Day 7: To E-Commerce or Not to E-Commerce, that is the Question

There are so many places online that use ecommerce to reach their potential customers. I have been doing e-commerce for years but one thing I found was that if my customers are purchasing fence they want to talk to someone. Fence is a one time experience for most people. It is not likely that they will be buying a fence this year and then buy one in five years just to get the newest and best. So I thought why not make an estimator so they could get an idea of how much it might cost for a vinyl fence before they call.

It seemed logical to me and has worked but now in my constant search for “What is the True Reality” I am wondering if just having an e-commerce store would have been the choice. What really sold me was last night. I am in bed while my wife is at her computer. She made a list for me to go to the drug store to get some vitamins. I wasn’t looking forward to going out today with my list in hand wheeling in the 12 inches of snow to get vitamins! I much rather work then freeze. As I was laying there waiting for sugar plums to dance in my head she calls out and says, “Jon, you don’t have to go to the drug store tomorrow. I ordered the vitamins online.”

I ordered them online! Of course it makes some much sense to me now. I need them both! I need a convenient way to help my customers get an idea of their project will cost and a way to order if they know exactly what they want. So back to the drawing board! My customers are the life blood of Summit Fence Supply. I respect each project as the most important one I have. Serving the right way is an ever changing process. In order to reach the coveted goal of “735” I need to be flexible.

If a customer wants to talk they have our toll free number. If they want to get an idea of what a vinyl fence or an aluminum fence or even a stone like fence will cost they have our estimators and soon if a person wants to order online that to will be available.

What is the True Reality? I love serving others. Call me and see.

Jon, “Your Fence Man on Wheels”

SummitFenceSupply.com

jon@summitfencesupply.com

Call me anytime: 888.856.0551

EDGE Certification

Being fair is a interesting term in today's life. I usually ascribe to the term, "Life is not fair!" but being a small minority business in Ohio it is possible to even the playing ground a little. Go to EDGE and see if you qualify.




If you would like to see a copy or our EDGE certification call or email us and we will be happy to email you a copy of ours

Ohio will spend millions this year and years to come and I hope you and me both get our piece of the pie.

If you are a minority bussiness you owe it to yourself to contact EDGE.

Jon, "Your Fence man on Wheels"
Summitfencesupply.com
888.856.0551
Fax 866.841.8023

How Much Fence Do I Need?

Over the last 12 years of fencing one question keeps coming back. “How do I know how much fence material I will need?”

Since I quote out fence all day long Monday through Friday I thought I would help the DYI guy or gal that would like to get an idea what they need in order to install either an aluminum fence or a vinyl fence.

1. You need to know your layout. What do you want to contain or protect? Do you want to put a fence up around your entire property or just a small area around a swimming pool?

2. Lay out the area for your fence. I would just take some stakes and place them at the corners all around the area.

3. With a tape measure or wheel measure the distances between stakes in feet. Always round up to the next foot. For example if you have a run that is 4ft 7 inches on your paper write down 5 feet. (see diagram)

4. I would also put stakes where you want your walk gates or drive gates. When doing gates try to always think ID (inside dimensions). The most common gate opening is 4 foot. That allows most commercial lawn mowers access to the yard.

5. Depending on the type of fence you are using, you need to identify the number of posts you will need and sections. Find out from the supplier the width of the sections you are installing. It will usually be 6 or 8 foot depending on the style of fence you are installing.

6. If the length of your line is 50 feet and you are using a 6 foot section you would divide the length (50) by the length of the section 6. Remember to round up. Your number of sections would be 9 sections. If that is the case you would need 8 line posts and 2 corners or 2 ends. Depending on your layout.

7. After you do this for each line your list will look something like this.
20 Fence section
4 corner posts
16 lines posts
2 gate posts
1 - 4 foot walk gate

That is all you need to do to find out how much material you will need for your fence project.

Remember, you can always call us at summitfencesupply.com with a layout and we will figure it out for you. If you want to purchase from us GREAT if not you will have a great list to go shopping.

Jon Mullender
President Summit Fence Supply, LLC
jon@summitfencesupply.com
find us on the web at summitfencesupply.com

Visit with Nick

I love to serve and Nick of Highland Hts wanted to replace his fence. However there were problem using the normal section.

Privacy?

We all want a little privacy now and then. Sometimes life makes us want to get away and slow down and just relax. I love to go on my deck and drink a cup of coffee and read or work in the flowers but I want to be alone. We all need privacy don't we?

At Summit Fence Supply, LLC we speak to customers that are looking for vinyl privacy fence. There are cheap privacy fence and there are high quality vinyl privacy fences. Since we sell on the Internet I only want to carry what I know will satisfy my customers fencing needs.

What do customers ask for when they call:

• Do I carry wind resistant vinyl privacy fence?
• Does it come in other colors than white?
• How long are the sections?
• Do they make vinyl privacy fence that looks like wood?
• I live in the south and would like to have my privacy fence have a stucco finish is that possible?

Take a look at the video show below and see if this helps in your search for the perfect privacy fence for you.

Of course prices will vary depending on the style you are looking for so give us a call at 888.856.0551 or e-mail me at jon@summitfencesupply.com. To see the whole sellection we carry go to http://summitfencesupply.com/Privacy-vinyl-fence-and-gate-index.asp

Jon Mullender
Summit Fence Supply, LLC
http://summitfencesupply.com/