Marketing is all about communicating a positive, healthy message about your brand and what your company does. As we read in Part 1 of this marketing guide, we should look to the big construction companies and learn from them.
Tier 1 contractors got their current standing through cunning but sincere use of communication streams to create a meaningful and memorable image that encouraged sales.
In Part 2, we look at other ways to communicate with your client base and influential people in the construction sector. All this communication aims to spread the message to those who need services that your company can be trusted to deliver.
5. Public Relations.
PR is the art of public relations: the business of developing meaningful connections and building the business’s brand and reputation in the construction field and beyond. There are many ways to communicate your positive message and ethos using PR, the prominent being advertising, media relations, and conferences.
Establishing relationships with journalists, a service a PR firm can provide to its clientele, contributes significantly to building exposure. Media outlets frequently reach out initially to those they know to get news ideas.
Building and nurturing a favourable company profile with effective PR enables your company to gain brand awareness among journalists and customers.
Once the foundations are in place, and your business has built a robust market profile, a PR company can help identify and champion broader, more abstract topics that act as distinctive and distinguishing features of your brand.
These could involve a cutting-edge product or solution that separates your business from competitors or a recently accomplished project – appealing themes journalists love to write about.
6. Events
Construction companies can use speaking events and conferences as an effective communication method to meet clients and fellow experts in the field. Events are an excellent opportunity for your business to get close to customers and show your natural, positive appeal.
You might want to mingle after the formal speaking events or enjoy taking questions from journalists and the public to promote your ideas and ethos.
Even handing out a business card has led to many strong relationships and lucrative deals. People want to see that your corporate brand has a human face. Send those representatives who are natural public speakers and good at outreach.
You don’t always have to organise these events yourself. Often, construction organisations such as the Construction Industry Council will have a roster of events it’s hosting.
You’d usually be expected to pay to attend. Some events even have stalls where you can display your latest products and talk to passers by about what you can do for them.
7. Continuing Professional Development.
Given that industries worldwide are continually developing, it is hard to exaggerate the value of Continuing Professional Development (CPD). CPD empowers people to reinforce and sharpen their core knowledge while mitigating gaps in their expertise.
CPD is compulsory for thousands of professionals across all sectors in the built environment. CPD enables professionals to remain at the forefront as an expert that is knowledgeable, proficient, and aware of emerging trends.
CPD has been a workhorse of construction sector education for many years and it is often necessary for chartered professionals to undertake continued CPD to maintain accredited status.
Since CPD is mandatory for chartered employees, it makes sense to provide courses that these people would love to attend. Such courses do two main things: they position you as a credible authority in your industry sector, and secondly, they encourage the brightest talent to join your firm.
There are many courses out there offered by some of the world’s leading companies, often in conjunction with a trade association. If you don’t think you’re your own audience reach merits a self-hosted course, look out for ways that you can partner with a trade association to put out a CPD course.
When you’re regarded as an educator in your industry, you have the leverage to secure bigger and better projects. Your expertise is sought in the world stage, guaranteeing you excellent advertising. Your brand becomes a byword for excellence and innovation.
8. Ebooks.
Producing an eBook offers some benefits compared to competing content streams. eBooks are especially suitable if you want to deliver additional information about what you do as a contractor.
At times, graphs or blog articles only address a subject in a limited way, so using an eBook to provide detailed coverage can be helpful. eBooks can also be easily e-mailed to other people or shared on social media. They’re also great for generating opt-ins to your weekly company e-mail.
Although eBooks aim to distribute information and not make a hard sell, it’s okay to insert a low-key Call To Action at a suitable juncture – typically near the end. This CTA might involve an e-mail or a telephone contact where readers can obtain additional details or opt-in to learning about your goods or services.
A complimentary eBook could help distinguish you from your rivals. In the Built Environment, there can often be the assumption that one blog article a week on the company website is enough content. Instead, you demonstrate that you care about your target market by releasing a free, high-quality eBook without direct payoff. This sense of empathy engenders confidence and, over time, builds brand awareness, which can translate into revenue growth.
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No matter your marketing strategies, you’ll only ever have real success if you continually keep the customer the main priority. Don’t just talk about the history of your business and how challenging it has been to build it up. Talk primarily about what you can do for the customer here and now.
What solution do you offer that people need? There are likely other companies out there offering that solution too. The critical move is to use the marketing tools we’ve discussed to distinguish yourself from your rivals. You want to be seen as better, more competent, and closer attuned to clients’ needs.
At Morton Waters, we help businesses do just that. Our marketing consultancy and content output positions you positively above your rivals through powerful, positive communication.
If you’re interested in finding out more about improving your positioning and marketing output, drop us an e-mail or give us a call.