Marketers Take Flight

125: [Branded] How to Create Effective Online Marketing Assets for Your AEC Firm

• Lindsay Diven • Episode 125

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This is the second episode of my newest series: "Branded: How to Build & Manage Your AEC Firm’s Online Brand", presented by OpenAsset.

In today's show, we're diving deep into the world of marketing collateral for AEC firms. Get ready to discover the power of eBooks, blog posts, pillar pages, and more to establish your authority and boost your online brand presence.

I walk you through seven actionable steps to create effective marketing collateral that resonates with your audience. From asking the right questions to defining your mission statement and evaluating your target audience, you'll gain valuable insights on creating content that captivates and converts.

But that's not all! I share my advice on maintaining brand consistency, crafting clear calls to action, and utilizing the right tools to enhance your marketing efforts. You won't want to miss these valuable tips and strategies!

So, if you're ready to take your AEC firm's online brand to the next level, join me on this exciting episode of AEC Marketing Strategies. Let's dive in and create marketing collateral that truly makes an impact!

This series is made possible by OpenAsset, the leading digital asset management solution for AEC firms. Visit marketerstakeflight.com/openasset to learn more. 

 


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Speaker 1:

Hey there, I'm Lindsay Divan and I'm passionate about everything marketing, productivity and career growth. With over 17 years of experience in the architecture, engineering and construction industry, I know firsthand the ends and the outs of this exciting field. For my early days as a marketing coordinator to becoming an award winning marketing professional and firm principal, I've learned the ropes through countless late nights and challenging deadlines. Now I'm thrilled to bring you the marketers take flight podcast. Here I'll be sharing simple yet powerful, step-by-step marketing strategies that you can implement to achieve the same level of success. Consider me your go-to marketing mentor, someone who truly gets the unique challenges you face in the AEC industry. Whether you're an AEC marketing pro or industry newbie, this podcast is your personal coffee date with your marketing bestie. Together, we'll navigate the ever-changing landscape of online marketing and digital trends, ensuring you stay ahead of the curve. If you're ready to unlock the marketing secrets they never taught you in college and tailor them specifically to the AEC industry, then you're in the right place. Now let's get started. Welcome back to another episode of AEC marketing strategies. I'm your host, lindsay Diven, and today we're diving deeper into the world of online branding for AEC firms In my ongoing series Branded how to Build and Manage your AEC Firms Online Brand. We're exploring different strategies to help you establish and maintain a strong brand presence in the digital landscape, and I want to thank OpenAsset, who is making this special podcast series possible. Openasset's project-based digital asset management platform empowers AEC firms to create high-quality online brand assets and RFP responses quickly and easily. To learn more about OpenAsset, visit marketerstakeflightcom. Forward slash openasset.

Speaker 1:

Okay, so let's jump right in and talk about an essential aspect of branding your marketing collateral. You might be wondering what exactly is marketing collateral and why is it so important? Well, I've got some answers for you. Marketing collateral refers to the media that goes beyond traditional advertisements. It's designed to project authority, establish legitimacy, build trust and support your business development efforts. In other words, it's all about positioning your firm as the go-to expert for your industries and markets. Here's the interesting part. Consumer sentiment towards brands has evolved dramatically. According to Havis, they have a meaningful brands report. According to their meaningful brands report in 2021, consumers are becoming more skeptical. Right, we probably all are. According to their report, nearly two thirds of them of the consumers have little faith that brands will deliver on their promises. However, consumers are desperately seeking brands that can make a meaningful difference in society and the planet. And guess what? Our AEC firms are uniquely positioned to capitalize on this change in consumer sentiment, and so all you need to do is create marketing collateral that showcases your expertise, authority, commitment to making the world a better place, which is typically the mission of why our firms are in business.

Speaker 1:

To begin with, but hold on a second. Before we dive deeper, let's first clarify the difference of what I mean when I say marketing materials and marketing collateral. Those two phrases are often used interchangeably, but they have very different objectives. Marketing materials, like your brochures, your business cards, your flyers. They aim to promote your firm's services. On the other hand, your marketing collateral, or your marketing content, takes an educational approach. It's all about separating your firm from the competition, showcasing your extensive understanding of the industry and proving to prospects that your firm is competent, capable, capable, knowledgeable. So when I say marketing collateral or marketing content, that's what I'm referring to. So, now that we're on the same page, let's explore all the different types of marketing collateral or content that every AEC firm should consider having in their arsenal.

Speaker 1:

First up, we have eBooks. These are perfect for establishing your firm as an authority on specific topics. Use eBooks to share your expertise, inform prospective clients and educate your audience. For example, you could create an eBook that's titled Maintenance of Traffic Plans to Keep Traffic Flowing While Increasing Safety. Maybe you can even get more specific for highways, tollways, urban streets, suburban streets. So you can even get even more specific. Next, we have blog posts. These are incredibly popular and effective. You're probably doing them already. Blog posts attract a wider audience. They educate your visitors and encourage them to explore your firm's portfolio services and other content on your own website. So you can imagine, a sample blog post could be titled Avoid these Risks on your Next Elementary School Design.

