It's free -- who pays?

An increasing number of postings on the Design and Construction Network's discussion group are selling messages. If groups allow too many of these to dominate the board, real discussion dries up, and the group loses its relevance.

One of the great challenges in the online world is that access is both free and easy. This means the conventional barriers to the wide distribution of mediocrity or irritation are greatly reduced, so much that appears on line is less than inspired.

We build our own filters to keep this junk out of our lives. Spamblocks stop much of the stuff, and our common sense causes us to quickly hit "delete" to the garbage that still gets through.

Online forums and newsgroups have similar challenges. There appears to be a critical mass beyond which things go really wrong, unless you build in some seemingly heavy-handed controls.

With too little traffic and engagement, there isn't enough critical mass to create dialogue, conversation and real online communities. But after a certain threshold occurs, the spammers and (for want of a better word) proto-spammers take over.

Spammers produce the obvious garbage, with auto-generated crap spewed out in huge volume with the hope that only a little will stick.

Proto-spammers are spammers at heart, without the volume. They are generally not-very-good salespeople, who think that putting out a "free advertisement" (sometimes thinly disguised as an information article) will produce useful results. Just like spam, or irritating telemarketing, or annoying canvassers knocking on doors, a certain number will respond to "selling" posts so, if you do it often enough, you may get some return.

Trouble is, as soon as that type of posting takes over the online forum or group, regular readers who might actually can buy something, usually run for the hills, and the group dies a painful death.

How do you solve this problem? I see two possible solutions.

Set moderators and rules. You need people to stand guard and keep the crap out. Volunteers can develop a code of conduct, a set of rules, and guidelines. If something is wrong, they can kill it. In some cases, they have their own private closed forums to discuss sensitive issues. In large sites, you can even build in an appeal/review process, to allow people who may be inadvertently (or maliciously) screened out a second chance.

Charge a (small) fee. In some cases, the best way to impose the discipline is to charge a small fee. Craigs List is an example. It is the absolutely most effective place to advertise help wanted offers in cities where it charges a small fee. The $25.00 is far less expensive than the conventional job board fees of several hundred dollars, and the quality of responses is excellent. Without the fee, however, multi-level marketers, "home business opportunities" and other scams and dubious employment offers drive out anyone who would actually be interested in a real employment opportunity (or offering one).

Overwhelming choices (and opportuniites)

A little less than three years ago, when I began publishing this blog, I set out to find other AEC industry bloggers with the intent of providing free link-backs to their sites (and to credit them with being first.) I found a few localized initiatives, but (to my surprise) seemed to have the space mostly to myself.

Meanwhile, social networking groups like linkedin.com were starting to gain traction,but again few knew about them -- and I recall writing my first SMPS Marketer article on the topic and "connecting" with some SMPS leaders who hadn't heard (or knew little) about these resources. (SMPS: Society for Marketing Professional Services, the association for AEC marketers.)

Today, a quick look at this blog's sidebar provides just a slight clue to the number and range of online options for online construction marketing information and relationships. In fact, the choices here may seem overwhelming, with more options and choices available each week. I'm doing my best to keep up, but I'm not starting from scratch. How should you handle things if you aren't already established in the online space?

The answer to this question has two parts. You need to look at things from the framework of obtaining construction marketing information, and, separately, executing your own construction marketing strategies.

Obtaining information
If you spend all day and all night surfing around the Internet you may find some gems, but you won't do much for your own business. Ultimately, you need to select a few key places to connect.

I've expressed some biases in my sidebar -- these aren't entirely fair, as some really good blogs and resources are 'buried' in the long list of hyperlinks, but the ones I've chosen consistently provide useful information (and I selectively visit a few favorites outside this list, and report on them in regular blog postings.)

You should of course supplement these resources with specific trade and local information sources. Eventually, I think you will have a prioritization system somewhat similar to mine -- you'll routinely check five or six key places, and have a larger list where you visit from time to time.

Obtaining marketing results
Here things require more work, thought, and planning (and some speed!) If your goal is to use online resources to promote and develop your own business, you will need to decide which resources to use, and how to give them priority.

You can blog, contribute to social networking sites and forums, build a content-rich website, and use e-mail marketing, all melded to help out with your search engine rankings. Your goal is to make it easy for potential clients to find your business and, when they do, to be predisposed to doing business with you because you convey the impression and values they are seeking.

Of course, some businesses will provide these services to you for a fee. You need to be wary of promises and claims from unsolicited spam, of course, but you are probably safe if you land on a business which has obtained a free link in my blog's sidebar. (We offer a specific publicity/media development service relevant for businesses with annual sales volumes of greater than $250,000 to $500,000, but other services can help out with smaller enterprises.)

