Its been about 7 months now since ConservatoryLand launched their new TV advert and fully national advertising campaign on the satellite channel ‘Home’.

The advert first went out live in March 2010, helping to boost orders for their DIY conservatories even higher than for the same period last year, 15% higher in fact.

Their latest TV campaign started at the beginning of this month (October 2010) and the results are far higher than expected. We’re now half way through the month and an increase in orders of around 20% compared to the same period last year is expected.

Other than internet marketing, TV can be one of the most cost effective mediums for promoting conservatories on a national basis.

Here’s a reminder of the latest ConservatoryLand national TV campaign.

Share/Save

Condensation on A Rated Windows and possible on other energy rated windows is really niggling me at the moment. After reading many articles about condensation forming on the outside of the glass in energy efficient windows, I’m beginning to wonder how big this problem is, what the consequences will be and what can be done to resolve it.

The worst thing about this, is that it’s been forced up on the double glazing industry by the government in the form of the new Part L Building Regulations that specify minimum U-Value requirements by way of fitting Soft Coat Low E double glazing units which are argon filled and fitted with warm edge spacer bars.

I have three major concerns:

1. The disappointment and unpleasant environment that could be experienced by our customers after spending thousands of pounds of their hard earned cash
2. My company’s reputation could be damaged by fitting windows that produce condensation
3. Our customers refusing to pay for their windows because of the condensation issue and therefore causing disputes and increasing bad debt

But what can be done about it? For a start, we could advise our customers of this potential risk and at the point of sale, recommend they purchase C Rated Windows which will comply with the new building regulations and at the same time reduce the risk of causing condensation.

However in my experience, taking this kind of approach is likely to shake your customer’s confidence and could make them think it’s just YOUR A Rated Windows that cause this problem. This is something that you would have to explain very carefully.

I’m a little nervous about how far the condensation with energy rated windows problem could escalate and how much it could cost installers. I think condensation should be as much of an important consideration under building regulations as energy ratings but it seems that this has been unforeseen and solving one problem has ultimately led to another.

Share/Save

After a very slow start to the year due to the disruption caused by the severe weather conditions in January, sales of conservatories are finally back to normal and flowing as they should.

Conservatory sales were around half that of a typical January as what seemed like an extended Christmas break took hold.

The past couple of weeks have been  strong and therefore showing positive and encouraging signs of another good year for companies in our industry, for sales of both double glazing installations and conservatories.

It’s not easy making up for lost sales but we are now only twelve conservatories behind compared to this point last year and judging by current performance and consumer interest, I would predict that we will have caught up by the middle of March.

The main downside to selling conservatories is the delay between taking the order and actually turning over the business. This typically averages around three months as many customers are applying for planning permission and are unable to accept delivery or installation until they have approval, however once the turnover starts rolling, it is normally quite consistant until December when things start to slow down again.

Double glazing installations now form only around 20% of our overall turnover, with a huge 75% now being conservatories.

Share/Save