Swish Windows and Doors | Latest News

Leading South West manufacturer joins Swish

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Thursday, 07 December 2009 09:22:00 GMT

Swish is pleased to welcome on board a prestigious new network member for the South West.

Europlas are a Newton Abbot based manufacturer of windows, doors and conservatories. A sister company of Swish, Europlas are one of the longest established installers of PVCu windows in the UK with over 30 years experience.

They cover the South West of England including Exeter to Dorchester, Truro to Taunton, Paignton to Plymouth and everywhere in between. In addition to fitting ‘A’ rated energy efficient windows Europlas also offer a 10 year guarantee as standard. To find out more about Europlas and to request a quote please visit www.europlas.co.uk or call 0800 550 330.

Swish is delighted to be working with such a well established and forward thinking firm in the South West.

Swish Authorised Installer joins the Top 10

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Monday, 09 November 2009 09:22:00 GMT

Swish is delighted to announce the success of Authorised Installer, Bradley Scott, who has been named one of the Top 10 Trust Mark tradesmen in the UK.

Bradley Scott, based in Tamworth in Staffordshire, were nominated by their customers delighted by the quality of their installations and the customer service they received. Following this they were assessed by members of the National Home Improvement Council, the Electrical Safety Council, the Chartered Institute of Building and TrustMark who were equally impressed and selected them to reach the top 10. The overall winner will be announced during November.

TrustMark is a government backed scheme which aims to help homeowners find reliable and trustworthy tradesmen to carry out home improvements projects and repairs.

Swish supports the Daily Telegraph�s Homebuilding and Renovating Awards

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Wednesday, 03 June 2009 09:22:00 GMT

Swish is pleased to be sponsoring the prestigious Homebuilding and Renovating Awards in conjunction with The Daily Telegraph. The awards aim to identify and reward amateur builders and homeowners who are building their own home or re-modelling their existing one. The judges are looking for innovation not only in design but also in thinking, an award winning home doesn’t have to be expensive or ultra-modern but merely reflect the best thinking in modern home improvements.

We’re pleased to be supporting the Remodel/ Extension Category, the judges will be looking to reward radical solutions to improve an existing space and clever reworking of layouts to improve a home’s performance.

To find out more about the competition and how you can enter please visit http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/propertydevelopment/5400314/Homebuilding-and-REnovating-Awards-2009-the-Grand-Designs-effect.html

Swish to exhibit at Grand Designs and Homebuilding and Renovating Shows

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Monday, 12 January 2009 12:18:00 GMT

Swish Window and Door Systems, part of the Epwin Group, will be flying the flag for
PVC-U at the Grand Designs Live and Homebuilding and Renovating Shows this year.

The exhibitions tour, which takes place from March through to November, is the latest phase in the ongoing programme of investment dedicated to supporting the Swish brand and its customers.

Paul Lindsay, general manager, Swish Window and Door Systems said: “Being at the exhibitions is part of a wider marketing and PR strategy to promote the brand, maintain our market leading position and generate leads for our customers.

“This runs alongside our national advertising and PR campaign which incorporates targeted regional activity. This is also complemented by other activities such as significant investment in our consumer facing website and reinvigorating the Swish Authorised Installer scheme,” he continued.

Swish will exhibit a comprehensive range of energy efficient, recyclable PVC-U building products. This includes window styles in a variety of finishes including white woodgrain, light oak and heritage green. Not only that, composite and PVC-U doors and a fully constructed conservatory roof will be on display.

Swish will also be promoting their energy efficient TwentyFour-Seven suite which was launched last year. With a five chamber system and unique low line gasket, the suite helps to secure maximum glass area making it much easier to achieve an ‘A’ class energy rating.
This is further enhanced by the system’s use of the recycled composite material (RCM) reinforcement which closes the loop on the recycling process by bringing old ‘waste’ PVC-U material back into use.
“Our aim is to show our PVC-U products as the energy efficient, sustainable choice that they are. By exhibiting a range of products in a wide range of styles, we aim to show the alternatives to white PVC-U that are now available, further demonstrating the flexibility of PVC-U as a building material.” said Paul.

Swish Window and Doors will be exhibiting at the Grand Designs Live exhibition, London EXCEL in April in addition to the Home building and Renovating Shows at Birmingham NEC in March, Glasgow SECC in May and Harrogate International Centre in November.

Retail Doctor Effective Sales

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Monday, 2 March 2009 12:18:00 GMT

In the third of our 12 part guide to getting the most out of your retail business, Gareth Parton, head of sales at Swish Window and Door Systems, explores the dying [?] art of an effective sales pitch.

A couple of friends of mine recently requested a quote from a national installation company. They had just bought a small B&B and as part of their refurbishment plans had decided to replace the windows.

The experience wasn’t a happy one. Booking their visit they dealt with an unhelpful, bordering on rude administrator. But putting her attitude down to a ‘bad day at the office’, they continued with their booking and were duly visited in a few days by a smartly dressed sales rep.

He measured-up the six window annexe and having spent a little time looking down list prices came back with (and I would suggest that everyone takes a deep breath now) a staggering £22,000 quote.

