Marginal Gains – as published in GGP Magazine

Mark Dudley, Director at Windowlink talks about how their software can help installers achieve better margins, taking inspiration from Sir Dave Brailsford’s Marginal Gains.

Team Sky’s Sir Dave Brailsford once said: “The whole principle of marginal gains came from the idea that if you broke down everything that could impact on a cycling performance — absolutely everything you could think of — and then you improved every little thing by 1 percent, when you clump it all together, you’re going to get quite a significant increase in performance. So, we set about looking at everything we could.” It’s a theory that has proven its worth for British cycling and a concept that can also be applied to getting the best margins when selling windows, doors and conservatories.

By taking into account everything that goes into making a window or conservatory installation happen, from business overheads, transport and fitting to cost of glass, frames and hardware, businesses can make sure that they are getting the best margins on their jobs and ensure profitability. Using software helps make this consistent across the business, no matter how many people are out there selling installations.

Upping the Pricing Game

If you’re a retail company using a printed pricelist that has been unchanged for a few too many years, you are not alone. When we’re approached by retailers to set-up pricing and presentation software, we never know whether we’ll be presented with an over-simplified one-pager or a huge folder of information. Whichever it is, these systems rarely give directors and business owners a real idea of the profitability of a job.

Paper pricelists are also open to interpretation, so can be problematic for companies who have more than one sales person. And in today’s modern world, where we use technology for everything from tracking how long we’ve been asleep to doing our banking, homeowners expect something more professional. A quick drawing and a price without any additional information or break down just isn’t enough.

So, how do installers up their game and get the right software that works for them?

Flexible Software Options from Windowlink

At Windowlink, we make it easy for installers to switch from their old, paper, pricing methods to a modern way of pricing that makes life easier, looks super professional and helps maintain the all-important profit margins.

Our systems are flexible enough to be adapted to each individual company so that they can make the switch easily. The software is designed to make the process of selling more efficient as well as more profitable. It can be set up to mirror supplier software, to make sure that frame costs are accurate. Then prices can be marked up or they could be taken from an existing pricelist. Hardware, cills and furniture can be added on separately, with their own unique mark-up and then fitting, building work and trims can be added on at the end. It gives both installer and homeowner an accurate price in double quick time.

The software is completely personalised too, to cover your entire product range, no matter how many home improvement products you offer. This includes different PVCu and aluminium window systems, composite doors, bi-folds, sliders and even glazed and solid conservatory roofs. Not only that, but combined with our designer software, sales people can show homeowners exactly how their home improvements will look using a photo of their property, so they can make easy decisions on styles and colours too.

Most importantly, using software gives business owners the confidence that every job sold has the correct margins, so their profits are safe. So, get savvy with your pricing software and turn marginal gains into extra cash for your company.