Discover the sheer value of digital marketing in the construction industry, from leveraging automation to enhancing branding and more.
While digital marketing holds different values for different industries, there are arguably no industries that don’t benefit from it. It’s rightly a staple of the digital age, helping modernize and augment traditional marketing strategies. In many cases, it can also specifically cater to the unique, inherent, or persistent challenges of select sectors or industries. Such is the case for the construction industry in B2B and market-focused B2T settings. To illustrate this, let us explore the demonstrable value of digital marketing in the construction industry.
Construction industry challenges
Given the global pandemic, the construction industry does face immense challenges – as Deloitte notes. Our audiences are likely well aware of them, so here we may briefly outline the three main ones:
Supply chain disruptions. In the second half of 2020, supply chain vulnerabilities started appearing. While some stabilization has come, there has been no full recovery to pre-pandemic levels.
Sourcing challenges. In turn, supply shortages persist, accompanied by price inflations and delivery delays. In combination, “supply chain disruptions and volatility are expected to be among the biggest challenges in 2022.”
Labor shortages. Finally, like other industries, construction struggles with labor shortages and a lack of qualified candidates.
Still, InEight’s Global Capital Projects Outlook finds general, if cautious, optimism among North American capital project and construction professionals:
Digital transformation does seem to drive much of this optimism, as Construction Dive reports. Most (95%) of surveyed professionals are willing to embrace digital tools and digitization. And yet, despite the intent, the groundwork for it is scarce:
“Despite the hunger for digital transformation, construction lags behind other industries. Only 15% of respondents have implemented a digital transformation strategy, and 38% of respondents said that they haven’t built out a strategy or that it’s not a priority[.]”
Marketing challenges
In this context, digital marketing could unveil new opportunities and reinvigorate the industry. Yet, as we’ve covered before, digital marketing in the construction industry faces distinct challenges of its own. A lack of in-house talent, given little skillset overlap, lagging applications of automation, and other factors are persistently present.
In addition, the industry does not generally lend itself to content marketing to the degree others do. The complexity of its offers, coupled with less exciting visuals to elevate marketing, necessarily hold it back. The scrutiny of B2B decision-makers also leaves little room for emotionally-driven, bombastic marketing, which would perform in B2C settings.
The value of digital marketing in the construction industry
Nonetheless, digital marketing does begin to see considerable use in the construction industry. It can’t directly help overcome hands-on challenges like supply chain disruptions, of course, but it can offer sustainability through operation optimizations, enhanced marketing reach, and so on. It can do so in many ways by ultimately driving revenue, but four specific applications deserve due note.
#1 Leveraging automation and increasing traffic
Perhaps most notably, digital marketing entails considerable marketing automation. This comes with an array of inherent benefits, including the universal boon of effectively growing one’s customer base. In fact, among the four key benefits of marketing automation Pedalix identifies, three directly address this need – allowing construction marketers to boost efficiency with this asset in hand:
Unfortunately, only 1 in 5 marketers are using marketing automation tools to their fullest. This is due to a few different barriers, including lack of training and resources, lack of budget, and slow onboarding. Still, the sheer benefit as regards time efficiency and valuable lead generation alone should make automation a worthy goal.
These aside, marketing automation lends itself perfectly to optimizing email marketing, social media management, and paid ads, making for a broader holistic improvement to marketing reach. Although most B2B marketers will rightly rely more on targeted marketing, as we’ll cover below, few would solely rely on it – if any. Indeed, they will rightly find less value in marketing to broader audiences, but there’s value in it nonetheless. SEO and content marketing will at all times help generate and acquire leads, which no marketer should overlook.
#2 Augmenting traditional marketing
For that matter, there is ample room for digital marketing in the construction industry as regards expanding marketing channels. It’s very common for the industry to rely more on hands-on, traditional marketing, and outbound marketing tactics. This will, of course, vary, but a degree of need for digitalization seems evident in the research above.