You can also do a lot for yourself and you will have to do some things without much help (unless you want to spend a fortune). Much Internet marketing and relationship building requires your material to express your own personality; you can't easily hand this off to a third-party agency, or junior employee who needs to go to you for permission anytime he or she wishes to say anything.

From a marketing perspective, there is still some good news. In many locations and trades, you can still be "first to market" and obtain the advantage of online marketing leadership. But you don't need to reinvent the wheel. Look at works elsewhere, and what you enjoy doing, and you will likely succeed.

Online marketing: Asking the trust questions

Perhaps with the previous blog posting in mind, I mucked into the debate on contractortalk.com when an Ohio-based vendor started the thread
"Internet Marketing And Advertising For Offline Business".

The original poster, Matt Shields, and I have communicated by email. He says (despite my assertions in the thread) that he hasn't used Frank Kern's materials, but cites some other gurus who live in the space of long email promo pages with various devices to get you to sign onto their online info programs. (Shields first appears in my life when he comments on the thread I started reporting on my visit last fall to Columbus, Ohio, to see canvassing first hand. But we've not met yet in person.)

Out of his page, I discerned a lead selling program, which he denies is his actual service -- I just can't quite figure out what it is just yet. This raises the fundamental issue of transparency and trust.

Ironically, as the thread progressed, someone else offering a similar-style Internet marketing scheme popped up, offering a service for HVAC contractors.

Here, I'm scratching my head a little. Maybe these approaches really work and my failure here is in not following up and getting the online marketing religion.

If so, I should have a really solid e-book, lengthy 'squeeze pages' (or whatever), and videos showing me, dressed casually, to set up a sequence of communications via auto responder emails using one of the services the gurus recommend.

Then, I could sell that online marketing course that got me into the "idiot" trouble.

I dunno. Is my alternative approach, listening and understanding the values, issues, and needs of contractors, especially the leaders of relevant contracting associations, and maybe seeing them in person when possible, a better model? (See next posting.)

I can't be sure right now. This blog and my e-letter have generated some profitable business when people call and ask, and our new online publication will soon appear built from relationships developed in both the online and off-line spaces.

My guess is the best approach is to learn something from the online experts but apply it in a much more natural manner, reflecting your own business style and model. But maybe the canned stuff really works.

The online era

The latest issue of Triangle/Triad Construction News in North Carolina. You can view this publication online at http://www.triangleconstructionnews.com or http://www.triadconstructionnews.com.

At our special meeting yesterday, we decided to focus attention on online publishing. The combination of versatility and effectiveness, and much lower distribution costs, makes this a no-brainer for improving the product while reducing costs.

Online service yudu.com has solve the problem of putting the publications online. There are several other page turning services out there, but I've found all of them to be astoundingly overpriced for an online service -- yudu.com's basic service is free and its enhanced offer, which we will soon purchase, is only a few hundred dollars annually.

You can see our online editions by visiting the relevant publications' websites -- for example, Ottawa Construction News is at http://www.ottawaconstructionnews.com and Charlotte Construction News in North Carolina is at http://www.charlotteconstructionnews.com.

When you go online, you'll notice that hyperlinks and email addresses in editorial and advertisements are set so you can click right through to the relevant websites or email addresses -- an obvious advantage to advertisers. With the enhanced yudu.com version, we will also be able to import video ads and make other revisions to the pages; creating a new multi-media package.

We won't stop the print publications just yet, but I expect the migration to an online business model is imminent.

(In our cost cutting meeting, we decided, however, not to reduce our allocations and resources for editorial quality -- savings on freelancer fees will be offset by my own efforts and harder work.)

How to connect your marketing pieces for success

Robb Graham and Jessica Rowan at the first SMPS Ontario T3 (Third Thursday) networking event in Toronto. How can SMPS chapters attract more participation at events? Tim Klabunde in Washington, DC offers some ideas in his Cofebuz Blog.

Three interesting posts on the blogs I monitor closely demonstrate the challenges and opportunities in construction marketing.

In the first, Tim Klabunde answers a question from a fellow SMPS chapter co-ordinator trying to get more people out to local chapter meetings. He says the most effective approaches are building on word of mouth, and "viral marketing". The latter approach worked for the Design and Construction Network, an initiative founded on online sources such as linkedin.com. "I have not yet been able to make it happen for our SMPS lunch programs," he writes. More effective, in this case, is encouraging and enhancing word-of-mouth promotion.

Instead of just sending out blast e-mails about an event (which you should still do) build a group of people that are responsible to invite people during the course of regular conversations. So, if you send an e-mail to a friend that might benefit from attending ask if they are going to be at the program and let them know that you are going to be there.

