Introducing the Builder’s Marketing Plan
Brought to you by Dahlsens
Has your business been riding the wave? Has word of mouth kept you busy enough until now? Do you advertise until you have enough work and then back off, only to run out of projects? Maybe you’ve invested in marketing that hasn’t returned, pouring precious funds down the drain?
With expectations that the market may slow in some locations, now is the time to work on effective marketing that helps you attract your ideal clients.
Do you dream of?
- Growing from a few builds a year to 10 (or more!)
- Protecting your business from a slow-down
- Getting paid well to do the jobs you love
- Working closer to home and enjoying a better work/life balance
Here’s help to get you there.
Rarely happening on its own, effective marketing needs thought and planning. Dahlsens has developed an easy, step-by-step marketing planning guide specifically designed for builders.
This tool can help you make better marketing decisions, resulting in more precise, targeted and successful marketing.
What’s inside the marketing plan?
1. Identify what you want to achieve from your marketing
A guide to identifying what you want to achieve and how your activity will support your business objectives.
2. Develop your business profile
- What type of projects do you want to focus on?
- Who are your ideal customers?
- Where would you prefer to work?
- What are your specialities?
- What do you do better than your competitors?
Then ask yourself: does my branding reflect my business profile? Remember, it’s how a customer perceives your business that counts, and branding paints the right picture.
3. Set your building company apart
The strengths and specialities of your business need to match the motivations of your preferred customers. Think about what you could offer to potential customers to help get them over the line. Perhaps it’s offering a service guarantee or fast turnaround on quotes. Maybe it’s a free design consultation, extra inclusion packages or your specialised building experience. No matter what, it must be a match to your customers’ needs and wants.
4. What are you saying about your business?
Once you’ve identified your business profile, offers and specialties, write down some key messages that you can use to clearly communicate them. Don’t be afraid to be specific, as it will help your ideal customers find you. Here are some examples:
- Specialising in custom-built homes for those wanting something special
- Our forte is modern extensions on period homes
- No matter the shape, size or complexity, I am your decking guru!
- Knowledgeable teams with over 150 years expertise on your side
- No delays with our 48-hour quote guarantee
- Get more back with our $5k inclusion packages valued at $20k!
5. Get the message out there
You’ve got your business goals clear, your offers in hand and your key messages to promote – now you need to work out the best way to get them heard. After all, it’s no good having such clarity if your potential customers don’t hear about you! The Builder’s Marketing Plan by Dahlsens has a range of suggestions to spread the word about your services, with your budget, customers and location in mind.
Just starting out? Here’s a guide to a quick set up!
- Commission some branding. Your brand style should match your business description. So, if you’re hitting the top end of town, you’ll need to look sleek and luxurious. If you’re located coastal or country, perhaps incorporate hints of the environment into your look.
- Brand your collateral. This means site signage, flyers, business cards, vehicle signage and uniforms. It all adds to a professional and established look.
- Get online. You’ll need a professional website, with customers looking for:
- An ‘About Us’ page with your business profile and what you stand for. Add photos of your team, a blurb on each person’s experience and qualifications, and association memberships (with their logos for extra prominence). Make sure everything special about your business is included
- A ‘Projects’ page, including detail of ideal and successful projects, locations, job sizes, specialities, offers and guarantees
- A gallery of past jobs and descriptions about them
- Glowing testimonials from real customers
- A contact page with your email and phone number
- Social media links
- Get social. Social media profiles are free, the advertising is cheap and you can target specific areas. Be consistent and post at least once a week or fortnight.
