Geography, history and construction marketing

When you spend a day in a place like Florence Italy (after some time in Istanbul/Constantinople) you become aware of how big and how small the world is. I'm sure these feelings will magnify tomorrow as I head to Zimbabwe.

Of course it is unlikely you will have reason to provide your services in any of these countries.  While the architectural, engineering and construction community is truly international, most designers and contractors work within rather narrow geographical areas.  Sure, some multinational companies bid on huge jobs and consortiums link international firms with local businesses -- and some services, especially in the design area -- can be outsourced.  However, the costs and complexities of serving diverse international markets scare off most but the well-organized and capitalized businesses.

Yet geography and history certainly play a role in business and construction marketing, even at the local level.  As I crossed through tourist sections of central Florence, I could see how merchants congregated in groups, with the most expensive, high ticket items sold in the most concentrated natural marketing point:  A central, historical bridge.  (The idea of using bridges for retail commerce hasn't caught on much in Canada or the U.S. but it works well in Europe an Turkey where pedestrians funnel through small areas -- and bridges act as perfect funnels.)

History undoubtedly is important as well.  Traditions, values, stories, memories and even the geographical landscape of the communities we serve are often influenced by decisions made long ago.  Knowing something about these decisions can be important, even if it is to be aware of potential archaeological dig issues.  (Under-water ancient artifacts have gummed up a rapid transit tunnel in Istanbul.)

We live in the present, in our actual location, but we live in a world shaped by events in the past, in a diversity of locations.  No marketer should dwell too much on distant things -- but every construction marketer should be aware of the bigger picture of history and geography, and the possible consequences of distant decisions on current realities.

Consumer ratings services, tourism and construction marketing

In Istanbul's spice market:  No Yelp here

We made our way today to Florence, Italy, from Istanbul.  An "old" (actually opened in 1997) hotel in an old neighbourhood, but it doesn't seem quite as old as our place in Istanbul.  Of course, even though Italy has centuries of history, it can't quite beat that of a place formerly known as Constantinople.

Nevertheless, most of our "stay" decisions have been made with Tripadvisor.com, a consumer rating system for tourist destinations around the world.  Tripadvisor's power of course is the ability of real people to describe their experiences and rate them -- the more positive ratings by the more enthusiastic guests, the higher the tourist site ranks.

I'm quite sure some operators try to game the system but the biggest problem could be the concept of consistency -- that is, if many people rate a place highly, even if someone has a less-than-perfect experience, he might be less-than-eager to share it for fear of not belonging to the crowd.  Of course, there are mavericks, and ironically, a perfectly positive ranking by hundreds of people without even a single negative comment would appear to be staged, even if it is true.

I can't say how much really high Tripadvisor ratings affect businesses, but imagine small operators with minuscule marketing budgets who manage to receive really high ratings do quite well from the experience.  Certainly some commercial tour operators use their high rankings in their other marketing materials.

Fair enough.  Contractors aren't in the tourism business but we have Yelp and similar services.  And the issue here is, can contractors encourage clients to give positive rankings and can Yelp, perhaps hoping to sell advertising or (if you wish to see things from a more honorable level), seeking to avoid gaming the system, filter the positive reviews that don't seem to be quite right?  (The problem with Yelp, I'm afraid, is the implicit link between advertising and ratings, which merchants and contractors may perceive, whether it be true or not.)

I don't have a simple answer to the best way to approach and use ratings services in marketing our businesses, but certainly they need to be regarded with respect and care, especially if you serve consumer-focused markets.  You can add your own comments here.