COLORING INSIDE THE LINES

For many of you new to the business of selling modular home, it can be very confusing. Your factory sales rep is there to help you with choosing plans and price quotes but they are not there to help you grow your business.

What if you're a new modular home builder? Maybe you've been in real estate or land development or have been a shoe lace salesman, it really doesn't matter. What matters is selling modular homes at a fair profit.

Now I'm going to present a novel idea.

Sell what your factory offers! That is the best and easiest way to make sales. Some modular builders started off selling what the factory offered but soon found that some of their prospects wanted to bring in their own plans and wanted things that had to be specially ordered. What they tended to forget was that the time to create this special plan and get quotes for special order items drags out the turnaround time from first contact to contract by as much as 3-6 months compared to 1-2 months for the standard modular home.

Is it a little boring to sell what's in the book? Might be, but guess what? You will sell houses and make a profit. There are two suggestions I would make right now. First, at least get an office where you can show off the products your factory offers. Keep it tidy and clean. If you can afford a model home, that would be great but at least get off your kitchen table! It is so easy to go out of business if all you have invested is a knife and fork and a placemat!

Second, stick to the basics until you get a real handle on your business and it starts to grow. I mentioned in some earlier articles that you should be thinking about how to get the word out that you are in the modular home business. Reread those and then start working to find a niche market that works for you. Maybe it's affordable housing (not low priced houses), maybe first time move-ups or maybe empty nesters with limited resources. Whatever it is, try to stay within the basic floorplans. Standard Options are easy to figure and quick to get back to your prospect.

Remember, the housing industry is in the toilet right now and you need sales!  So keep it SIMPLE!