The Monday Morning Building Product Advisor
​Issue #99

I know how frustrating it is out there for product reps like you right now.

You’re doing everything “right.” You’re making the calls. You’re dropping off the binders. You’re sending the follow-up emails just to “touch base.” […even though we both know you hate typing that phrase as much as I hated reading it…]

And still… silence.

It’s like you’re trying to push a mountain. Or, to use a better analogy for today’s topic, it’s like you’re in a rowboat, trying to steer a cruise ship by pushing on its side. You’re burning yourself out, and the ship isn’t moving an inch.

I’ve been on the other side of that glass wall for a long time.

And I can tell you, it’s not that architects don’t want to talk to you. It’s a project’s momentum (deadlines, liability, and 100s of decisions by 5:00) that means you can’t move us by force.

But there is a way to turn the ship.

Ironically, the secret comes from one of our own: the late architect R. Buckminster Fuller (the "geodesic dome guy").

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But the funny thing is…

…I didn’t learn about it until last week. And it was from “The Dude” from The Big Lebowski.

Well, actually, it was the actor, Jeff Bridges, who mentioned it on the Smartless podcast. He was their guest, and, among other things, they were talking about influencers.

[Sidenote: I love the Smartless podcast. I highly recommend it for fun and learning random, interesting things like this one…]

Anyway, “The Dude” said Bucky Fuller used the trim tab on a ship as a great analogy. It shows how any of us can influence the masses. So, it led me down a rabbit hole to learn more, which led to today’s newsletter.

Apparently, Bucky was obsessed with the physics of large vessels.

He couldn’t get over the fact that a tiny human pilot could steer the 80,000-ton Queen Mary with ease. He knew you couldn’t just muscle the rudder. The water pressure is too intense; it would snap the mechanism. So, engineers invented the trim tab.

It’s a relatively tiny, seemingly insignificant flap on the trailing edge of the rudder. When the pilot wants to turn left, they don’t fight the rudder. They move that little trim tab to the right.

It creates a miniature vacuum, or a low-pressure zone, along the edge. And because nature hates a vacuum, the ocean rushes in and pulls the massive rudder into place.

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The ship turns effortlessly.

Fuller even had “Call Me Trimtab” chiseled on his gravestone. He understood a key idea: you don’t change a complex system by pushing it. You change it by creating a vacuum in the exact right spot.

So… looking back at my career to this point, I’ve realized the reps who win me & my colleagues over aren’t the “rudders.” They're the trimtabs.

Most reps try to be the rudder. They try to turn the principal or the lead designer with a big, flashy pitch. They push features. They push lunches.

But when you push me? I brace myself.

My entire job is risk management. I’m terrified of a leaking building envelope or a code violation that could haunt me for 10 years. When you push a new product, what I see is risk.

The “Trimtab Reps,” the ones I actually call back, do the opposite. They create a vacuum.

They know that if they show me a gap in my specs, or a code change I hadn’t caught yet, I’d feel a sudden, sharp need to fill that gap. I don’t run from them; I pull them into the project to save me.

I want you to stop burning yourself out trying to push the Queen Mary. Here is how you can find the trim tab instead.

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The “Insider” Framework

(Or: How to get into the spec without me realizing you sold me anything)

1. Stop chasing the “leading edge” (find the “trailing edge”)

In engineering, the trim tab sits at the very back… the trailing edge. In a firm, the “Leading Edge” is the Principal or lead designer. They’re the face of the project, but they rarely write the spec.

The Trailing Edge is the person buried in the drawings.

• The Target: The Junior Architect, the Project Architect, or the Spec Writer.
• The Insider Reality: Sometimes I’m the PM, and sometimes I’m the PA. In my past role as a Project Manager on large projects, I usually couldn’t research new flashing details. Neither did the lead designers or principals. We relied on our team. If you help my Junior Architect or the detailers with a flashing issue, we’ll add that sucker to the drawing set. Once it’s in the drawings, it’s ”law.” You’ve steered the ship without me even needing a meeting.

2. Create an “Anxiety Vacuum” (The Pull)

Don’t pitch me your product’s “benefits.” I don’t care about benefits; I care about sleeping at night.

Do this instead: Identify a risk I haven’t thought of.

• Bad approach: ”Our windows are high-performance!” [C’mon! …everyone says that.]
• Trimtab approach: ”Hey, did you see the new energy code update for thermal bridging in Zone 5? A lot of standard details won’t pass anymore. I have a PDF that shows how to fix it.”

You just opened a knowledge gap. A vacuum. I have to click that PDF because I’m scared of non-compliance. Now, you’re not selling features & benefits… You’re saving me from a future headache.

3. The “Or Equal” Defense

This is one of my biggest headaches. […and it might be one of yours too…]

I’ll spend months choosing a product, only to have the contractor swap it for a cheaper one. All because I have to write “or equal” in the specs.

Here’s what you can do: Don’t ask me to sole-spec you (I often can’t). Instead, help me write the Performance Requirements.

• Give me the bullet points of the ASTM tests your product passes that the cheap stuff fails. Or hasn’t been tested for.
• I’ll put those in the spec. Technically, it’s an “open” spec. But practically? You’re the only one who can meet the standard. You’ve given me a weapon to defend my design quality.

4. The Micro-Turn (Patience)

A ship that turns too fast capsizes. A rep who asks for the sale on the first call gets blocked.

Do this: Ask for a micro-commitment.

• “Can I review your standard window detail for air sealing?”
• “Do you want a physical sample for the library?”
• “Should I send this CEU to your PM?”

Each “yes” is a tiny degree of a turn. It builds the one thing that matters more than price: Trust.

Stop pushing. Start steering.

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🔔 RESOURCE ALERT: Want a cheatsheet for this? Just REPLY with, “Please send me the Trimtab Influencer cheatsheet.” And I’ll send it over shortly.

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That's it for this week!

Cheers to building more than just buildings, and see you next week,

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Neil Sutton
​Architect | Speaker | The Product Rep Coach

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P.S. It's not too late! If you're interested in the Pre-Meeting Research System, I'm planning to launch it soon. So, when I release it, it'll still have a great price for those who grab it early!

​Click here to join the waitlist so you're the first to know once Pre-Meeting Research System goes live. ​

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