Tag Archives: Building material

6 Effective Ways on How Building Materials Marketers Must Use Social Media

Social Media For Building Materials Marketers Social media marketing is no longer an afterthought strategy for companies and organizations, even if your company is in the building materials industry. Every major brand is already present across the social media platforms. Companies from every industry are taking advantage of the social media. But the building products industry is lagging behind.

One of the reasons is the lack of understanding about how social media works and how building materials marketers can integrate it with their marketing efforts.

Another reason is that building product manufacturers are behind their customers when it comes to social media. They are supposed to be the smart marketers. You would think they would embrace the newest marketing tools before their dealer, builder and contractor customers. You would think they would at least keep up with their consumer customers.

What the building materials organizations don’t realize is that these can be easily overcome. And they should never stand in the way of building a social media marketing strategy.

For a great article on social media for building material companies, I suggest reading 8 Ways Building Materials Companies Can Use Social Media by Mark Mitchell.

If you’re a building materials marketer, here are five ways on how to effectively use social media.

Use social media to interact and engage

Social media icons on smartphoneYour social media accounts should be used to give your organization a voice and a way to interact with your customers and homeowners.

Building materials companies are not so great when communicating with homeowners. You can stand out from the rest by showing a bit of personality when you homeowners in social media. One thing that you can do is to humanize your organization while you respond to inquiries and reviews. Use it as a customer service advantage.

Educate your customers and their customers

Need help with your Facebook marketing strategySocial media isn’t only a place to advertise your products but it’s also an ideal platform to share information about home building issues. Make sure that you limit self-promotional posts. Instead, focus on raising awareness of a certain problem in home building, remodeling or repair.

Another good idea for your social media use is to give customers even more reasons to buy your products. Oftentimes, if a person gets information from you about an idea they use, they will have a sense of loyalty towards you and your company.

Raise awareness through social media advertising

Building Materials Marketers Must Use Social MediaTake advantage of social media advertising to help raise awareness for your brand or drive leads to your premium content. In this way, you can nurture your visitors and turn them into customers.

However, when you do use social media ads, make sure that they’re relevant and well-written in a way that they can grab your reader’s attention. 

Give your readers something that they can’t find anywhere

Social Media Is A Must for Building Materials CompaniesWhen it comes to social media, the sky is the limit. One of the things you can give your readers that they can’t get elsewhere is to how-to videos or infographics with tips that bring our products to light in an interesting and educational way.

Not surprisingly, companies don’t see results from their building material social media campaign – and certainly not sales. Here’s what they are missing: You are helping someone solve a problem where your product is a possible solution.  You are not selling them why your product is the best solution.

Regardless of what segment your company is in the building materials industry, there’s a place for you in the social media. Give your audience something that’s unique so it will be shared, retweeted or favorited.

Social media isn’t scary

Social media shouldn't be scary for building materials marketersBuilding materials marketers should take advantage of social media to communicate with their customers and homeowners. If you don’t have any idea on what to post, try monitoring other consumer durable products companies (especially appliance manufacturers’ like KitchenAid) and find out what posts they publish on their accounts. Take notes of what truly resonates with you.

When you start engaging with your audience through social media, your building materials industry can reap the rewards for many years to come.

Good Selling!

Greg Bonsib is an author of the new Mighty Guides Ebook Data Disruption.

Advertisement

The Successful Big Box Line Review

The Successful Big Box Line ReviewMany manufacturers fear line reviews with big boxes like Home Depot and Lowe’s. They frequently see it as an event where they have more to lose than to gain.

My friend Mark Mitchell knows what they fear and has recommendations on how to approach the line review differently. He tells about his experiences in his blog and his book. Or click here to receive his monthly building materials sales and marketing newsletter.

If you’d like to learn more about successful big box line reviews. Read Mark’s original blog post here.

And it works. Here’s his follow up post A Line Review Success Story sharing the strategy and positive outcome of one of his clients.

