Today’s post is a follow up to yesterday’s interview with Bethany Warner, Director of Marketing for America’s Floor Source. Yesterday, we learned a little about her business and today she talks about some of her personal favorites and trends.

Bethany, thanks again for taking the time to share your thoughts with us!

Shannon: What is your personal favorite type of flooring? Why?

Bethany: My favorite type is frieze carpet.  I love its comfort and style and the fact that it hides footprints and sweeper marks.   Another favorite is hand scraped hardwood.  The antiquity of the look is really appealing.  Armstrong’s Century Farm Collection is really quite nice.

What is your personal favorite product, currently? Why?

Bethany: It’s really hard to choose just one.

Shannon: What color trends do you see in your market?

Bethany: Neutral colors have always been popular in carpet.  They allow customer to change their room’s décor easily without having to completely replace the carpet.

Shannon: What product and color trends do you see in the future?

Bethany: I think the “green” products, which are gradually becoming more popular will continue to increase popularity.  Products like Costa Real and Skyline from Shaw have great green stories.

Shannon: What is the question most frequently asked by your customers?

Bethany: Our customers commonly ask care and maintenance questions.  Because customers are making an investment in their home with new flooring, they are interested in proper maintenance to keep their floors looking newer longer.  That is why we offer Warranty and Maintenance information at various places on our website.

Today’s post is part one of  dealer interview with Bethany Warner, Director of Marketing of America’s Floor Source where she talks a little bit about her company. Tomorrow’s post reveals some of Bethany’s personal favorites and her views on upcoming trends.

Bethany, thank you so much for taking the time to help our readers learn and understand more about your business!

Shannon: First, tell me a little about your business.

Bethany: America’s Floor Source began in the summer of 2000 in a small warehouse on the east side of Columbus, Ohio.  Since then, the company has grown to a 50,000 sq ft facility with a 14,000 sq ft showroom located near the Port Columbus International Airport.  Recently in the summer of 2009, America’s Floor Source opened operations in two other cities: Dayton/ Cincinnati, Ohio and Indianapolis, Indiana.

We have built our reputation and business on supplying homebuilders, homeowners, building superintendents, property managers, landlords and designers with a variety of flooring products, window treatments and area rugs.

America’s Floor Source sells, delivers and installs more than just flooring products.  We sell confidence.  We deliver professionalism.  And we install satisfaction.

Shannon: What sets your business apart from others in the industry?

Bethany: People: Professionalism, reliability and responsiveness are all characteristics of the people we employ.  Additionally, all of our sales people are career flooring professionals.  A few of us even grew up in the business. Price: We are confident that if you judge our prices and services against those of our competitors, you will always choose us.  That is why we never private label any of our products, allowing you to compare us apples-to-apples with anyone else in the industry. Service: Our commitment to service cannot be touched by our competitors.  For example, we have created a series of self-inspection tools that we use before, during, and after installation to ensure every job gets done correctly on time, the first time.  Another unique part of our service package is that we perform a moisture test before installation any hardwood floors.  If the moisture levels are too high, we notify superintendents immediately so the situation can be resolved prior to installation.  And once the floors are installed, we leave a bottle of the manufactures recommended floor cleaner at the home. Communication: We know that to best satisfy our customers, we need to constantly communicate.  That is why a real person answers our phones, and also why we give customers the cell phone number of their account manager.

Shannon: What product category is most popular for your customers?

Bethany: America’s Floor Source is comprised of five divisions at this time:  Homebuilder, Property Management, Commercial Construction, Wholesale, and Retail.  Because each of these customers has different needs, different products excel.

Shannon: If you could get one point across to flooring customers in your market or offer one piece of advice about purchasing flooring, what would it be?

Bethany: Take your time to choose the right selections for you and your home.  Most homeowners are in a hurry to make a change and make it quickly.  Keep in mind that what ever selection you choose, you have to live with for a while.

Shannon:What tool do you find most useful on your website?

Bethany: Customers love the virtual room designer.  It provides them with the opportunity to either use the pre-uploaded images or upload an image from their own home and view what carpet styles will look like in “real life.”  This helps customer’s too choose certain styles, textures, or patterns and eliminate flooring products they were considering before using the Virtual Room Designer.