Why do humans just love to over-complicate things?  Perhaps it has something to do with our innate need to impress one another.  Sure, people who solve complex problems or make complex products are interesting, but aren’t you equally impressed when you find out...

Many kitchen cabinet dealers already know about and utilize BreakFront's 4M Sales Process.  What you may not know is that we offer 4M Sales Training for kitchen and bath industry professionals. Sell like a natural The 4M Sales Process was developed after extensive...

Having started my career in textiles when I joined Ernst & Young in 1994, I was surprised to learn the incredible advancements and complexities of that industry.  It was fascinating to see the number of possibilities when it came to something we take for granted...

What does it take to get your sales team to win?  Is it in your presentation of the close? Or is it merely who is involved in the close and where the close takes place?  We think it's a combination of all of those things and more. Nothing is worse than spending all of...

Has it already been four years since the previous Olympic summer games?  Wow, time seems to have flown faster than Michael Phelps swims the men's 100-m butterfly…Ok maybe not quite that fast, but you’ve got to admit it seems close. While you curl up to watch this...

They say time heals most wounds, but that’s not true in the case of online complaints.  They can be like viruses, spreading from one reader, who passes it to their contacts – a viral epidemic, rotting away at your hard earned reputation. In part 1 of this series, we...

Remember the good-‘ol-days when customers who had a negative experience would tell 10 of their closest friends, versus the five they would tell about a positive experience?  I remember learning that statistic in a marketing class and thinking, “Wow…you really have to...

That's so 2011. For those designers that like to jump on the band wagon early in the world of all things electronic, instead of using dinosaur techniques, download MagicPlan. While we don’t endorse products here on the Dealers Voice, we were impressed with the ability...

Habits can either make or break your kitchen and bath business, and since we’re all human here, we tend to become creatures of them from time to time.  Now that summer is here and things are hopefully picking up for your kitchen or bath business, it’s time to become...

A kitchen and bath business is in some ways like a human being - it needs regular maintenance, grows if it's healthy, and must keep up with the resources and tools available to stay ahead of the competition.  Neglecting certain areas can lead to suffering, and...

These days it seems like there is a “How-To” book, “Tips and Tricks” collection, or “[Fill in the Blank] for Dummies” book for just about everything under the sun.  In our effort to save you some reading time, and help ensure that you can focus on the critical...

The fact is, most cabinet dealers could be driving more leads today with something as simple as creating better content.  Outdated marketing practices are costing cabinet dealers and other in the kitchen and bath industry time, money, and leads. We would like to...

If “what the heck are you talking about?” is the first thought that came to your mind when you saw the title of this article – then keep reading.  That is most likely an indicator that your content is not king. What is Greenhouse marketing? Greenhouse marketing is the...

Extra! Extra! Read all about it - the June newsletter is out. Many of you have shared your marketing challenges with us, which is why we’ve made it a point to include some helpful marketing resources, such as our recorded Effective Kitchen Marketing Webinar with...

As you may recall, CompanionCabinet joined forces with Custom Cupboards to host a webinar on Marketing Effectively in the Kitchen and Bath Industry.  For those of you who weren’t able to make it, or if you’d just like to watch it again, we’ve made it available online....

We’ve all been there, you begin working with a customer and it seems like a match made in heaven. You understand their wants and needs, you both have the same design vision, and you even agree on a price. The thought, “This is the best customer I’ve had in a while!”...

K+BB Collective published an article written by Nick Ritota in their Designers’ Corner titled, "What is your brand?" Nicks article focuses on how to burn your brand into the minds of your target consumers. Develop your brand Nick covers when to start developing your...

Move over sales and marketing - it's designs turn.  First we gave you eBooks on the top errors with sales and marketing and how to fix them, but now it's time to focus on design. Our latest eBook offering, The 4M Kitchen Designer's Handbook, is  filled with helpful...

During good times, we all get fat. Not necessarily body fat, but more specifically, business fat. When business is good, we tend to ignore it, and it continues to accumulate. Kitchen and bath professionals concentrate on sales and ignore the numerous small things that...

Are you experiencing any of these 10 symptoms?  If so you may be an overworked cabinet dealer... Cabinet dealer self evaluation:

When I first moved in with my wife, I had a bit of a bachelor's pad.  As the months rolled into our first year together she finally mustered the courage to ask me about some tiny pewter figurines I had in random places throughout the house. "They're dragons," I...

Where's the beef? A rash of dealers as of late have been paying SEO vendors for better search rankings so they can get more traffic.  These SEO firms sell the myth that with some special words in some special places, along with their voodoo magic, they can get you...

Manufacturer’s co-op programs are mostly ineffective in the kitchen and bath industry. You place some newspaper ads or circulars, perhaps a radio or TV spot, and mostly end up with a lot of wasted dollars, (or worse yet, a pile of swag) at the end of the year. Some of...

Well, we won’t actually give you a million dollars, but we think we can find $50K in errors  for every million dollars of business you currently do (see rules for participation). And we’re pretty much calling out the industry to accept our challenge! What's there to...