In this regard, construction marketers can combine traditional and digital, instead of needlessly leaning on one excessively. They can, for example, continue to attend networking events and offer business cards, but they can also incorporate business information into email signatures. They can maintain outbound marketing spendings, such as billboards and print ads, but also invest in inbound marketing like SEO and PPC to give audiences agency and entice them visually. The power of video is well-established, even in the industry’s uniquely demanding B2B marketing settings.
#3 Solidifying and humanizing a brand
As a product of the above and a standalone benefit, digital marketing also helps construction marketers’ branding efforts. Branding is not a B2C endeavor, as it directly enhances customer trust – which B2B self-evidently thrives on.
In this regard, digital marketing offers a wealth of platforms, channels, and content forms for marketers to solidify branding truly. It directly enhances some of the most substantive brand image factors and signals, as Oberlo identifies them:
Authenticity
Recognition
First impressions
Transparency
Values alignment
Among them, brand consistency is particularly notable, as they also find it directly enhances revenue:
It’s no exaggeration to say that brand consistency is among the most crucial trust signals in B2B settings. Construction marketers can use digital marketing to stand out among their peers and build trust with key prospects. How they choose to do so will naturally vary, but brand consistency should be a staple quality in their efforts.
#4 Targeted B2B marketing
Finally, where the above might find universal appeal, targeted B2B marketing is likely uniquely appealing to the industry. Construction marketers typically target specific decision-makers as marketing prospects, which traditional marketing can only achieve with limited efficiency. It’s in this regard that digital marketing can truly shine, especially through its social media subset.
Indeed, social media platforms are undeniably effective B2B marketing tools. As we’ve covered in the past, LinkedIn has become a B2B juggernaut, in no small part due to its built-in targeting tools. It allows marketers to focus on specific audiences, including ones in key companies and positions, crafting ideal, information-rich customer journeys. Facebook does so as well, cementing the value of digital marketing in the construction industry, as the two platforms, in combination, can drastically expand one’s potential audience.
Conclusion
In closing, there is demonstrable value in digital marketing in the construction industry. It is not a panacea for all of the industry’s persisting challenges, nor is it effortless. It is, however, an invaluable asset in times of “cautious optimism.” Combining the above advantages, it can help marketers tap into vast new audiences, solidify branding, and attract valuable B2B prospects. And with enormous, ever-expanding applications for automation, it can do so with notable convenience – a welcome perk for an industry that embraces it somewhat slowly and reservedly.
Manufacturing Day takes place on the first Friday of every October and this year it’s October 7th. National Manufacturing Day helps show the reality of modern manufacturing careers by encouraging thousands of companies and educational institutions around the nation to open their doors to students, parents, teachers and community leaders.
To celebrate, some manufacturers host in-person events in order to address labor shortages in the industry and inspire a new generation.
Currently, manufacturers are seeking to fill 4 million jobs over the next decade.
Manufacturing Day helps to bring manufacturers together and shine a spotlight on manufacturing careers.
CLEVELAND –September 2022 – Sonnhalter, a communications firm marketing to the professional tradesman in the construction, industrial and MRO markets, partnered with Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity for a 13th year during its annual Sonnhalter Tool Drive, which ran the entire month of August and collected $41,500 worth of donations of tools and building materials. Since Sonnhalter began its efforts in 2010, it has collected $378,000 in donations.
Organizations, businesses and residents were encouraged to donate new and gently used tools, as well as building materials, furniture and appliances, to Sonnhalter to help benefit Habitat for Humanity’s cause of eliminating substandard housing and homelessness.
“Our 13th Annual Sonnhalter Tool Drive proved to be very lucky, as we raised $41,500 for the Habitat for Humanity cause—the most we’ve raised to date,” said Matt Sonnhalter, Vision Architect at Sonnhalter. “We continue to be inspired and humbled by the generosity of our clients, partners and community members for their continued support in helping Sonnhalter raise nearly $378,000 for this great cause.”