Naturally, my friends were a little aghast, “that seems a little high” they politely said, “is there anything you can do?” “I’ll tell you what”, the salesman replied, “because you were treated so badly when you called us, I’ll do it for £11,000.” “That’s still a little higher than we had hoped” my friends said.

So the salesman went to his car ‘to speak to his manager’. On his return he said “£6,000 - my manager will do you a special deal at £6,000”. But the sale was lost, having seen £16,000 tumble off the asking price in the space of 20 minutes they didn’t believe a word he said.

There are two things to note here: a sale starts from the minute you get the enquiry, from the minute the receptionist takes the call, through to the booking, the visit and the follow up. Second, ridiculous pitches founded on over-inflated prices don’t work, consumers today are far too switched on.

So am I about to argue that price isn’t important? No I’m not, but it can’t be your sales team’s only tool.

There are opportunities, Window Energy Ratings and energy efficiency, for example, that do offer good sales people an opportunity to up-sell. ‘A’ rated windows can cut heat loss compared to a non-energy efficient window by up to £254 per year in an average three bedroom home, that’s a powerful sales message - but you have to tell it.

The industry has gone to great lengths to reassure prospective customers that we don’t employ pushy salespeople. But that shouldn’t mean that we stop informing homeowners about the benefits of our products and services. The reality is that if you don’t differentiate yourself from the competition it will come down to one thing only - price.

Too many installation companies are still failing to get the basics right, salespeople who don’t take a window sample to a customer visit (or who don’t bother to get it out of the boot).

A product demonstration is probably the most important part of any sales negotiation. If you’re selling a quality product, point out the differences between it and a cheaper one. You need to make the customer understand and want the features and benefits you’re selling.

You also need to dress professionally, if you’re uncomfortable going in suited and booted, keep a clean company branded polo shirt, trousers and shoes in the back of the van.

Whether you’ve closed a sale or not, talking a prospect through a likely scheme of work pre-answers a lot of questions and helps put them at ease about your credibility and professionalism. Describe each stage of the process, what would happen and when?

And don’t put on too much pressure - customers resent it. If your prospect is feeling the heat they won’t be thinking about your product. Leave them client testimonials, the retail literature they need to make an informed choice and then ‘ease back tiger’.

But do follow-up every single sales opportunity - even if it’s just to find out why they have selected a competitor. As we have already discussed, while it may not result in a sale, its information that’s worth its weight in gold as it can help dictate future sales strategy.

Alternatively if the prospect is putting the job off for the time being, ask them when they might consider rescheduling and ask for the opportunity to provide them with a new quote.

Those companies that are doing effective business are those that price sensibly but who are also selling effectively. That means understanding what the consumer wants, how your product fits that need and selling how good you are at delivering it.

Retail Doctor is written by Gareth Parton, head of sales, Swish Window and Door Systems.

Top tips:

Brands carry confidence and support sales, do you have brand strength on your side?
Do you have effective sales tool kits in place, retail literature, product samples?
Are you offering the right product range?
Is your sales team up to speed product performance, on market opportunities e.g. WERs
Are your people properly geared to manage enquiries from initial call to project completion?
Your installations and installation teams are ambassadors for your business. Make sure they’re briefed to handle a lead and make a professional impression.

Retail Doctor Market Research

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Monday, 2 March 2009 12:18:00 GMT

In the second of our 12 part guide to getting the most out of your retail business, Gareth Parton, head of sales at Swish Window and Door Systems, explains why where it pays to talk.

‘That tackle was never a sending off’, ‘celebrity X has lost god knows how many lbs since checking out of the Betty Ford Clinic’ – we all love to give opinions, it’s in our nature. And the relevance of poor referee decision-making and the latest ‘star’ meltdown to a column on market research?

Well the point I’m trying to make is that we’re all predisposed to give opinions, whether that’s windows or yo-yoing celebrity weight loss or gain. Effective market research is about capturing opinion, finding out what people believe, want and need and using that information to inform your business activity.

And the best thing about market research is that it doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive. Kick focus groups and psychological profiling into touch - that’s the stuff of corporate boardrooms – instead start talking to your customers. Market research shouldn’t be an academic exercise - it should inform and as a consequence, influence your business. It can even deliver direct savings.

I was recently talking to a customer about his marketing activity. He was reviewing his operation and started with one of the most fundamental questions of market research: ‘how do my customers find me?’

This was of particular importance given his existing marketing spend which included £20,000 per annum to advertise in the Yellow Pages. Over a six week period he and his team recorded the origin of every call and lead whether directory listing, advertising, press, flyer or website.

The results were enlightening. He had been convinced that 80 out of every hundred leads he received had been generated through directory listings, his research showed that in reality that it was nearer 20 and that advertising in the local media and his website were far more effective and lower cost.

Websites are worth a specific mention here. Search engines can give you detailed information on where your customers are coming from, which sites or adverts they are connecting from and what the pages they are visiting on your site [I intend to explore this in more detail later in the series].

Understanding how your products and services are seen by customers is clearly as fundamental to managing your relationship with them as it is to know where your customers are coming from.

