Shopping for Home Improvement Supplies

[Amy]

Hello -

We are graduate students working on a school project and would be very grateful for the input of some Do-It-Yourself experts. Could you please take a couple of minutes to answer the following questions? Any information that you can provide would be much appreciated.

Thank you very much.
- Stacey, Alex and Amy (Boston University)


1. When buying home improvement supplies, what kind of in-store experience are you looking for? What kind of on-line experience?

2. Under what circumstances do you/would you use store websites to research home improvement product features and prices before buying?

 

[AdamW]

Boston University? They had an exchange programme with my alma mater in London, met some brilliant people from there!

Anyway, your questions. My answers are quite long-winded so if you need any further explanation just ask:

1) When buying supplies in a store, the experience I would like is one where I can easily find the parts I want. So the place has to be organised intuitively. I would like there to be at least a couple of people in the store who can answer my questions on a product, or in the case of more specialised items refer me to the manufacturer.

Buying supplies on-line: I expect the website to be organised intuitively. Obviously it isn't practical to have someone on the website to answer my questions instantly, but I would like a useful response to any e-mail queries I submit (certain websites reply with "for product information, refer to the item description on the website" - not useful at all!). With an on-line Store being a centralised nation Store (as opposed to one in every town) it is far easier for them to hire a couple of experienced/knowledgable people, experts, perhaps an electrician, a plumber and a builder. They can answer questions such as "what would you recommend to do job X?"

2) I always use Store websites to compare the items available. I also use on-line Stores to check what I should be paying for an item. I have had situations in the past where it is actually cheaper to buy even just a few items online, and pay a delivery charge, rather than to buy them in my local merchant.

It is also easier to browse a website often, as in a store the required parts may be in the wrong section or out of stock. However, it is also good to be able to see and examine the product to confirm that it does what you want and will fit.

Armed with the knowledge of what I should be able to get in a Store, I then drive down there and have a look. An example of a fairly recent purchase is a shower pump, for boosting the pressure of my shower. I had a look at the pumps in a nationwide DIY-chain and compared these in terms of price, performance and features to pumps I could buy online. I ended up buying a pump online considerably cheaper and of better performance and quality.

 

[Amy]

Dear Adam,

Thank you very much for your thoughtful and thorough responses to our questions about home improvement stores. Your answers are very valuable to us.

We will post four other questions over the next couple of days. If you are interested in registering your input, we would love to receive your answers to the four questions listed below.

We are grateful for your willingness to participate.

Thank you again.

- Stacey, Alex and Amy (Boston University)



1. If you use websites to research or buy home improvement supplies, what do you like or dislike about the websites?

2. If you use websites to research home improvement supplies but then go to the store to buy the products, why don’t you buy the products online?

3. What would you like to change about your in-store or online home improvement supply shopping experience to make it better?

4. If you are familiar with Sutherlands Lumber & Home Improvement Centers, what do you like or dislike about Sutherlands as compared to Home Depot? As compared to Lowe’s?

 

[AdamW]

Todays contribution to the furtherment of academia, pushing the boundaries of marketing science Feel free to pose more questions, good luck towards your project.

1. If you use websites to research or buy home improvement supplies, what do you like or dislike about the websites?

I like websites that include information on delivery charges (these seem to be incredibly variable here in the UK)

I dislike websites that list the products but give no indication of cost (although the prices vary depending on region so you can see why they do it)

I especially dislike Stores where the website doesn't list any products at all, and I have to go to the Store itself to see what they sell.


2. If you use websites to research home improvement supplies but then go to the store to buy the products, why don’t you buy the products online?

Usually I only buy a few small items at one time in the stores. Buying them online would incurr a delivery charge that makes it uneconomical.

I usually decide to do a job when lying in bed on Saturday morning, so I need to get the parts that day to do a job around the house that weekend. So, waiting until Monday to get the parts means I don't get to do the job that weekend.

On some occasions I have found goods cheaper in the store than online.

Sometimes I get caught with a "must-have" feeling. So whilst I am planning to buy Item X at some point in the next month, I will go to look at one in the store and buy it on impulse instead of waiting for it to be delivered.

3. What would you like to change about your in-store or online home improvement supply shopping experience to make it better?

The in-store shopping experience would be improved if a better trolley design were produced and if the aisles were made wider.

The online shopping experience is currently quite agreeable for me. The websites I buy from are well-organised and well-designed. The only improvement I can think of is lower prices, but I suppose that is independent of the online experience.

4. If you are familiar with Sutherlands Lumber & Home Improvement Centers, what do you like or dislike about Sutherlands as compared to Home Depot? As compared to Lowe’s?

I am not too familiar with any of the above other than by name (I have family in Canada who have mentioned Home Depot). I have looked at the Home Depot website and one thing that I instantly dislike about Home Depot Stores is that they decide what to stock depending on the region. So, if I were over there and wanted to buy e.g. a garden table set, I might not be able to get one on that day from my local H-D and would either have to drive hundreds of miles or wait for delivery.

 

[Amy]

Hi Adam,

Thank you again for your participation and your good humor. Your contribution is much appreciated.

Amy