“Every year, we look forward to the arrival of the donations that have resulted from the Sonnhalter Tool Drive,” said John Habat, president/CEO of the Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity. “Sonnhalter’s Tool Drive helps to bring awareness to areas we have no access to and provides us tools to work on our houses, in our tool shop, and to be sold to the general public.”
Community participants in the 13th Annual Sonnhalter Tool Drive included Berea Recreation Center, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Berea Branch, Fear’s Confections, Frangos Group, Rising Star Coffee Roasters, St. Mary of the Falls, Skidmark Garage, The Wine Spot and many individuals living in the community.
Trade industry participants in the 13th Annual Sonnhalter Tool Drive included Buyers Products, Bill Boyadjis (Endeavor Business Media), General Pipe Cleaners, Jergens, Inc., Kapro, Lakeside Supply, Ledlenser USA, Mortar Net Solutions, NIBCO, Samsel Supply, Sutton Industrial, Winter Equipment, Wolff Bros. Supply, Woodhill Supply and Wright.
All of the donations that Sonnhalter collected benefited Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity. The donated items will be used for Habitat for Humanity projects or will be sold at one of the organization’s ReStores, recycled building materials and home furnishings stores. Proceeds from the ReStore sales are used to help Habitat build and rehabilitate homes for those in need.
About Sonnhalter
Established in 1976, Sonnhalter is the leading B2T marketing communications firm to companies that target professional tradesmen in construction, industrial and MRO markets. Sonnhalter is located in the historic Brownell Building in the heart of downtown Cleveland. Sonnhalter’s brand identity highlights its expertise in marketing to the professional tradesmen. Its tagline, “Not Afraid To Get Our Hands Dirty,” promotes the employees’ willingness to roll up their sleeves and dig deep into clients’ businesses, also, it refers to the market it targets: the tradesmen who work with – and dirty – their hands every day. Sonnhalter developed the acronym “B2T,” which stands for “business-to-tradesmen” to capture the essence of its specialty. For more information, visit the company website at Sonnhalter.com.
About Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity
Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity engages people of all faiths to eliminate substandard housing. Cleveland Habitat was founded as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 1987. Since then, Cleveland Habitat has brought together community members, volunteers and sponsor groups to help more than 300 Habitat homeowners, including more than 1,000 children, have a safe and decent place to live. For more information on Great Cleveland Habitat for Humanity, visit: https://www.clevelandhabitat.org/.
Differentiating your product or brand boils down to two simple questions. 1) What are your customer’s needs and buying criteria? And, 2) which of these can your product/brand own?
Most marketers and strategists do a good job on Step 1: They generally know their customer’s needs and buying criteria—the set of capabilities, brand traits, and outcomes that drive purchase decisions. This is the right first step. It identifies many key factors that influence vendor selection. But that initial list can be misleading and lack actionability. Here’s why.
Competitors hold an advantage on some of the dimensions important to customers and it will be challenging and costly to compete on those criteria.
Some of the customer’s most important buying criteria are threshold conditions and you cannot differentiate on table-stakes requirements.
According to recent research from Brightcove and Ascend2, 88% of B2B buyers have watched videos to learn about a company’s products or services in the last three months.
Over the last couple of years, video content has become increasingly popular and it’s very easy to see why. B2B buyers can see information quickly and with people’s short attention spans, videos are perfect for businesses. 70% of B2B buyers say that video beats other content formats in creating awareness of business-related problems compared to research reports, webinars, infographics, blog posts, e-books and white papers.
You might be thinking, “why is video so important to my customers”? Well 40% of people find video helpful to learn how to solve a problem, 36% of people use videos to hear other people’s opinions on products and 32% use it to learn more about the organization.
When looking at videos to solve a problem or learn, more users will look for reviews, demos, brand story videos, customer testimonials and more. Video enables buyers to visually connect a product or service offering to their needs in an easily digestible and efficient way.
