For a long time, most businesses have relied on conventional marketing strategies such as word of mouth or signage to make their presence known. However, in the last decade, tremendous changes have seen the development of multiple marketing strategies. The recent pandemic brought a whole new perspective to the business world, with most businesses having to reimagine how they conduct business to remain relevant. This also meant that businesses have to employ new marketing strategies to keep up with the competition.

One of the industries that were greatly affected by the pandemic was the construction industry. Like many other businesses, this industry has seen players explore the digital scene for better opportunities to find new customers and develop marketing strategies. This is partly influenced by the increase in internet use, with most people preferring to source their services from digitally recognized firms. This article is focused on some of the digital marketing strategies that builders and contractors can employ.

Building Your Website

Digital marketing cannot start without having an online presence. The first step to creating an online presence is building a website. As stated before, people rely on online reviews to decide on which firm to do business with. This means any potential lead looking to contract the services of your company will look you up on Google. You need to have the best landing page on your website to convince the lead to read more about you and go over your offers.

Your website should be the first lead-generating machine for your company. It would be best to develop and design a website with content that can generate traffic. Visitors to your website provide valuable information used for targeted marketing, allowing you to increase your conversion rates. Optimize your website to fit both mobile and desktop devices. With more people relying on their smartphones and portable devices, you may want to make your site mobile optimized. This is because people tend to search more on their mobile devices than on desktop devices.

When building a website, you need to carry out the entire process with your customers in mind. Be sure to incorporate a user-friendly interface. This means making it easy for site visitors to find information.

Email Marketing

Email marketing is one of the most effective digital marketing strategies for both small and medium-sized businesses. Email marketing can go a long way in helping you grow your customer base, nurture existing prospects and maintain a relationship with your current customers. Email campaigns are a good way of staying in touch with current and potential clients. Periodic email blast allows you to keep builders and contractors updated on new projects, latest company news, special offerings, and even remind them of your brand's existence.

You need to come up with content that caters to builders and contractors in different niches. An example is sending your contacts a weekly or monthly newsletter that provides information on business development, new listing, and construction estimate. You can also use this opportunity to send targeted emails to specific builders based on their individual data. This way, you can boost your conversion rates and even boost revenue by bringing in contractors who are willing to work with you.

Your content should be well researched and engaging with timely delivery for the best results. You can also include incentives such as bonuses to first-come clients. Using email marketing is also a good way of keeping tabs on your engagement. This way, you can gain insight into your marketing strategy to see if the campaign delivers results and is responding positively. There are several email management tools that can help you manage and streamline your communication flaws. Be sure to discuss with your marketing team which tools are the best.

Content Marketing

Content strategy involves the use of content to create brand awareness and establish a relationship between you and your target audience. This content is usually in the form of blog posts, articles, graphic designs images, and educational media posts. With several options to choose from, most construction companies prefer articles, blog posts, and infographics to market themselves. However, any of the above mentioned, when properly structured, can deliver results.

According to research, several businesses have adopted content marketing as one of their marketing strategies. Your construction company can position itself as a leading figure in the industry with expert knowledge through content marketing. This is also an opportunity to provide both current and potential clients with current information in the industry. It's also wise to mention your position, values, and mission when designing your content.

If you are new to content marketing, it's best to start with short articles discussing aspects of your construction on your website. Your content creators can even post content on relevant industry publications. Information is power, and nothing helps build your brand other than establishing a reliable source reputation.

Paid Search and Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing is arguably the fastest growing industry in digital marketing, with the highest return on investment. Social media platforms and search engines search as Google provides the best targeting tools for builders and contractors. These platforms provide companies with an opportunity to run ads that appear on user's feeds and search results. These platforms come with ad targeting that allows you to narrow down on specific people to send the ads. Targeted ads can be sent based on user location, preferences, income, or even their industry.

Paid search and social media marketing are increasingly becoming popular due to their ability to provide extreme precision. It makes more sense to reach out to builders within your service area through geotargeting. This helps you establish a presence within your geographical area, giving you a chance to interact with contractors you can work with.

Once you have narrowed it down to your service area, you can segment your target audience based on age, property, income, and income. This strategy allows you to identify potential builders who are likely to work with you. This strategy has proven effective for smaller construction businesses looking to gain a foothold in the industry.

