Building Building Moxie (the big boxes and you)

click here to see the last post in this series

Repetition is the key :: This is true in strength training and in music and probably in a few other things

“you can do it we can help.”

Wow! When it comes to tag lines, they really don’t get much better than that.

And I do not know much about retail; it is true. But any discussion on the home improvement industry, I know enough, really isn’t complete without first visiting the Home Depot, and spending a minute or two talking about its impact on, well . . . all of us.

When Home Depot first appeared on my scene, I’ll admit – the only houses that interested me were those that contained a keg. I was aware of course of the idea of the home improvement “warehouse.” I was often sent to the one that preceded HD – to retrieve this, that, and/or the other thing.

However, while others faded from my local landscape, the big orange box repeated itself.

Eating, Drinking and the Home Depot

At this point, it seems that trips to the Home Depot are as base as eating, drinking, and sleeping. Ok, they are really not that frequent; they probably can be equated more with say trips to the grocery store . . . Once weekly at least.

I mean, I know my local Home Depot (same one for about seven years now) like the back of my own hand: In and out most times in five minutes or less.

And it probably wouldn’t fair to at least mention their chief competitor – Lowes Home Improvement (fewer, and farther between). I like Lowes too -- especially for certain things – but not the point of my rambling here. I will save that for another time.

Big things come in big boxes

So . . . Why did the Home Depot thrive where others failed? I have spent a little time on this recently.

Sure, they brought almost any product that you possibly could ever need for a home project together under one roof – economy of scale, buying in gigantic quantities – and delivering it all through a myriad of locations.

But that's not it alone. And I must give credit where credit is due -- They took the intangible, what your local hardware store had been offering for years, bundled it, packaged it, and presented it for easy consumption. Service with a smile -- Ok, no – the products with the know-how you need to get your project done.

“You can do it, We can help.”

Your Do-It-Yourself Home Center

USA Today formatted microbytes of just-in-time literature served up where and when you need it -- immediately above the items you are choosing from, at the initial point of sale. Good, Better, Best – just look up. Couple that with free weekend how-to clinics, and they empowered us to do it, do-it-ourselves.

Now, I know do-it-yourself was nothing new. My grandfather, your father, our ancestors throughout history didn’t “do-it-themselves.” They just did it, and it was done.

But at this point in history, I tend to think that the population simply bought in. Markets shifted, maybe? And hard data may not support any of this, but again my intuition tells me that a new pulse of the do-it-yourself thinking was thunk.

Home Depot helped to create a culture where even complex do-it-yourself projects were possible.

The try reflex

Now, you might be saying, “Come on, jb, out of the 1287 trips I have made to the Home Depot – why then is it so difficult to find a sales associate when I need help.” Answer -- You are not only one fighting for their attention; many have bought in. Plus Home Depot, physically, is a big store.

Marketing, pseudo-psycho, and other analytical terms aside – and whether or not Home Depot actually shifted market mentality, converting more do-it-yourself activity, they did make an impact on the American consciousness. They fostered, along with a few other factors, an effect that I sometimes call the “try reflex.”

I know this from being immersed in it, and having spoken with handfuls of friends. The thinking here is . . . “Hey, can I do that myself?”

Most times, in the demographic of my friends: late 30s, young families with above average incomes -- larger tasks actually in the end get hired out. It is true, and hence the need for a service like ServiceMagic.com. But, and again whether or not real data supports this, at least the impulse seems to be there . . . always.

Big boxes and little windows

It’s unfortunate really that Home Depot has never translated/addressed this, at least for me and others like me (hi-functioning do-it-yourselvers), to/in the online arena. There is a disconnect here.

And as much as I want to resist going here again – they are just missing one opportunity, one vehicle through which to support their clients, and better their sales. Maybe they feel they don’t have to – or the feasibility studies just don’t point to the immediacy.

In comparison -- take a look at Sears and the plethora of online tools and tips, as well as general access, that they offer in support of their customers. To highlight one in a suite of many -- and they are twitter friends, Manage My Home dot com.

That said, though, it happens to be another big box store, and the way they have done things in recent years, that I repeatedly come back to.

Ok, one or two more posts in this series, then I will get back to managing the delicate balance between supporting both home services firms and do-it-for-yourself activity -- More than likely next week sometime.

Here's the next.

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More Moxie:

Home Depot's Clinics' website got a new look at some point in the last year: http://www.homeimproverclub.com/

And my fav for online home project management: http://www.managemyhome.com/