June has brought us some record breaking weather. It probably hasn’t brought record breaking sales, but all that sunshine certainly hasn’t done our industry any harm. And the season is a long way from over.

You might be surprised to know that June 2017 has been one of the wettest on record.

On the other hand, that mid-month warm spell provided us with the hottest June day – 34.5 DegC at Heathrow – since the legendary summer of ’76 and the fifth warmest June ever recorded for the UK as a whole.

Long term weather forecasts are about as un-reliable as political forecasting seems to be but the weather for the rest of the summer looks to be mixed and unsettled with the South of the country looking forward to the better weather.

But from a business point of view, it feels as if that hot, dry spell just got people thinking about pools and spas and products of all kinds, but particularly consumables, have been flying out of the doors.

Solar powered, as ever.

The sun seems to power the industry. It’s also the driving force behind some of the biggest growth products in the industry right now.

DEL cover systems have always been one of our best sellers, whether that’s a whole new slatted cover system or replacement slats for an existing installation. DEL slats have been available in a crystal polycarbonate option for solar gain for some time now and we are seeing that choice becoming more and more popular.

People are staring to realise that, when it comes to energy saving, every little gain adds up.

One of product ranges that can show a significant saving on energy bills are the Duratech heat pumps. We have just added to that range with the new Dura Pro which can reach extremely high coefficients of performance meaning that it can perform well in the British winter, never mind the British summer.

The Dura Pro also features DuraLink connectivity that allows it to be monitored and controlled by a suitable mobile device.

No time to lose.

When people want to swim, they want to swim. They want their pool to be ready and waiting for them and one of the best ways to ensure that is to invest in an automated water treatment system.

A few months ago we launched Crystal.

There’s been a clear growth in demand for automatic pool dosing systems, but it’s not always been the easiest opportunity for the industry to respond to and that’s why we developed Crystal.

The appeals of automatic dosing for owners are crystal clear, saving time on testing, avoiding dosage mistakes and ensuring clean, clear water.

Crystal provides a simple solution that allows pool companies such as yourselves to offer automatic dosing without carrying the cost of extra staff, specialist knowledge and the resources required.

You can find out more about Crystal here.

School’s out.

I’m never sure that it really feels like summer until the school’s break up.

Down here in Devon that means that the holidaymakers arrive and there is twice as much traffic on the roads. But that’s all just part of the season and part of the fun.

With hotel pools and saunas, but these days particularly with hot tubs in holiday rental accommodation, this summer will give lots of people either their first taste of what wet leisure has to offer or a reminder of the fun of splashing, swimming and soaking in sparkling clear water.

Summer is the time that people decide to treat themselves to a spa or upgrade their existing model.

It’s while people are swimming in their pool this summer that they will be talking about plans to refurbish that pool.

Yes, summer is a busy time of year for all of us but it’s important to find and make time for marketing so that next year is even busier. A newsletter, flyer or email that your customer receives on a sunny summers day is perhaps more likely to motivate them to invest in their pool than one that drops through the door on a cold and rainy morning.

Holiday snaps.

Things look better in the summer sun.

Pictures of the projects that you have been involved in are vitally important to all sorts of marketing, whether it’s a gallery on your website or an update or post on social media.

Now might be the time to contact a few of your customers and ask if you can take a few pictures. It shows your proud of the work you have done, gives you a chance to stay in touch and perhaps ask them if there is anything more that you can do for them.

And for most people, the idea of their pool or spa being splashed over the Internet as an icon of style will have a definite appeal.

Bucket and spade.

So now that I have hopefully added to your summer workload, let me wish you all the very best for the rest of the season.

Let’s dig in and work hard, and let’s enjoy doing it as well. I think I’m lucky to work in this industry, and I hope you do too.

And of course, once again, if there is anything I or anyone at #TeamGC can do to help, you should just get in touch.