This trend of “direct to consumerism” is something that has been around for quite some time. However, its a relatively new to some businesses. The standard business model is being challenged with it. The model that worked years ago may soon change. Is it a good thing or a bad thing. I think the answer to that would depend on which side of the business you are on. The idea consists of the end user of said item buys the item themselves to cut out the overhead and upcharge of the providers to sell it to them. In my business directly, folks opt to buy their own locks, buy their own car keys and remotes, etc. Folks know that businesses must sell items at a profit. Why not buy this item yourself and save the money?
New and younger business owners may have an easier time adopting this new trend into their business. They have grown up with the concept of buying products and services online. Older businesses have undoubtably seen a small decrease in profit because of it. Can your business adapt to this trend? The obvious answer in my opinion, no matter whether you like the idea of it or not, is you must adapt to it. Accept it incorporate it, learn to work with it. My business will accept them, but I’ve had to make sure to bring up the pitfalls to these customers about what they have potentially bought. Make it work with your particular business model, but set guidelines. Business not as usual.
Its a trend that is growing as more people find it a good way to save money on things they need that also need some form of help getting implemented into their home, car, business, etc. Some items are clearly do it yourself items. Others, for instance in the locksmith industry will need to be installed, rekeyed, cut, programmed, or even modified to operate correctly.
Some problems do arise with folks buying their own stuff. Knowledge of the item, certain manufacturers, parts numbers being similar, incorrect listings on the internet, etc are one of the big problems we as locksmiths run into with the direct to consumer idea. The cheapest thing the consumer finds on the internet is not always what you need or should get. A good example of this is car keys and remotes. There are certain online retailers that sell automotive keys online, very cheap I might add. The quality of these keys is horrible. Sure they look the same, minus a logo, as the key you may have. But inside, they are just cheap foreign made copies of the original. Sometimes they do work ok for a short period of time. But these manufacturers believe in quantity over quality. The person that looses in the long run is the consumer.
This loss stems from the fact that any business that opts to accept this trend and you buying your own stuff won’t warranty it. This risk being that the person, business, etc you hire to implement the item will not warranty it or generally provide any assistance with it since they didn’t sell it. If your key or remotes stops working a month from now, that is not due to the locksmith, but due to cheap manufacturing of the product. So now, your right back in the same place you were a few months ago. Sometimes buying a better made item which a locksmith sells and subsequently will have to warranty, will undoubtedly last longer.
