couriered a kit which includes a camera and a colour chart. From the photos of the house, consultants and customers work out a colour scheme. Test pots of paint are sent out by courier.

When final colours are selected, they arrive with technical advice on application and a money-back quality guarantee. Thompson claims that, on average, his paints will be about 15 per cent cheaper than competing products sold through retail outlets.

Thompson says the step-by-step exchanges over the phone add the value that makes his system work. And there's another advantage to the virtual in-home consultation.

"When people get into a paint shop, many of them find it very difficult to carry details of their home and decor in their heads with them.

"Many of them wouldn't even be certain about the colour of their own roof once they are away from the site. Having experts ask the right questions over the phone is a key strategy in advancing the process to a sale."

PaintDirect was launched last month and the Thompsons report hundreds of inquiries in the first week, with couriers coming twice daily to dispatch cameras, test pots and paint all over the country.

National marketing and advertising is yet to start. The venture was launched through a relationship with Amway, in which that organisation's 32,000-strong members trigger initial contact with PaintDirect.

Later this year the Thompsons will launch another first in selling paint direct: a web site where consumers will be able to apply PaintDirect colours to on-screen home interiors and experiment with colour combinations.

From the growing customer list, Thompson is establishing a database which he plans to use to build on-going relationships.

"We will know all about the customer's house and what colours they have used in the past. With caller identification it will be possible for our consultants to pick up the phone and say 'good morning Mrs Smith, how is the bathroom looking?'

"That level of interaction and service must lead to loyalty and repeat business."

Simultaneously, the company is compiling a list of approved painters to further the concept of service, ensure quality and gain satisfied customers who will themselves become part of the word-of-mouth marketing machine.