In such a competitive industry, getting a few marketing basics right is essential for construction companies. We explore what these marketing basics are and how getting them in place will benefit your business and help to put you ahead of the competition.

Understand your customers

Before reaching out to potential customers, it’s important to know who they are. Be specific about who your customers are. Clear and detailed ‘customer personas’ or ‘profiles’ will help you understand who you are targeting and ensure that your marketing activities and messages make more impact. Think carefully about what your customers’ problems are and how you as a company can help solve them. For example, what specific issues do contractors have? What key information do installers need? Regular research into your customers’ product / service requirements and behaviour will help keep your customer personas up-to-date and ensure you meet their evolving needs in a timely fashion.

Manage the customer journey

Ensuring a new prospect becomes a firm customer means making sure you don’t miss opportunities. This includes countering objections or offer additional information at the right time. It is therefore important to understand your customer personas’ issues, questions, motivations and objections at each stage of the journey. Use this information to create content with the relevant calls-to-action for each stage.

One of the best ways to keep track of your dealings with prospects (phone conversations, emails, information sent, queries raised etc.) is via a good Customer Relationship Management system.

Know your Unique Selling Point

Construction firms that can identify what they do better than their competitors have a distinct advantage. Conduct some research among your existing customers to find out why it is they buy from you over your competitors. Is it to do with your product specifications? Delivery system? Customer service?

What is your Unique Selling Point?

Use online advertising

A well-targeted digital paid ad with a clear call-to-action is one of the most effective ways of getting your construction brand in front of your audience and directing them to your website. According to the Content Marketing Institute, 55% of B2B marketers report that search engine marketing (SEM) is their most effective paid advertising method. Make use of video to increase engagement.

Create useful content

Write content that:

• is niche to your target audience
• your customers will find useful and relevant
• will show how you can help solve your customers’ problems
• demonstrates your thought leadership in the construction industry

Distribute this content on the most relevant social media platforms – LinkedIn, Facebook etc. – and in your email marketing, one of the most effective ways to reach your audience. Analyse the results of your email campaigns and use A/B testing to help you refine future campaigns.

These are just some of the marketing basics you can build on to give you a competitive advantage.

If you’ve found this post useful, you might also like our free report ‘5 Steps to a Better Digital Marketing Strategy for Construction Companies’. Download the report here.