INDUSTRYNEWS
‘ Selling windows faceto-face with clients has always been my favourite bit ’
» SINCE ITS LAUNCH 18 MONTHS ago Framepoint ®, from Installer Award winner Tommy Trinder , has established itself as go to app for installers looking to simplify quoting . The firm ’ s rapid rise has been impressive ; Framepoint ® already has close to 1000 active users , with over £ 50million of work quoted every month via the platform . But what inspired erstwhile window installer , Chris Brunsdon , to venture into software in the first place . And , knowing what he knows now , would he do it again ?
“ Call me sad , but I ’ ve always loved selling windows ,” says Chris . “ 27 years in the industry , and I ’ ve tackled most parts . But selling windows face-to-face with clients has always been my favourite bit . My dad sold windows for 50 years , and his dad before him did too . So , I guess it was in the blood .
“ When I was out selling windows , I craved a piece of software that had some wow factor about it . There was plenty of tech that was great for running factories , but none that was much help when I was sitting on Mrs Jones ’ sofa and trying to make a sale .”
That simple premise lead Chris to knock on the door of Robert Franks . Rob was Chris ’ former IT Director at TimberWindows . Com ; a company Chris founded in 2004 and sold , to private equity , in 2009 .
“ I showed Rob how I sketched out windows and doors on an A4 pad when I was selling to a customer and told him I wanted to be able sketch windows on a computer , in the same , simple way ,” explains Chris . “ The windows would need to appear in perfect , photorealistic quality , priced and ready for me to take the order . And , of course , I wanted to be able to show a client exactly how they ’ d look on their house too . It was quite a brief .”
That was in 2012 . Chris maintains he never actually asked Robert outright how long it might take to build this holy grail . But in his mind , he ’ d thought one year . The team at Tommy Trinder grew . Chris ’ bank account dwindled . Seven years later , with the support of a number of talented computer programmers , Rob delivered .
“ To be fair , the goal posts moved considerably over those seven years ,” says Chris . “ Installers need to be able quote any product in any material through one app - ali bifolds to sash windows , flush casements to composite doors and everything in between . Building that flexibility took an age . We also added in many extra features along the way such as the ability to send off pricing requests to multiple suppliers in a click , generate clear survey reports , contracts ready for clients to sign off etc .”
Tommy Trinder launched officially in late 2019 . By Christmas the firm had twenty-five companies using the platform , which felt good but didn ’ t exactly swell the coffers .
Feedback from these early adopters gave the firm confidence , though . There were reports of huge time savings – and real wins for installers in minimising error . Many reported improved conversion rates and a sense of pride in presenting more professionally .
By the time of the first lockdown Tommy Trinder had grown to about fifty subscribers . Like most businesses , the firm wondered what was going to happen next . Then an unexpected thing occurred ; sales and activity rocketed . Faced with the prospect of no longer being able to conduct home visits , installers turned to Framepoint ® as their ‘ virtual showroom .’ Hooking up , sharing screens and carrying out sales demo ’ s remotely saw volumes of quotes and makeovers on Framepoint ® surge . Pre-lockdown less than £ 6m of quotes were done on the platform each month . By June 2020 installers were quoting around £ 28m of work through the platform , in March 2021 it had topped £ 55m .
“ It ’ s staggering to think that over 25,000 homeowners have received a quote generated by Framepoint ® so far this year ,” says Chris . “ With Corona it ’ s been a weird and wonderful launch , but our mission is certainly clear . We are here to make selling easier for installers ; to help installers Sell with Wow . Whether that ’ s Face-to-face , in a showroom or remotely .”
www . tommytrinder . com
10 » OCT 2021 » CLEARVIEW-UK . COM