It seems like home-focused e-commerce sites are popping up like candy – and Houzz.com is one sweet addition to the mix. Though it is hardly a brand new site, it is a quickly emerging and growing frontrunner.
About Houzz.com
Houzz.com is an e-commerce site, specifically dedicate to the home – think a marketplace for furniture, kitchen goods, storage solutions, general home décor, and more. That dedication to a specific market sector sets it apart from other sites, such as wayfair.com or zulily.com. But beyond serving as solely a marketplace to serve retailers and consumers alike, Houzz stands a top resource for home design inspiration and ideas.
Designers, architects, and other service professionals can upload portfolios of their work to the site which consumers then have access to as they look to begin their own home design projects – Houzz even features idea books so consumers can build their own portfolio of “likes,” more or less, making it easy to recall favorites and build a cohesive concept when the time comes. Consumers also have access to their top retailers, opening direct lines of communications for questions and relationship building – which, of course, translates to sales for the retailers.
The site offers a standard website as well as a mobile app to bring shopping and convenience to consumers’ fingertips in the way that is most accessible to them. It prides itself in catering specifically to a high-end target audience, 72 percent of whom are between 25-54 years old.
The site boasts a number one rank for reaching homeowners who are actively building, remodeling, and decorating. With a reach of 16 million homeowners each month and 300 million monthly page views, Houzz.com provides a huge audience and opportunity for businesses in the home remodeling and design space.
Using Houzz.com to Boost Your Business
Houzz.com is great for merchants to sell home décor products and supplies – but it is also a great fit for service professionals who can help homeowners with the design, remodeling, and renovation process.
From the business standpoint, Houzz.com provides an easy to use interface that allows business owners to directly sell inventory to Houzz.com shoppers. Within the interface, business owners can add and manage inventory, update prices, facilitate shipping, and more.
Sellers manage their own inventory, shipping, and tax. To compensate for Houzz.com attracting the clientele and other support services, the site charges a 15 percent transaction feewhich includes credit card processing charges. Houzz.com donates 1 percent of its fee to the Houze Foundation, a non-profit organization, to give back to the community.
Sellers receive a Houzz badge for use on their own websites to easily link their website visitors to their Houzz.com storefront. To direct additional traffic to their Houzz profiles and portfolios, companies are encouraged to link back via alternate social media, such as Google+, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
Beyond their actual sales items, professionals are able to further engage their audience by contributing to the IdeaBooks and the Advice center. These are resource areas available to Houzz.com shoppers to help inspire them, give them ideas that they can translate to their own homes, and to get complimentary feedback and advice on their projects. Participating as a seller in these site areas gives you a direct link to potential consumers, showcases your work and how it applies to other clients and projects, and positions you as an expert in your field.
Finally, Houzz accepts customer reviews – so once you are active on the site, encourage happy customers to leave their feedback; the reviews will display to the full community, furthering your chances at future clients.
The Takeaway
Houzz.com is a great way to extend your business’ reach and to find new clients across the country. Its easy to manage interface is a huge plus, as is the audience size. Set up takes minimal time and, though there are fees on the actual sales, there isn’t an initial start-up fee – a big plus in the e-commerce arena.
Though the e-commerce itself presents a golden opportunity, the true value of Houzz is in establishing direct communications with homeowners specifically looking for your services.
Take advantage of the pre-established audience and give Houzz.com a try – the site continues to grow and may be just the thing your business needs to also grow.