You have probably heard and or read about the state of our economy a million times already, and how businesses of all shapes and sizes are struggling. Businesses might not be struggling as much as they were two or three years ago but they are now more than ever conscious of what they have in their bank accounts. Considering this, it might not be a surprise to you then to hear that businesses still like to save money whenever they can, who wouldn’t want to a few pounds when given a chance?
Well as businesses and entrepreneurs are searching every page of the internet in an effort to find the cheapest products, not only do they want the best deal, it seems that they are willing to do all the hard work to save a few pennies. Given that things are tight, businesses are buying goods online at cost, often without considering the next step; installation or assembly.
For those that are wise and shop a great deal, consideration needs to be taken over safe and secure installation. Take the catering equipment industry as an example; a buyer might buy a 6 burner oven from a reseller online at a fraction of the RRP. The buyer has the product dropped at their door, usually at any time of the day. Some buyers often forget that some “products” legally require gas safe engineers to install commercial catering equipment. Given that installation will usually cost an organisation money and time, it seems that some businesses have been ignoring the rules and going for the old DIY approach. Not only does self-installation potential shorten the products durability if done incorrectly, it is also extremely dangerous. Playing with gas, unless trained, is unadvisable as if an error occurs the building and the occupants could be in harms way from a potential explosion or even poisoning…. Not really what you need and not really worth the risk for the sake of a few pounds. So what’s your problem…..
Well, in an effort to deter “buyers” from self-installation online businesses should take it on themselves within their marketing and advertising to educate buyers on the dangers of self-installation. As well as advising them on how a product needs to be installed and who could help them install and or assemble the products.
Businesses on and offline are now more responsible than ever before on the actions of their customers after they have made a purchase. For every product that needs “legal” installation a commercial warning should or could be shown online pointing out the dangers. The Catering Equipment Distributors Association (CEDA) could do more to educate online buyers of the dangers of self-installation. Marketing safe products and installation online is not something that would deter buyers away from products. Catering Equipment companies that offer both installation and products online might not be the cheapest but they can ensure that an oven or boiler is installed safely. Looking for safe local catering equipment company is advisable when investing in new equipment that you are unfamiliar with
If more companies took it upon themselves to market “safety” before price we could see accidents in the workplace fall significantly. Questions could also be raised with buyer’s self-installing dishwashers, hot-counters and larger refrigeration. For those ignoring installation guides, errors that cause damage might not be covered through commercial insurances.