NHFA gears up for Oct. 15 launch of Homefurnishings.com

Will give free Web sites to retailers as trial

Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, October 6, 2009

HIGH POINT — The National Home Furnishings Assn. will launch its Homefurnishings.com Web portal Oct. 15, and expects all of its retailer members will be on board in one form or another.

A screen grab shows the NHFA’s new Homefurnishings.com Web portal, which will launch Oct. 15. The blank spaces are for future advertising.

At a press conference here Monday, officials said the NHFA is giving most of its 1,900 retailers with 3,700 stores free but limited Web pages linked to the portal as a trial through the end of the year. These will include a store's logo, address, phone numbers and hours.

NHFA essentially is migrating the micro-Web sites it created for members for the World Market Center's "Is it Home yet?" national marketing campaign to the NHFA HomeFurnishing.com platform. There were 40 or so members who opted out of the WMC-funded campaign, which started last month, but NHFA is encouraging them to connect to HomeFurnishing.com.

Some members already have committed to the program as paying participants. Their sites will have added functions with copy- and image-rich pages and other features, including the Homefurnishings.com certified retailer logo.

Karin Mayfield, NHFA senior director industry promotions, couldn't immediately say how many retailers have signed up for the full program. But she said by the end of October, NHFA expects to have 50 to 70 companies on board with some 200 to 300 stores, with micro-sites for each of those stores. Officials hope those numbers will jump to about 350 retailers with about 1,000 stores by the end of the year - in time for Homefurnishings.com's first major marketing push to consumers.

Among the large retailers who have signed on are Salt Lake City-based-R.C. Willey Home Furnishings, San Diego-based Jerome's, Fairborn, Ohio-based Morris Home Furnishings and Rotmans Furniture of Worcester, Mass.

"The reception and level of commitment by our membership to this exciting, all-industry promotion program and consumer Web portal has been rewarding," said NHFA Chairman Doug Kays.

"We are confident that we have compelling content and a sustainable revenue model that will enable us to invest in industry promotion at higher and higher levels over time. Our not-for profit service mission ensures our members, suppliers and advertisers that their investment in our program will be maximized," Kays said.

NHFA has said that the cost to retailers for a paid site is on a per-store basis and will vary by size, but estimated that a retailer doing $2 million in annual sales would pay about $2,400 to $2,600 a year. It also will seek industry supplier participation, starting with free micro-site trial offer for NHFA supplier-sponsor members later this year.

It expects to fund an initial $2 million budget for the program by the end of this year.

In the works for 18 months, Homefurnishings.com aims to educate consumers, elevate the perceived value of the industry's products and drive those educated consumers into member retailer stores.

The main Web portal will launch with some 900 images and at least 125-consumer-oriented articles on decorating, buying furniture, color trends and other topics. The content will be updated regularly and grow to an estimated 300 articles by the end of the year, said Trisha McBride Ferguson, Homefurnishings.com editor-in-chief.

Consumer interest and feedback will play a big role in planning the editorial calendar, she said.

Eventually, Homefurnishings.com will have a multi-pronged marketing that included advertising in shelter publications, targeted online banner ads, Google Ad Words buys and social networking, officials said.

To celebrate the launch, NHFA is conducting an "Inspired Living" Sweepstakes, offering consumers a chance to win a $5,000 home furnishing shopping spree when they visit Homefurnishings.com. It runs Oct. 15 through Dec. 31, with a drawing Jan. 15.

During the High Point Market, NHFA will offer live demos of the program at its Retailer Resource Center on the first Floor of Plaza Suites. The demos are scheduled for Oct. 17-19 at 12:45 p.m. and during an NHFA reception Oct. 17 from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. Retailers attending will receive a $25 gift certificate - one per company - to the NHFA store.

Retailer can also set up appointment for private demos with NHFA's Dianne Therry by e-mailing her at dtherry@Homefurnishings.com or calling (800) 888-9590, ext. 6126.

Ron Carpenter, president of Strategic Marketing Solutions and NHFA's consultant on the HomeFurnishing.com program, said one of the biggest hurdles the organization has faced in marketing the program to retailers is getting members to carve out time to learn more about the program and benefits. However, once it does get in front of them, he said, NHFA is seeing a 70% signup ratio.

More High Point Market October 2009 Coverage