Brainstorming An Effective Marketing Strategy For Construction Companies

The construction industry is a competitive one. For a smaller, newer company it can sometimes feel like competing with with the ‘big boys’ – more established, larger firms – is something of an uphill struggle. However, with the right marketing strategy for construction companies, you can build a brand, establish a presence and reputation and compete on your own terms.

Determining the strengths of your team, and your processes is fundamental. Moreover, finding effective ways to showcase them is key to successful construction company marketing.

Your company’s website should serve as the heart of any marketing strategy for construction companies. As it is your ‘slice’ of Internet real estate, it needs to be constructed, and maintained with care. This is the place where all of your other marketing efforts should lead.

Rather than just being a static spot that shares you company contact details, and directions to your office – as construction company websites once were – in the 21st century yours needs to be a dynamic, informative web destination that showcases who you are and what you do best.

In terms of visuals taking the time to construct a speedy, visually attractive website is a must. But, you need even more than that. Your website needs to help you stand out. Here are just a few ways you can do that:

Go Beyond 2D

Consumers are primarily visual creatures, and they want to see what you can do. Sharing images and plans of past projects online is one way of doing that. But, what people are really interested in is what you can do for them.

This is where displaying 3D renderings and floor plans on your site can serve as one of your big advantages. Older, more established construction companies are often not as receptive to new digital technologies as startups and ‘younger’ firms. Furthermore, they have yet to embrace digital rendering in any way. You can get ‘ahead of the game’ by doing so.

That is not the only reason to make use of these visuals though. At proposal time, offering clients a clearer insight into your vision via 3D renderings helps them better envision what you will be able to do for them. Finally, you are far more likely to be able to persuade them to choose you over your competitors.

Showcase Your Team’s Collective Experience

While you may not have as much experience as a larger, better established firm it’s almost certain that the individual members of your team do. When creating your construction company website showcase each of them – and their experiences – individually. Relaying this information helps build trust and reputation with consumers. Furthermore, it can help put your team on a level playing field with companies that have been established far longer.

Take the Time to Share Your Expertise

When it is first suggested to them, many construction companies fail to see the advantages of maintaining a company blog. They are, after all, a construction firm, not a writer’s collective.

There are a number of reasons why you should establish a business blog and then update and maintain it with care. Firstly, a blog is an excellent way to get noticed by search engine bots. It’s important that when a potential customer executes a web search for the kinds of services you offer you appear high in those search results. More so, a blog is a great SEO (search engine optimization) tool to help you do that.

But that’s not all. By sharing your expertise, ideas, and even some basic ‘how tos’ you can establish your company as a reputable source of knowledge and information. In the end you are establishing your value and expertise even if you haven’t been around, as a company, for as long as some of your competitors.

Head Out into the Wider World (of the Internet)

Once you begin to establish your website as the central hub of your marketing strategy for construction companies, it is then time to start branching out to promote it. This also means your company – across the wider world of the web.

A social media marketing strategy for construction companies is an avenue that almost any company has to learn. Large or small, it is important to embrace it in the 21st century. It is, to be honest, going to take a while to establish your website as a place to head to directly. But, by going to where your prospects already are – social media sites – you can reach them directly. Finally, you can guide them back to your website.

What to post, how often to do it and how to build and engage a following can all be challenging issues to figure out. It takes some trial and error. But, a social media marketing strategy for construction companies does not have to be as hard as you might think.

Much of the material you need to promote your company you will find you already have. Those 3D renderings you commissioned? They will be perfect for sharing on visual heavy sites like Instagram and Facebook. Your blog posts? Excellent for sharing your expertise with your peers and colleagues on LinkedIn. If you need some help and guidance getting started resources like Search Engine Land and Moz can be a big help.

Leverage the Power of Reviews

Even in a digital world word of mouth remains one of the most powerful marketing tools. Foremost, a tool construction companies can leverage. That is a truth that hasn’t changed in decades. But, what has changed is the way people share their opinions about businesses and services.

These days people head to review sites to solicit the opinions of their peers when seeking all kinds of services. In terms of a marketing strategy for construction companies, some of the most important to be seen on – in a positive light – include: Yelp!, Google Business and Foursquare. You already have profiles there – you, do, go check, they are automatically created from map listings – so it up to you to take control of them and then encourage past customers to share their opinions there.