What manufacturers fear going in to a line review

  1. Demands for even lower prices
  2. Fewer sku’s
  3. Having to fund promotional programs
  4. Worse placement
  5. A new competitor in the category

Most companies go into a line review with three simple goals

  1. Stay on shelf
  2. Defend their margin
  3. Grow their share of category sales

According to Mark Mitchell, here’s what you should do in a Home Depot or Lowe’s line review

  1. Grow a pair
  2. Think about the buyer and not just yourself
  3. Do your homework
  4. Paint them a picture

Don’t approach a line review as a chance to throw products at the buyer and see what sticks

Don't Get Told No With These PowerPoint Sales HacksI spoke to that point in my post 4 Essential Steps to Winning with Buyers in a Product Line Review.

You need to have a vision about how the big box will be more successful with you than without you. You need to bring that vision to life so the buyer can see it.

The goal is for the buyer to say, “That just makes sense.” Buyers are human beings and many times will make decisions based on their gut feeling. They will then use data to support their decision.

You want to show the buyer no one is more committed to their success than you as you continually bring them ideas to make them more successful.

The line review process is a validation step for the retailer

Is Your Sales Team Asking The Right Pricing QuestionsRemember they are ultimately confirming that they are offering “the right product, sold for the right price, at the right place and time.”

To be better prepared for a line review, check out my post Are You Ready For Your Product Line Review?

Good Selling!

Active Search Results (ASR) is an independent Internet Search Engine using a proprietary page ranking technology with Millions of popular Web sites indexed.

How To Tell If It’s Time To Fire Your Ad Agency

Should You Fire Your Ad AgencyGoing through an ad agency review for a is both difficult and energizing. Every meeting brings new insights. You see opportunities, solid creative and begin to see how this could help bridge some of your sales gaps.

Make no mistake, the effort involved is overwhelming in identifying and selecting a new marketing communications firm. Programs are on hold and the team is making do because the compelling new marketing theme/tagline/look is just around the corner. That’s the hope anyway.

Is it time to fire your ad agency?

Is It Time To Fire Your Ad AgencyMark Mitchell and I discuss this topic in length in his recent blog Is it Time to Fire Your Agency? posted on Whizard Strategy.

While there are a few good B2B client/agency relationships, Mark has seen over and over that find the majority of them are not very strong.  The result is that the client doesn’t get the results they should.

We explore 10 key situations that undermine a strong relationship.

  1. They don’t understand your business
  2. Purchase motivations are more complicated and nuanced than, “The customer will make more money selling your product”
  3. They don’t ask why
  4. They think increased spending is the only way to succeed
  5. You don’t have access to the leaders
  6. Constant turnover of your team
  7. What is their measure of success?
  8. A focus on creativity over strategy
  9. You feel taken for granted
  10. You can’t imagine the agency leaving you

More importantly, we provided you an actionable Ask Yourself tip to each one to help you better understand if that might be your situation.

There are a lot of agencies who do a good job of servicing their clients. Mark notes, “In my experience, there are a lot more who make a number of these mistakes. It’s like any good relationship, you have to work at it and not just take things for granted.”

What if the problem is you?

Time To Fire Your Ad AAgencyMark and I also see a lot of good agencies who can’t do a good job because their client gets in the way.  I know – I’ve been that client. Here are some ways this happens.

  1. Thinking that you are the creative person
  2. You hold back information
  3. You are cheap

Agency client relationships are the best when both groups are open and honest about the issues the business is facing and what it will take to overcome them. When these relationships are true partnerships, both companies will ultimately succeed and grow.

Good Selling!

About The Authors: Mark Mitchell is a Sales and Marketing Consultant who specializes in helping business owners and senior executives in the building materials industry overcome difficult sales problems. Using his extensive hands-on experience, he shows them how to creative effective strategies to identify and eliminate blind spots that allow them to get past the roadblocks that keep them from realizing their revenue goals. Click here to learn more about his one-day workshop “Selling Today’s Building Materials Prospect.” Or sign up for his monthly building material marketing newsletter here. 

Greg Bonsib gives his perspective from the client side. Greg has extensive experience in working with agencies in his marketing leadership positions at ODL, Owens Corning, Rubbermaid, Sentry Safe and Zenith Products. Greg also publishes an industry leading blog on Channel Marketing.

Active Search Results (ASR) is an independent Internet Search Engine using a proprietary page ranking technology with Millions of popular Web sites indexed.