Meanwhile, Michael Stone reported that while attendance overall at the Journal of Light Construction conference held up well despite the recession-induced stress in the housing market, he says he was surprised that few younger contractors attended the event.

JLC Shows have an interesting mix of attendees, with younger business owners (20’s and 30’s), as well as those in their 40’s, 50’s, 60’s and even beyond. This show had a serious lack of business owners in their 20’s and 30’s. I have been a speaker at JLC Live shows for many years now, and this was by far the oldest group of attendees that I have seen.

So the question begs to be asked, “Why?” Let me offer my theories, and I’d like to hear yours.

Many older business owners have been through one or more of the housing downturns that we are now experiencing. They even remember the last really tough market, the late 70’s and early 80’s, with mortgage rates in the teens and twenties. They know from experience that we always come out of these downturns and move on to better things, more business, a brighter future. When things are slow, they know that investing in their education will pay off in the long run.

For many young business owners, it is their first business setback or downturn. They have never experienced a lack of phone calls and business, especially when the market was so easy so recently. Many are pushing the panic button and giving their work away, and are working on the jobs themselves. They associate activity with accomplishment. They don’t have time to visit a trade show, they have too much to do.

Stone, of course, says this is unwise. When times get tough, you need to get out and learn how to run your business more effectively. He's right, to a degree. But when the wolf is at your door, and you don't have experience otherwise (and lack capital), you might find it strange to spend time away from clients and spend money on hotels and attendance fees for a conference.

Finally, look at Mel Lester's posting in his E-Quip blog:

As many of you know, I’ve long maintained that superior client service is the best differentiation strategy in our industry. Last week I stumbled across still more evidence to support my claim. The consulting firm Morrissey Goodale recently published the A/E Industry Customer Service Report Card which summarizes their survey of project owners.

Notable in the report is the paucity of high marks for several key service areas. Following are some highlights from the report:

Only 16% of clients gave their A/E service providers an A grade for overall satisfaction. A fourth of respondents gave firms they worked with a C. Sixty percent gave their firms a grade of B.

The lowest scores were largely related to the direct interaction with the client. Only 14% of firms got an A for communications. Project managers received the highest score only 12% of the time. Project management earned the lowest score of all--7%.

When you pull together the threads from these blogs, you can come up with some interesting observations and clues about how to be more successful with your construction industry marketing.

1. Nothing beats interaction and communication with your clients and prospects. You can do this at conferences and events (Stone, as a consultant, is right to be at the JLC conference, but if you are building business within your markets, I would advocate you attend conferences where your clients are attending, more than your peers.) You can also connect by email, or supplement emails and phone conversations, depending on the nature of your relationship and situation. (Someone who had communicated with us on Internet forums sent an email to me yesterday, I responded with a phone call, and obtained some valuable business from that conversation.)
2. Your biggest marketing "hits" and "wow" success stories have an aspect of unpredictability about them. Tim Klabunde could not have known ahead of time how the Design and Construction Network would catch on, online. I certainly didn't expect that the postings on "Change order boat" would result in more Google searches to this blog other than the obvious Construction Marketing topic.
3. However, in assessing the unpredictability of really successful marketing events, you can learn from others' experience and of course ride the wave when it happens. Media publicity, like viral marketing, can achieve dramatic and surprising results, but there are ways to encourage and manage them. While you have to be careful about budgeting for a hit, you certainly can respond effectively and if appropriate stoke the fires.
4. Finally, you are most likely to be successful if you apply several complementary approaches at the same time. The Design and Construction Network Happy Hour marketing in part achieved viral status because rarely can online interactions lead to face-to-face communication in short order. Likewise, this blog and other online resources allow me to maintain relationships with current, former, and future clients in an unobtrusive environment -- the key is to make closer, more personal and immediate connections when appropriate. (And of course the blog and reference to other bloggers enhances lateral relationships -- the fellow bloggers have their own networks, influence, and connections, so the circle grows wider even as marketing depth and effectiveness increases.)

How can you tie these thought threads together? Most importantly, connect with your clients. Use a variety of complementary resources and marketing methods. You'll achieve success, both slowly and incrementally, and then, suddenly, you may find you have a marketing hit on your hands.

Marketing: Question and answer

The question:

Hi Mark,

I'm a big fan of your writing. It has proved invaluable as a resource to me and the company I work for. Thing is, I'm kind of at a standstill right now. I work for a company that fabricates steel framing - floors, walls and trusses, and we've been pretty prevalent in the industry to the point where we are now considered one of the (if not the) market leaders in Ontario.

