NKBA’s complimentary webinars this month focus on sales, marketing, profitability and techniques, in the digital arena as well as in reality. By Dianne M. Pogoda

 

Every for-profit business venture is ultimately all about the greenbacks — making them and keeping them. So, to kick off 2019, NKBA’s free webinar series addresses directions in marketing and sales strategies, all aimed at helping kitchen and bath designers, remodelers, and related industry professionals fine-tune their selling techniques and improving profits.

This year NKBA has increased the number of webinars offered each month to a minimum of four. In January, there are five. These free 60-minute webinars feature a presentation by an expert in the specific subject matter, delivered via a virtual platform. The sessions offer the attending certified participants 0.1 CEU per event — it’s an easy way to collect the CEUs needed to maintain NKBA certification. Participants must engage in 80 percent of the sessions to receive CEU credit; registration closes two hours prior to start times. All times listed are Eastern.

Starting on Jan. 10 at 3 p.m., Jim Nowakowski, president and owner of Interline Creative Group will present “Making More Sense of Social Media for Business.”The world of social media has generated significant attention and interest, but it can be confusing. Navigating your business messages within these diverse and growing platforms can be a daunting task. Nowakowski will clarify these platforms by focusing on those that are most applicable to business using examples of leading platforms, and then illustrating how strategy and audience are the keys to building successful social media interactions.

Attendees will review definitions of social media and expand their understanding of its nature and influence; learn how to use key platforms and how they correlate to  business targeting and pitch development, and develop a plan by using five important guidelines to a successful social media strategy, recognize the tools that best support their specific strategies. To register for this webinar, click here.

On Jan. 16 at noon, Fred Reikowsky, principal of Legacy Biz Leaders, will discuss “Profit Protection Strategies: Earning More, Keeping More and Prospering in the K&B industry.” In this session, he’ll drive home the point that without maintaining a profit, a business cannot survive, no matter how talented the designer or remodeler. In an industry with so many unknowns and variables, consistently producing great profit can be a challenge. This webinar will illuminate the most common internal and external profit leaks, how to effectively address them and best practices to create top-of-mind profit awareness throughout an organization. From human resources to supplier and vendor challenges, government intervention to customer relationships, among many others, this topic is critical to every entrepreneur.At the end of this session attendees will define profit in a way that is measurable and compelling for buyer and seller; structure the sales and production processes to maintain control, close more sales at higher profit margins, and infuse a “win-win” attitude throughout the organization, and create a team of motivated, committed employees who understand their role in protecting profit.

To register for this session, click here.

Next up, “Generational Trends in Home Improvement Projects” is set for Jan. 22 at noon. Haley Gray, account executive, and Dan DiClerico, home expert and smart home strategist with HomeAdvisor, will explore the differences in remodeling trends and preferences among Millennials, Gen Xers and Baby Boomers, and how to use these insights to improve a design company’s market strategies.

By diving into the key home-improvement trends among each demographic, attendees will learn about the various purchasing powers, home-improvement requests and tendencies of each generation, and how to tailor a marketing plan to create loyalty among the different targets, and improve trust and increase conversion rates.

Click hereto register for this webinar.

Back in the world of social media, Shannon Winning, co-owner of Marketing Rival, will show attendees how to “Turn Your Blog into a Revenue Generator,” Jan. 23 at noon. Business owners who’vemastered the basics of showcasing their products on the web and want to turn these marketing efforts from revenue drain to revenue generator are just a call-to-action away. The key is turning the customers who have already purchased and enjoyed their products and services into repeat clients. This session explores the principles of actionable content marketing and how to apply them immediately to better 2019 sales.

Attendees will learn how to leverage images and stories of past sales to grow brand awareness, build an audience of fans and drive sales;identify the difference between brochure blogs and those that drive leads; Develop a system for sourcing images and projects from customers; develop new content that will convert new customers, and create repeat business.

Register for this session by clicking here.

Closing out the month on Jan. 30 at noon, Rachel Derman, director of operations at Doorboost will discuss “Digital Advertising and Your Sales Funnel.” With 80% of consumers doing extensive internet research before visiting a showroom, the largest growing consumer base for the kitchen and bath industry is a tech-savvy group that almost always begins their buying journey online. Engaging these leads through digital advertising has become critical to competing against national chains and is now a key driver in building a revenue stream and developing digital advertising that’s a cornerstone of every design business’ sales and marketing plan.

Attendees will learn about how online advertising works, the different digital advertising platforms and which works best based on specific marketing goals, and the unique benefits of digital advertising and how it differs from other media channels. The session will identify different customer types and the online strategies most effective for reaching them, cover the basics of ad campaigns to include the customer journey, ad formats, call-to-action and audience targeting, identifying leads and how to convert them into buyers, and more.

To register for this webinar, click here.