Historically the competitive nature of lumber marketing has probably contributed to a reluctance in sharing day-to-day trading information among competitors. At the same time, most would acknowledge there are few secrets left in lumber distribution aimed at guarding “proprietary processes”.  That is, creating value around variables such as solidifying existing relationships, reaffirming integrity, enhancing performance. This information age is changing all that. So says Jay Baer, marketing consultant, self-described “hype-free social media and content strategist” and author of the New York Times bestseller Youtility. He cites the five reasons why you need to give away the recipe for your secret sauce:

1. Your competition already has the formula
2. Admit it, your sauce is just Thousand Island Dressing
3. Your prospective customers want self-serve information
4. Free content filters out the crappy clients
5. Your customers are being trained to expect the recipe.

In this age of instantaneous information, Baer has a point when he says “There are only so many ways to skin a cat, and everyone in your competitive set is carrying the same set of knives.”

“I started my career as a sales guy in the nineties, when the funnel was controlled by the sales rep who had all the information the prospect wanted, including pricing and discount options. Now 90 per cent of it has swung to marketing. It’s self-service and you need to be very, very helpful to see to the top of the funnel. The game has changed a lot.”
– Brian Halligan, HubSpot

“The difference between helping and selling is just two letters. But those two letters are critically important to the success of business today. Youtility is marketing so useful, people would pay for it. It’s a new marketing model for the age of information overload.”
– Jay Baer