When I joined the company two years ago, we were running at about $2.5mil turnover, which now has been increased to over $5mil through E-mail newsletters, improved product literature, architect/engineer visits, press releases and trade shows among other efforts. I have literally had no budget for this - it was approved on a case-by-case basis. My boss does not agree with print marketing, nor does he feel that trade shows bring us much in terms of exposure to new potential clients, so we've ceased those.

I'm constantly racking my brains for promotional ideas that are cost-free (or at least minimal cost) and give us maximum exposure, but as sales coordinator too, I have to balance my time. Should I just demand a budget from my boss, or plough on? I'm obviously doing something right, but I feel that forward momentum will be finite if we carry on under these circumstances. I also feel that my own progress is being hampered somewhat. We've just moved into a new facility which has obviously compromised working capital to a degree, but the resources are there, I'm sure of it. Is my boss being cheap? What can I do?

Thanks for any help, feel free to publish (minus the name) if you think there is any mileage in it.

My answer:

You are doing much right here, and so is your boss. At this scale of business, however, a marketing plan and budget are appropriate and rational. You may wish to draw up your own budget/plan. Keep it simple -- one or two pages max, with target objectives, (lead conversion etc) and reasoning. Does your business have an organized planning/meeting cycle? If so, you can rationally include this into that process. (If it doesn't and you are flying by the seat of your pants, I wish I could offer more support but that it is outside of my power/mandate!)

Your boss is probably right about print media, even though my business continues to earn 99 per cent of its revenue from print advertising! The reason we succeed is because of our relationship-centric approach. Your business, based in Ontario, may be highly suitable for a special supplier-supported feature. It won't cost you (or your boss) a cent, and while we will encourage your suppliers to support the initiative, they will be treated with respect. As you may know, this blog in fact started as a client service initiative. the resulting feature becomes a really useful link off your website, and attachment to relevant emails -- in these contexts, print converted to online is both effective and economical. And you won't need budget approvals.

Nevertheless, print media and trade shows can be very expensive. One manufacturer told me a couple of years ago, that he couldn't measure any lead generation from expensive glossy architectural magazines, and his cost per lead for trade shows was about $75.00. He said he was shocked when he tried online lead generation methods, such as AEC Daily, and discovered his true cost per lead dropped by an order of magnitude, to $7.50. He got these results b doing some sponsored advertising/section referrals from that website -- I'm not pushing it or recommending it to you carelessly; I've not used this site/service myself, nor have I validated these numbers with more recent results. But you can see that some of the verticals for AEC marketing online may be helpful and useful, and, yes, you will need a small budget to develop them.

Finally, check with your boss and which trade associations you belong to. Most of them have some marketing resources and services, and you may be able to connect with (non competitive) peers to gather ideas and insights. While it may be a budget stretcher to attend relevant conferences, I've found some relationships developed this way have been exceptionally profitable for my business. But you can also connect by phone and video link if necessary and that is less expensive. I hope as a marketer you are also engaged with trade associations at your client level; I know of few ways to more effectively develop relationships and widen your influence. Again, you'll need some budget resources here and your boss will need some patience; it can take a while for the relationships to fully mature into business trust -- but when things happen and go right, the payback is immense. (I'm still amazed how much business I've received in the past few months either by receiving or sending a few phone calls or emails from these association connections).

If you have construction marketing questions, please feel free to email me at buckshon@cnrgp.com or phone 888-432-3555 ext 224.

Old and new marketing

The story behind this old roller ad is not clear, but the message is undeniable -- business-to-business advertising for construction products and services is nothing new; the question is whether the professionalism and effectiveness is there.

Tomorrow and Friday, I'll be attending the Future of Online Advertising Conference in New York City and will probably (assuming that wireless Internet is readily available at the conference center) blog several times during the conference.

How will I apply the insights at this conference to our own business? Here, the answer is less clear. At our planning meeting yesterday, we budgeted some money for website rebuilding and design, but put these expenses forward in the fiscal year -- in other words, while the improvements are important, we decided they can wait a while. This is partly because our business still collects more than 90 per cent of its revenue the old-fashioned-way, and partly because we don't want to rush carelessly into changes that just make things worse.

The consensus at the meeting is this blog and my bi-weekly electronic newsletter give us some windows to the future and should continue and be enhanced; and we will also engage in consulting services (low-cost) to rethink our website appearance, design and functionality. We also agreed that online advertising is truly beginning to change processes and practices especially where immediate response is expected or required.

Nevertheless, while I doubt I'll make immediate changes in our business after the conference Thursday and Friday, I'm sure I will have a much better grasp of the issues and concerns that we need to understand better.