Does Your Web Designer Understand How to Get Your Products Specified?

I had an interesting discussion with a full-time architectural specifier this month. We discussed the website of an European manufacturer marketing their metal exterior panels in the US and Canada.

When we looked over the website together, it was difficult to find a US or Canadian contact - either phone or email.
There was no indication of which products on the website were available in the US and Canada.
There were no CSI-formatted specifications, CAD details or BIM objects we could find on the website.

The website we reviewed had no technical information that the specifier could compare to the other products in their existing office master specification. He was considering excluding this manufacturer in the project specification as he could not compare products. He was planning to remove the manufacturer from the office master for future projects.

Web designers are familiar with how to draw users from Google and how to support smart phones. Do they understand what is needed to make specification decisions?

Here is a laundry list (pdf) of information that should be available for each product on your website. Not every item is applicable for your products. Compare the information available in one of your earlier 3-ring binders to your current website.

[Added] Yes this laundry list was developed a long time ago - in December 2000. I spent an afternoon in an architect's office going through binders looking for what types of information could be put on a manufacturer's website. It is as applicable today as then.

As I was finishing this newsletter, I saw an ad for a CEU course. I was not familiar with this manufacturer's offering in this CSI section, and went to their website. I could not find any products that fit the CEU course. As I looked over their website, it was not easy to decide which products fit in which sections.

This is a great reason to have a page listing your products using MasterFormat or CSI numbers. Here is a great example one manufacturer has on their website.

Questions and suggestions are always appreciated.

Colin

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Colin Gilboy
Publisher - 4specs
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