Market research can inform your business activity for example what is selling well, what will sell well and what won’t sell well for much longer? How do your customers or prospects see your business? Equally importantly, why do people decide not to buy from you?

And again its talking to people and gauging their opinion that will deliver results. There are lots of tools that you can use to do this, telephone, website or face to face – the trick with all of them is to keep it short and simple, too many questions will switch people off. For example if you’re creating a customer feedback survey, limit it to just a few questions: were they happy with your service? What could be improved? Would they recommend you?

Information from those people who don’t opt to buy from you can be equally valuable. If you quote on a hundred jobs, win 60 and miss out on another 40, politely follow-up those you missed out on. What tipped the balance in favour of your competitor? What should or could you have done differently?

People like to give opinions, it makes them feel validated, that they count and that they are important. In the case of your business they are because they’re the ones spending the money. So listen to what they have to say. Their wants, needs, and complaints will guide your business towards improvement and growth.

Swish to exhibit at key UK consumer shows

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Wednesday, 25 February 2009 09:22:00 GMT

Swish Window and Door systems will be exhibiting their range of high performance, energy efficient and sustainable PVC-U windows, doors and conservatories at the Grand Designs Live and Homebuilding and Renovating Shows this year.

Showing a wide range of products in a variety of colours and styles, the company will promote the flexibility PVC-U offers in aesthetics and architectural design, as well as being a cost saving and sustainable building material.

Gareth Parton, head of sales, said: “PVC-U building products have come along way. The white, plastic window and door offering is still there and is still popular, but it is accompanied by far greater choice.

“And homeowners can see that choice for themselves on our stand. Not only will we be exhibiting a wide range of products but they will be accompanied by samples from our range of colours, including heritage greens, pastel and cream shades and also our range of wood effect finishings.

Swish will also be promoting the capabilities of PVC-U as an energy efficient product which by helping to reduce heat loss from the home can help the homeowner make significant energy and heating savings.

“Not only can the Swish products help homeowners cut the carbon footprint of their house but they can also help them make significant savings, up to £254* on their annual energy and heating bills.”

Supporting this, corner sections of windows will be on display to demonstrate to homeowners the technology needed to create such energy efficient and secure windows.

Gareth said: “Recent research finds that a quarter of homeowners replace their windows and doors for aesthetic reasons. Swish has responded to this by providing a product range that not only gives homeowners the choice they want, but also allows them to make savings in the long run.”

Swish Window and Door Systems will be exhibiting at the Grand Designs Live Exhibition , London EXCEL in April, in addition to the Home Building and Renovating Shows at the Birmingham NEC in March, Glasgow SECC in May and Harrogate International Centre in November.

*Figures based on replacing non energy rated windows in an average 3 bedroom house with gas central heating at today’s energy prices.

New Swish Authorised Fabricator and Installer in Nottingham

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Monday, 12 January 2009 12:18:00 GMT

Swish is delighted to welcome a new Authorised Fabricator and Installer to the network. CM Supplies are a long established window fabricator in Nottingham and have enjoyed success as both a trade supplier and retail installer.

Swish Newsletter

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Friday, 9 January 2009 12:18:00 GMT

Keep up to date on the news from Swish with our latest newsletter.

Visit Swish at a show near you in 2009

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Monday, 5 January 2009 12:18:00 GMT

For a chance to see the full range of Swish products and talk to our experienced staff about your project why not visit our stand at one of the following shows during 2009...

Retail Doctor : Brand Value

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Thursday, 18 December 2008 12:18:00 GMT

In the first of a new 12 part guide to getting the most out of your retail business, Gareth Parton, head of sales at Swish Window and Door Systems, argues branding is just important for big blue chips but each and every business, however big or small.

Prominent Scottish manufacturer joins Swish

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Friday, 28 November 2008 12:18:00 GMT

Swish is pleased to welcome on board a prestigious new network member for Scotland.

The retail 'authority' - Swish reinvigorates its authorised installer scheme

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Wed, 24 September 2008 12:18:00 GMT

Swish Window and Door Systems has reinvigorated its authorised installer scheme, delivering unparalleled support to installers in the home improvement market.�

TwentyFour-Seven: driving sustainable business

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 08:56:00 GMT

Swish Window and Door Systems started commercial production of its new technically advanced TwentyFour-Seven system at the beginning of this year.

TwentyFour-Seven from Swish records 'Rapid' growth

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 08:56:00 GMT

Swish Window and Door Systems has reported a significant new business win to sign leading fabricator Rapid Frame to its new advanced TwentyFour-Seven system.

Grounded innovation - the TwentyFour-Seven system from Swish

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 08:56:00 GMT

Swish Window and Door Systems unveiled its plans for a �6.5 million programme of investment in the new TwentyFour-Seven system in the Summer.

WindowPlus sign-up to Swish

info@swishwindows.co.uk (Swish Windows) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 08:56:00 GMT

Swish Window and Door Systems has signed leading Glasgow-based fabricator and installer WindowPlus to its new advanced TwentyFour-Seven system.