HCN introduces Product Central
Edgenet, in partnership with Home Channel News, has announced the new name of the HCN buyers guide, HCN "Product Central," along with a new offer for suppliers and vendors to list an unlimited number of residential building products and accessories on the site for as little as $200 per month.
“Product Central” instantly connects users online, at no charge, to the industry’s most comprehensive product database. The service is accessible via homechannelnews.com, the industry’s No. 1 business Web site with more than 98,000 unique visitors per month. Since it launched this past April, the service has helped thousands of retailers and pro dealers efficiently search for building products, tools and hardware to stock in their stores and lumberyards.
“Product Central” is the simplest and most effective marketplace today for any supplier, regardless of size, to showcase its products in front of today’s top retailers. Normally this would take an army of salespeople hoping to present the right product at the right time. It is this simple: If a supplier could fill a football stadium with active buyers, actively seeking what they sell, wouldn’t they? “We view Product Central as a ‘Why wouldn’t I?’ value proposition for suppliers,” said John Sullivan, VP marketing for Edgenet. “This is a major opportunity for Edgenet customers to expand their product reach immediately, while we dedicate ourselves to finding and delivering more value.”
The new name was among more than 300 entries submitted to the “ReName Game,” a contest sponsored by HCN and its development partner, Edgenet, in October to solicit suggestions from site users. Sid Hines of Jeld-Wen submitted the winning entry, and was awarded a Nintendo Wii game system for his creativity and effort.
"We were excited by the response to our renaming contest and delighted by the result," said HCN editor in chief Ken Clark. "The new name, ‘Product Central,’ clearly communicates the focus and utility of this exclusive resource."
“Product Central” features the widest assortment of product information available in the building materials and home improvement industry, from the widest variety of suppliers. The site provides access to rich content, including images of more than 100,000 products from more than 2,000 suppliers.
In conjunction with the new name, Home Channel News expects its new low-cost, unlimited-listing offer to attract hundreds of new suppliers with thousands of products to participate in “Product Central.”
“As a cross-section of the home channel marketplace, 'Product Central' is an exceptional platform for cost-effective promotion and generating leads,” said Home Channel News national sales manager Jim Reynolds. “Now, for just $200-a-month, suppliers and vendors can list as many products as they wish on the site, and take advantage of our high user traffic of qualified retail buyers to engage retail buyers and generate leads.”