Has the Coronavirus Forced the Building Products Industry to Adopt Technology Faster?
Across all industries, the Coronavirus (COVID-19) has unexpectedly demanded immediate innovation and process changes that only technology can solve. We see restaurants changing menus, launching online ordering and curbside pickup just to stay open. Employees across the country are now working remotely from home. And self-isolating is making it difficult for builders and developers to keep their projects moving forward without delay. These are unusual times that result in companies and professions across all industries to innovate far quicker than they planned too.
But guess what? That can be a good thing. The building products industry is the second slowest industry to adopt technology (we beat out agriculture and hunting). The technology that building products professionals need to adopt already exists and much of the innovation that will happen in the short term will be a necessity to continue growing in the future.
That’s worth repeating. Millennials want to utilize technology before and during the buying process. COVID-19 may be providing exponential growth for many technology solutions, including augmented and virtual reality, visualization and e-commerce solutions.
There will be a lot of thought and energy after COVID-19 on how to build processes and solutions to ensure we are ready for anything like this in the future. The good news for Augmented and Virtual Reality technology is that this unique situation could bring manufacturers, builders and developers to finally "start building" and looking at what type of experiences they can create with AR and VR. Rather than seeing this technology take hold in 5 years, it could now be 2-3 years.
The most obvious and immediate change is that employees are working remotely and everyone is encouraged to be social distancing. Check out my blog post on Daily Tech Tools for the Remote Worker. Whether you are a manufacture, distributor, dealer, contractor, builder or architect, these technology solutions will make your communication and work more efficient.
Let’s take a look at how building products professionals will have to adapt and adopt technology faster.
Manufacturers
E-Commerce
Social distancing can make it difficult for contractors and dealers to build relationships and sell. With the rise of consumers doing their own research online before ever stepping foot in a dealer or contacting a contractor, manufacturers need to quickly meet the homeowners where they are.
All manufacturers should be building their e-commerce strategy. What do people do when they are stuck at home? How do millennials prefer to shop? Why are malls empty and department stores closing?
E-commerce.
Consumers want convenience, and buying online provides that. Home Depot reported a 20% increase in year-over-year e-commerce sales in 2019. If you are a manufacture, you need to have an e-commerce strategy. Whether you sell direct to consumer, or via Amazon, Home Depot, Lowe’s or others - you must be there.
Live Web Chat and Chatbots
Manufacturers should also be looking at adding live chat or chatbots to their website. In a time where your customer service department is working from a home, a chatbot can be the communication solution you need to keep potential customers informed and engaged. Customers want answers quickly, and they are expecting the ability to live chat or get answers quickly via a chatbot.
Augmented Reality
Lastly, how can Augmented Reality (AR) help solve your pain points and add value to homeowners and your channel partners? Manufacturers must be looking into emerging technologies that enhance a consumers experience with their brand and support their e-commerce initiatives.
Contractors
Visualization Tools
I’ve read some really exciting stories over the past couple weeks on how contractors have been using Hover 3D to continue engaging with homeowners and moving projects forward. Contractors can visit the house, take 8 photos and provide a 3D rendering without ever setting foot in the home or meeting the customer. This is how technology can solve problems and provide incredible value.
Contractors should take advantage of manufacturers visualization tools on their website. Many are built by companies like Renoworks and Chameleon.
Communication & Project Management
In regards to project management and communication, I would recommend BuildBook for any contractor or builder. You can provide project updates and communicate with team members and the homeowners quickly and simply. It’s needed in a unique time like today, but also something homeowners are demanding.
Builders
3D Virtual Tours
Builders are also in a unique situation. The Coronavirus has turned open houses into virtual tours. 3D virtual tours are a fantastic way to showcase homes. Whether you just built a custom home you need to sell or your a large builder with a few demo homes - utilizing Virtual Tours are a necessity these days. Matterport makes this incredibly easily, and allows you to upload 3D Virtual Tours to your website.
Virtual Collaboration
As a builder, I would also recommend a technology solution like Streem AR. Due to COVID-19, workers need to stay a certain distance from each other and limit the size of the crowd. That can be difficult on a job site. Managers need to walk the construction site to check work, code approvals and permits need to be issued throughout the process. Technology like Streem AR allows video collaboration and the ability to interact in Augmented Reality (AR) while being remote. You basically video chat and show what you need to show, and the user on the other end can write notes, circle items, point out issues - all while being across town.
This type of technology could also help with homeowners if you want to provide them a virtual update on the build. A nice solution for today's circumstances, but also something millennials are already demanding from builders now. They want access to updates at any time and any place
AR/VR Technology
Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality can open up a lot of opportunities in regards to visualization. Developers can give homeowners the ability to visit their site, and place a house on their plot of land to get a feel for the location. They could use AR Portals to allow prospective buyers to experience walking through a home from anywhere. Virtual Reality takes that to a whole new level, where demo homes could be built in virtual reality and fully interactive. Prospective buyers could walk through the entire home as if they were there. But let's be honest, in the short term it will be difficult to convince people to put on a headset during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Architects
VR Collaboration Tools
The technology to collaborate and design with a remote team is incredibly valuable. Companies like The Wild are building solutions for architect and designers to collaborate from anywhere in the world. Virtual Reality adds a unique perspective to the entire experience, but you can also join by tablet or computer.
I can’t wait to see the building products industry evolve and adopt new technology. The Coronavirus is taking a toll on our entire industry, but we will come out on top. Stay strong, stay safe.
Now is the time to Start Building.
If you have questions on how you can build a strategy around technology, let’s chat.