Starting point for providing education on DIY jobs is a certain amount of interest within the target group. Our recent survey indicates that the youngsters (age 18-34) are very much interested in learning these DIY skills. This interest offers opportunities to the DIY sector, providing that the knowledge will be available through multiple channels. These are some of the results of the European Home Improvement Monitor Q4 2018 report, zooming in on “Do-it-yourself versus Do-it-for-me”. The results are based on 6,282 online interviews with consumers in eleven European countries.
Great interest in learning DIY skills among youngsters
The European DIY consumers clearly have interest in learning more DIY skills. From the group youngsters (aged 18-34) who are generally the starters on the housing market, 85% is open to learning more DIY skills. Half of this group is interested in general, the other half only is interested when it is relevant to them. If we compare these percentages with the older generation we notice significant differences. Among the 55+ group more than a third is not interested at all. Furthermore, within the group youngsters there’s just as much interest among men and women to learn DIY skills. Though their interest is at the same level, they do differ in the type of skills they want to learn. The men are relatively more interested in learning about constructive DIY jobs while the women are highly interested in learning more decorative skills.
Learn skills via multiple channels
To learn these skills multiple channels are demanded. Zooming in on the youngsters, the channels from which they prefer to gain knowledge vary from online videos, in-person assistance from a relative or professional to reading articles and attending workshops. This tells DIY retailers and manufacturers that they should offer their content via multiple channels. The advantage is that other age groups have similar preferences when it comes to learning DIY skills. Just as with the youngsters, the online videos are mentioned the most among the age group 55+.
Conclusion
Due to the aging society in Europe, the share of home improvement jobs in which a professional will be involved is expected to rise. To keep home improvement affordable to the general consumer it is important that younger generations will take on the home improvement jobs themselves. For this reason, it is crucial that they will be supported in the right way. There definitely is a high interest among consumers to learn these skills. The challenge is to offer the consumers the content which they need in various formats and through multiple channels. The DIY retailers and manufacturers who are able to offer this content to the consumer, will tap into their customer journey in the purchasing and installation phase. Which means offering this content should lead to more sales opportunities.
About the European Home Improvement Monitor
The European Home Improvement Monitor is a study of USP Marketing Consultancy, which surveyed 26,400 home improvement consumers in eleven European countries (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden and UK.) Every quarter, a report will be published each time with a different theme. Themes like Segmentation of consumers, Online Purchases, Love Brands, Multi-year developments are examples of this. The report provides insight in key insights like DIY vs. DIFM, the share of online purchases per product category and a specific product category.
About USP Marketing Consultancy
USP Marketing Consultancy is a leading international market research agency that is specialized in the construction, installation and DIY sector for over 25 years. USP Marketing Consultancy works for internationally renowned companies, such as AkzoNobel, Philips, Grohe, Forbo, etc. Our clients often have pan-European questions about their brand awareness, customer journeys, market opportunities, e-commerce trends and other research needs. USP Marketing Consultancy delivers the insights to make decisions and acts as a marketing advisor for its clients.
