A few months ago, AQUA conducted our annual
State of the Industry survey,
which provides readers with
up-to-date, insightful information on
pool and spa builders, retailers and
service technicians all throughout
the United States. Located within
the builders section of the survey,
there were two questions related
to financing pools and spas. The
majority of respondents said that
they offer financing because there are
way too many benefits — all to the
consumer, builder and financer — not to. However, some responded that
they did not like, nor did they offer,
financing.
We looked at their primary reasons and
discussed them with three successful
pool and spa builders: Jamie Braddy,
growth consultant of Parrot Bay Pools
& Spas in North Carolina, Joshua Culp,
general manager of Crystal Pools in
Pennsylvania and Scott Rhodes, owner
of Rhodes Custom Pools in Missouri.
A few months ago, AQUA conducted our annual
State of the Industry survey,
which provides readers with
up-to-date, insightful information on
pool and spa builders, retailers and
service technicians all throughout
the United States. Located within
the builders section of the survey,
there were two questions related
to financing pools and spas. The
majority of respondents said that
they offer financing because there are
way too many benefits — all to the
consumer, builder and financer — not to. However, some responded that
they did not like, nor did they offer,
financing.
We looked at their primary reasons and
discussed them with three successful
pool and spa builders: Jamie Braddy,
growth consultant of Parrot Bay Pools
& Spas in North Carolina, Joshua Culp,
general manager of Crystal Pools in
Pennsylvania and Scott Rhodes, owner
of Rhodes Custom Pools in Missouri.
REASON NO. 1:
“I want to, but I’m a bit intimidated by
the process and how to sell the idea
to clients.”
Not knowing how pool financing
works — especially when builders feel
they’re an expert in the field — can
be intimidating and lead them to
simply not offer it at all, so as not to
be perceived as uninformed. However,
Braddy says, the financing process is
much easier than one might think.
“We offer financing through a few
different companies, and we have links
directly on our website so clients can
apply to finance their projects right
online. I usually ask a bit about their
credit history to help steer them in the
right financing direction.”
It’s as simple as presenting it as
another beneficial option, she adds.
“People like options and financing
provides our clients with options.”
It may also help to spin financing
in a new light, adds Rhodes. Explain
to customers how financing will allow
them to build their dream pool — the
first time around.
“A lot of our clients start out with
just a simple pool in mind, one they
could probably afford on their own,” he
says. However, they’ll end up getting a
loan for the non-simplistic upgrades.
Maybe they want an automatic cover,
or a saltwater filtration system, or a
heat pump, whatever it may be, so financing allows them to obtain the
more expensive products they desire.”
REASON NO. 2:
“We like cash.”
Although cash upfront is nice, loans
will increase your customer base and
the scale of the project — and you only
have to wait a short time to receive the
payment in full.
“I think a major benefit to the
consumer is not needing to come
up with all of the money upfront and
out of pocket, which is especially
advantageous to them when the
economy is down,” says Braddy. “Let’s
say the customer has a $100,000
budget, but they really want expensive
tile, stone and water features. If they
can get financed for the difference
between the cash they have on hand
and the extra cost of the nicer features,
it’s a win-win for everyone involved.
When you build a pool, there are
certain things you can’t add later
and certain things you can. If there’s
something a customer really wants,
and it would be a hassle to add it down
the road, and they don’t have enough
cash on hand, then financing is a great
option.”
“Only 10% of our jobs include
financing,” adds Rhodes. “If we have
a client who is building their home
and pool at the same time, they often
don’t have as much cash on hand as
compared to if they were just building
a pool, so they will likely roll in the
pool loan with their construction loan.
I used to build pools in California,
which is very different from Missouri.
A lot of people ask me why I think the market is so different, and I think it’s
because everyone is moving here from
the sunbelt states, so they’ve got a lot
of cash on hand — but you never want
to count someone out just because
they don’t have the full amount of
cash.”
REASON NO. 3:
“We offer financing for spas, but new
pool clients usually pay directly.”
Outside of pool financing, some
manufacturers and dealers also offer
hot tub/spa financing. “Around 30% of
our overall sales come from hot tubs,”
says Culp. “Our spa manufacturers
offer different financing promotions at
different times of the year. Whether it’s
0% for 48 months, 60 months, etc., a
lot of people will take advantage of the
deals available to finance their dream
spa.
“It just makes purchasing the
product more feasible and appealing
to the customer. When it’s laid out as a
monthly payment instead of a $15,000
hot tub — regardless of how long the
term is — the customer won’t feel the
cost all at once, which makes them
happy and more willing to purchase a
spa.”
Effectively training your employees
to understand and actively promote
financing is the first step in the
process, he says.
“We proactively train our sales
reps to promote the financing deals
when the manufacturers are running
them. If the customer comes into our
showroom to look at and discuss a
midline spa, it’s easier for our sales
reps to sell a more expensive, top line
model when it’s a monthly payment
and not a few thousand dollars more
all at once.”
REASON NO. 4:
“I had a bad experience with financing
in the past.”
It may be important to note that
not every finance company will work
for every pool building company;
however, it’s crucial to keep testing
out the “financing waters” until you
find the perfect fit, as both you and
your customers will be better off for it,
argues Braddy.
“Eight years ago, we offered
financing through a company we just
didn’t work well with and our business
partnership ended poorly and abruptly,”
says Braddy. “It took us two years to
offer any financing again because we
simply didn’t know there were other
options out there and thought every
company was the same. But then, we
were lucky enough to get a call from
a different company who wanted to
collaborate based on the terms we
needed and wanted to abide by. So
builders, not every financing company
may work for you, but there are an
abundance of options — keep looking
until you find one, or a few, that works
well for everyone involved because I
believe that financing is truly an asset
to our company and could be an asset
to yours, too.”