Webinars and Digital Events

As stated before, the recent pandemic has greatly affected how businesses conduct their daily programs. This has even affected seminars and events. However, businesses can still organize their seminars and events, with a difference in location. You can explore digital platforms where you can host webinars and events. Through these events, you can relay valuable information concerning the industry to the attendees.

When organizing a webinar, you can go for topics such as construction site safety measures, building laws, and construction materials. Be sure to present on the topic, for roughly an hour, to other industry players and potential clients. This is also a good way of establishing your brand as a reliable source of information. Something that is considered priceless in the construction industry.

Digital events and webinars are also a good way of finding new prospects. Once you're done with the presentation, you can use the attendance list to get emails from individuals interested in the industry or those who are likely to show interest in what your company is offering. Your marketing team can also record the webinar and share the video as part of your content marketing strategy. Make sure the videos and invitations to the digital events are easily accessible to your target audience.

Search Engine Optimization

SEO is probably the most important fact to take into account when it comes to digital marketing. Search engine optimization involves boosting your rankings on search results and making your brand visible to potential clients. One of the best ways to increase your rankings on Google is by working on developing and designing an excellent website. Your marketers and IT department should also work together to optimize your search engine results. SEO strategies are time-consuming and daunting. However, the long-term results are worth every minute and money invested.

Appearing on the first page of a search result, such as a Construction Company near me, can do well to increase your brand awareness and even bring in new traffic. To enjoy the benefits of SEO, you have to create an account with Google. This account helps to feature your business on Google listings. Google boasts of more than 3.5 billion searches every day. Having access to this traffic gives you access to a wide pool of builders and contractors.

Search engine optimization works best when combined with marketing strategies search as content marketing. You need to focus on the content you post on your website. These include images, infographics, articles, videos, vlogs, and podcasts. Keep in mind that for this strategy to work, you need to develop high-quality content that can be graded and displayed by Google. It would be best to contract the services of a professional SEO agency to help come up with the best strategies for your campaign.

Videos

Today, most people rely on YouTube videos to learn one or two skills. This trend has catapulted the platform to become the second largest search engine after Google. Posting videos on YouTube and other platforms can be a good way of boosting your online presence and even increasing your visibility. Videos provide you with a unique opportunity to get personal with your audience, showcase some of your previous works and even answer some of the questions frequently asked in the industry. Showing your previous works can help convince builders to join your team.

You can design your video content to show different aspects of your business. Here are a few options you may want to consider:

Showcase videos- get a professional videographer to record some of the current construction projects. It would help if you also showcased some of the completed buildings.

Testimonial videos- let the happy testimonies of contractors you have worked with act as your referrals. You can showcase interviews with builders. This helps to encourage more contractors and builders to join your team, increasing your conversion rate.

About videos- this is where you get personal with your audience. Use this opportunity to talk about yourself, your company, and your staff. Remember to mention some of the company values and what sets you aside from your competition.

Service videos- in these videos, talk about the services you are looking for from builders. Some of the services and skills you may be after may be clear to you. However, you need to narrow it down to some of the specific sets of skills you are looking for in a builder.

Live Chat and Chatbots

Digital marketing is fast adopting the use of live chats, and Chatbots complement other online strategies. These two strategies have become the popular choice for digital customer support. Live chats give clients and lead access to company reps, who are well equipped and knowledgeable to answer any questions they may ask about the company's products and services. Chatbots, on the other hand, have proven to be even more useful. They collect frequently asked questions on behalf of a visitor to pass them on when a company rep is available. Some companies have gone a step further to invest in powerful AI-powered Chatbots capable of handling some of the questions posed by customers.

Chatbots and live chats are designed to answer some of the questions and even ask relevant questions. Through this, you can find builders and contractors who can work with you on your project.

Digital marketing is the new marketing approach. Some of the benefits of these strategies are instant, while others take time to present themselves. However, digital marketing has one of the highest returns of investment. It is not enough to implement these strategies. It would be best if you equipped your team with all the necessary tools to maximize the potential of digital marketing. Some of these tools include analytical tools, content creation, segmentation tools, and many others. These tools vary from one company to another. Consult with your marketing team on the appropriate tools based on your specific needs.