Why a construction marketing drip campaign is essential
I guess before I tell you why a construction marketing drip campaign is an integral part of lead generation for contractors, I should define it. A drip campaign is a scheduled point-of-contact with prospects. The purpose is to stay in regular contact with potential clients that don’t have an immediate construction need or have a future one. This tactic lets you keep top-of-the-mind awareness with prospects so when they need a builder, they think of you.
Building a construction marketing drip campaign
Keep in mind that a construction marketing drip campaign is a direct marketing tactic. To clarify, this means it is a one-to-one contact, whether it’s from an individual or the company. Awareness channels that reach a broad audience, such as social media or advertisements, are not as effective as the ones we will discuss in this article. Because this campaign could last a while, you will need different components to send the prospect. These tools can range from simple e-mail messages to videos. Regardless of the component, you should determine if it can be a general message promoting your company or targeting a specific niche market. For example, if you know the prospect is a manufacturer, then tailor the different parts of the campaign to focus on industrial messages and projects.
The most effective channels
Direct marketing channels are the most effective when engaging in a construction marketing drip campaign because they allow you to reach out to one prospect at a time. This approach lets you craft messages depending on the level of data you have on the contact. For instance, you could target a specific market or the individual if you know what project they have planned. The following are the direct channels we use most with our clients:
I’m using e-mail as a term to cover both personal and platform e-mails. Personal e-mails are sent directly by the sales rep that has been in contact with the prospect. Platform e-mails are e-blasts sent from an online service like Constant Contact. With the platform e-blasts, you can send different messages to different lists, but you lose the ability to speak to an individual prospect’s needs. Because of this distinction, you need to know the status of each lead in the sales pipeline to determine the best e-mail technique to use.
Direct mail is still a viable direct channel, especially if designed to immediately grab the recipient’s attention.
When using mail as part of the drip campaign, remember it is not a shotgun approach. It is sent to a lead in specific markets. The direct mail campaigns we employ in our construction marketing drip campaigns are to contacts we have qualified through prospecting calls.
Calls
Yes, prospecting calls in business-to-business strategies are still effective. We provide this service for several clients to find decision-makers and determine interest levels. Once qualified, the contact adds to the drip campaign, which could be one or all of three channels.
Tools in a construction marketing drip campaign
Now that you have your qualified database and know the channels you want to use, you need tools to load into the campaign. While this material may not vary too much from the marketing items you’re using, tweak them as discussed previously. Project case studies, niche market videos, or industry-specific messages can all be part of your construction marketing drip campaign arsenal. By sending a variety of material over a set schedule, you will keep your brand in front of prospective clients until they are ready to start a project.
About the Author
Paul Kowalski (or Pappy as he is called around the office) spent over two decades working at other agencies before opening Conach Marketing Group in 2008. The early part of his career was working with Fortune 500 clients at different agencies. However, working with smaller clients was his preference. This choice was because of the impact on a client’s business growth and forming closer, personal relationships.
About Conach
When he was creating Conach, his goal was to bring those Fortune 500 strategies along with years of B2B marketing experience to small business marketing clients. As a result of focusing on business to business marketing, Conach specializes in construction marketing, financial marketing, and industrial marketing. Even though we are in Mid-Michigan, Conach provides marketing services to clients across the country.
For more information, visit conachmarketing.com or contact us or call 989.401.3202.