For building trust among your customers, you want to create meaningful relationships while delivering a personalized experience. Videos are a great way to build that trust with your audience and allow them to learn more information about your business. Keep in mind that video quality matters to your audience, 44% of buyers say that video quality matters as they navigate through their buying journey. So, if you have a video with low quality, buyers can easily make assumptions about your brand and products.
B2B buyers find video to helpful in sharing information to others who may be interested.
How is your company using video in its marketing efforts?
Donate extra inventory, demo models, tools and building materials that are no longer needed, during the month of August to support Habitat for Humanity.
CLEVELAND – July 2022 – Sonnhalter, a communications firm marketing to the professional tradesman in the construction, industrial and MRO markets, is partnering with Habitat for Humanity again for its Thirteenth Annual Sonnhalter Tool Drive. In the past decade, Sonnhalter has raised more than $336,000 worth in donations for the organization.
From Monday, August 1 to Wednesday, August 31, organizations, businesses and manufacturers are encouraged to donate extra inventory, demo models, tools and building materials to the Sonnhalter Tool Drive to benefit Cleveland Habitat’s mission of building homes and empowering families through safe and affordable home ownership.
“We never imagined when we started the Tool Drive in 2010, that we would be heading into our thirteenth year of partnership with the Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity,” said Matt Sonnhalter, vision architect at Sonnhalter. “We are once again counting on the generosity of our clients and business colleagues, as well as businesses, to clean out their extra inventory, overstocked materials and demo models, and donate to this very worthy cause. We’re hoping our thirteenth year is the luckiest yet, as we attempt to exceed the donations of past years.”
The Sonnhalter Tool Drive strives to engage businesses and organizations to look through warehouses for extra inventory and overstocked tools or items.
Cleveland Habitat has helped more than 300 Habitat homeowners, including more than 1,000 children, have a safe and decent place to live. The donated items will be used for Habitat for Humanity projects or will be sold at the organization’s ReStore, discount home improvement stores with two locations in Cuyahoga County. Proceeds from ReStore sales are used to help Habitat build and rehabilitate homes for those in need.
Tools and materials can be shipped to Attn: Tool Drive, Sonnhalter, 1320 Sumner Ave., Suite 200, Cleveland, Ohio 44115. For information on how you can participate in the Sonnhalter Tool Drive, or to coordinate larger shipments, i.e., pallet size, please contact Rosemarie Ascherl-Lenhard from Sonnhalter at 216.242.0420 x130 or [email protected]. To make a monetary donation, please make checks payable to “Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity” and mail to Sonnhalter, 1320 Sumner Ave., Suite 200, Cleveland, Ohio 44115.
Established in 1976, Sonnhalter is the leading B2T marketing communications firm to companies that target professional tradesmen in construction, industrial and MRO markets. Sonnhalter is located in the historic Brownell Building in the heart of downtown Cleveland. Sonnhalter’s brand identity highlights its expertise in marketing to the professional tradesmen. Its tagline, “Not Afraid To Get Our Hands Dirty,” promotes the employees’ willingness to roll up their sleeves and dig deep into clients’ businesses, also, it refers to the market it targets: the tradesmen who work with – and dirty – their hands every day. Sonnhalter developed the acronym “B2T,” which stands for “business-to-tradesmen” to capture the essence of its specialty. For more information, visit the company website at Sonnhalter.com.
About Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity
Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity engages people of all faiths to eliminate substandard housing. Cleveland Habitat was founded as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 1987. Since then, Cleveland Habitat has brought together community members, volunteers and sponsor groups to help more than 300 Habitat homeowners, including more than 1,000 children, have a safe and decent place to live. For more information on Great Cleveland Habitat for Humanity, visit: https://www.clevelandhabitat.org/.
alter to help benefit Habitat for Humanity’s cause of eliminating substandard housing and homelessness.
