Social media apps such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn have been around long enough that the contractor community has figured out how to make them a vital part of successful marketing strategies. There are best practices for making these tools hum and generate leads and increase sales. At the same time, we’ve been introduced to a whole new batch of apps that need figuring out. Pinterest, Instagram and Houzz are offering even more options. What works? What doesn’t?
We turned to the experts at the Construction Marketing Association (CMA) for their guidance on who is doing what and how it’s working. For the last four years, CMA has done a survey among its members to determine the extent of social media usage. More than 96 percent of the respondents from the 2013 survey said they employ social media. The simple reason for such a high result is that it works.
Neil Brown, executive director of CMA, identifies several reasons for considering social media:
- There is evidence for its success that extends beyond the early adopters to all types and sizes of companies.
- Social networks have analytics that allow users to measure performance.
- When implemented correctly, social media impacts search authority.
- Social media is a relatively low-cost marketing alternative.
- Social media can support critical business functions such as customer service, warranty work and publicity.
Your Market: BtoC vs. BtoB
(Charts are from the Construction Marketing Association Survey. 2013) |
Social Media Usage |
Not all social media networks are for everyone, and a lot of the breakdown falls along market divisions. Contractors who serve primarily homeowners in the business-to-consumer (BtoC) segment will employ different applications than those who serve building owners or general contractors in the business-tobusiness (BtoB) market. For example, a metal roofing contractor offering roof replacement services is trying to get homeowners interested in his products and services and may turn to Facebook as a social media platform. But Facebook does not serve the BtoB market nearly as well as LinkedIn, so that same contractor working on the commercial side is going to want to reach out to business owners through LinkedIn.
“I really think you have to segment the market,” Brown says. “And if it’s commercial, maybe some of these upstarts like Houzz are not going to be very relevant. But for residential or remodeling, Houzz is squarely focused on that. Some people call it the Pinterest for the design and remodeling industry.” Brown points to LinkedIn as the driving force of the BtoB social media market.
 |
Social Media Types |
Your Strategy: Thought Leadership
Just employing social media sites does not ensure an increase in traffic, though. Contractors need a strategy that will help them attract prospects and build trust between customer and provider. In this case, it’s all about thought leadership and showcasing you and your company’s knowledge and leadership.
Brown recommends picking a specific topic and showcasing your expertise in that area. Don’t make the topic too broad or you will be bumping up against others all the time. But if you can find a topic that isn’t covered well, then you can establish yourself as the expert on it. Consider, for example, the difference between writing about metal building systems as a broad topic and the specifics of writing about metal building systems within the retail market. The second may match your niche and allow you to establish a stronger expertise.
“If you want to own a topic, encircle it with multiple digital content articles and amplify it with social media,” Brown says. Most experts recommend using a blog as the core of your content marketing strategy. Post two or three blog entries a week, then use that content throughout your social media network. In a way, the social media sites become publishing platforms that allow you to broadcast your expertise.
Brown cautions about blogging. “A rule of thumb is you’re invisible until you have 50 posts,” he says. “If you’re only posting once a week, it takes a whole year. But if you post twice a week, it only takes half a year. There is a direct correlation between frequency and traffic. In our process, we like to blog frequently then blast the blog content through social media.”
The main goal for all your posting is to drive traffic to your website. Thought leadership and educating your audience can help deliver a prospect to your site who is pre-disposed to accepting your message and inclined to want to work with you compared to your competition.
“We control the message with blog content that we’ve thought through,” Brown says.
 |
Social Media Effectiveness |
Your Publishing Network: Facebook, LinkedIn and the Rest
Once your message is established, you need to identify the right publishing platform to broadcast it. “The neat thing about social networks,” Brown says, “is they’re all free.”
But which one? Better yet, which ones? The CMA recommends establishing a presence on five to six social networks. For the BtoB market, LinkedIn is the clear leader, but a grouping that includes Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and Google+ can help you reach a broad audience.
The fear for many users is the amount of work that represents. How, they wonder, do you have time to spend posting on all those sites? The good news is that aggregating programs such as Hootsuite can automatically generate your content across all the sites. And most programs are linked to other programs to make posting simpler and more effective.
Your original content that you published on a blog may be a white paper or case study or just a simple blog entry. That can quickly be spread across the group of social network outlets with simple automation programs. This mechanism allows you to focus on creating quality content rather than worrying about publishing.
 |
Social Media Ineffectiveness |
Your Success: Analytics Show the Results
None of this effort matters if you haven’t tracked the results to determine what works and doesn’t work. The great thing about digital marketing is that you know where to spend your effort. If your Twitter feed only sends three prospects to your website a month while your YouTube channel is delivering 100, you know that increasing your use of video is a good investment.
————————————————————————————————————————–
Sidebar: The Big 6
The Construction Marketing Association identifies the six big players in the social media market. Here they are with some of their features.
Facebook: Good for the BtoC market. Can publish status updates, create a specific business page and engage a larger community through likes and shares. Allows for good photo sharing, creating online events and advertising.
LinkedIn: Make individual profiles that establish your experience and knowledge. Business pages can be customized and help drive traffic to website. Groups provide readymade communities that allow users to showcase expertise and engage prospects.
YouTube: Video is always great for engaging an audience. Tagging videos delivers strong search engine results, and they can be embedded in other social networks such as Facebook and blogs.
Twitter: Post quick status update with links to other content to drive traffic. Simple publishing system. Use hash tags to create consolidated posts in one topic. Retweet others to place yourself as a locus of valued information.
Google+: Great for establishing local network, but not as strong overall as Facebook. Can post updates and integrate with Google Places, YouTube and Google Hangouts.
Instagram: Create a profile, allowing you to showcase photos of your work. Hashtags provide a structure and sharing pictures creates interest and hooks the audience.
————————————————————————————————————————–
Sidebar: Top 10 Tips for Social Media
Social media marketing, with its huge variety of sites and large promises, can be an intimidating venture. The Construction Marketing Association provides 10 tips to help you get started and keep on track.
1. Research social media marketing best practices.
2. Develop a social media plan supported by competitive benchmarking and critical analysis of your own search engine optimization (SEO).
3. Establish profiles on the big five or six networks (Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+).
4. If possible, deploy a thought-leadership and search-optimized blog that integrates with the above profiles.
5. Research and develop a content marketing plan and calendar for blogs and social media.
6. Train your staff and partners on social sharing and engagement.
7. Integrate with email, public relations, events, launches, SEO and other traditional marketing programs.
8. Employ offers, calls-to-action, landing/ registration pages in all social media networks to maximize lead generation.
9. Continue to build profiles, create ongoing posts, update profile designs and evaluate new social media opportunities.
10. Measure results via analytics, registrations and social measurement tools, which you can communicate throughout the organization.