Speaker 1:

So, moving on, let's talk about pillar pages. These are high-level pieces of content that provide an overview of a main topic and then link to more detailed articles about specific subtopics related to that main topic. Creating high-quality pillar pages also helps with your SEO and allows you to showcase your expertise. Kind of think of it as like a mini-website, and an example of this could be. You could have a pillar page that showcases elementary school prototype design and reuse or readaption. That page be all about the elementary school prototype design, like what a program like that would look like, and then highlight specific projects that you've done so. Similar to pillar pages are landing pages. These are a little bit different. These are standalone web pages that are tied to a specific marketing campaign and serve as gateways to valuable content. Usually, a landing page has some kind of description of what the content is and some kind of form that somebody fills out to get the content. You could have a landing page that has a piece of content that is something like risk mitigation checklist for university renovation projects, so they fill out their information and then you send them that checklist.

Speaker 1:

Another type of marketing collateral is branded content. This refers to the content produced or funded by. That could be funded by your subcontractors, vendors, suppliers or other industry organizations Outside of the AEC industry. This is usually your influencer content or things you do with other people that helps everybody. So in our industry, an example could be maybe your architecture firm puts together a webinar that is kitchen equipment trends for 2023. And this could be a kitchen equipment for restaurants, universities, cafeterias and you team up with a kitchen equipment vendor. It's like co-branded content. Really, this branded content allows you to connect with your audience on a deeper level and you get some help from your vendor suppliers.

Speaker 1:

Another piece of content is to not overlook the power of infographics. These visual assets can be used as a standalone, as a standalone graphic or within your blog posts or your articles, and really what they do is they simplify complex information and make it more information. So let me give you an example. Maybe you have a piece of content that's called multi-family construction mid-year check-in and outlook and you turn that into an infographic. In this particular example, it could be designed using other sources of information. So maybe it's not even your mid-year check-in and outlook, but you take something from the industry, but you you turn that study and you turn it into an infographic designed using your branded and promoted using, you know, promoted from your online channels. Okay, so those are infographic. Those are kind of like high level at a glance.

Speaker 1:

But now, if you're looking for something more in depth, consider creating case studies. These are versatile pieces that showcase your firm solutions and success stories. So maybe an example of this is, you know, could be titled Florida Hospital avoids disruption during major renovations with the help from Acme Construction Company. So you could see how I titled that case story. It's not just like Florida Hospital case story. It's like what the solution was or what the benefit was to that client in that title.

Speaker 1:

And then, last but not least or certainly not last, but just another idea to get you thinking is white papers. These are long form, in-depth pieces that position your firm as a thought leader on a specific topic or an area of expertise. So an example of this could be titled lessons learned from six hospital renovations. So if your firm has done six hospital renovations, you could really do an in-depth white paper on that. So these are just some ideas to get you started, and if you want some more ideas specifically on how to repurpose your proposal content for use in this marketing collateral, check out episode 101. That was titled three ways to repurpose proposal content and you'll get even more ideas.

Speaker 1:

So now, hopefully, you're thinking about the types, the different types of marketing collateral. How do you use them to build brand awareness and position your firm as industry thought leaders? Well, the key to effective market online marketing collateral lies in its application. You don't want to waste your team's effort on an audience that isn't interested or ready to engage with your content. That's where a solid content strategy comes into play. Developing a content strategy helps you determine what types of marketing collateral will work best for your firm clients and potential clients. It ensures that you're delivering the right message to the right audience at the right time. And you're in luck because I walk you step by step in how to develop an online content marketing strategy back in episode 76. So if you need to know if you haven't done one of those before, go back and listen to episode 76, because I walk you step by step on how to do that.

Speaker 1:

So now that you know what marketing collateral is and why it's important for the different stages for your business development, let's go through the seven steps to create effective marketing collateral for your firm. First things first, ask the right questions. Your marketing collateral should explain your services, nature, features, the problems you solve for your clients and how your firm stands out from the competition. Make sure it's written with your specific targeted audience in mind. Keep it friendly, persuasive, uncluttered and easy to understand. Most importantly, make sure it piques client interest and showcases the benefits you have to offer. So spend some time going through asking the right questions about your targeted audience and then, once you have those questions answered, it's time for step two define your mission statement. Your mission statement should clearly explain your firm's service offering, identify its core values and show how your offering aligns with those values. Keep it clear, concise, free of fluff. Okay.

Speaker 1:

So, once you have those, you're on to step three, which is evaluate your target audience. If you haven't done so already, take the time to create ideal client personas. Understand their ages, job description, decision-making authority, future career goals, likes and dislikes, communication styles and interests. The better you know your audience and their stage in the decision-making journey, the more effective your marketing collateral will be. To dive further into persona development, especially if you've never done one before, go back and check out episode 74. Define personas to guide marketing strategies.

Speaker 1:

Now let's talk about the unsung heroes behind great marketing collateral Copywriters and content writers. And this can either be you or you may hire a freelance copywriter or an agency. However, in my experience, if you don't have the first three steps clarified and agreed upon internally and those three steps understanding your firm, the mission of the collateral, the targeted persona then it will make this step very difficult. In this step, step four it's all about deciding who is going to be writing the copy for the marketing collateral. Will that be you? Will that be hiring someone else? So that's step four, and then actually writing it.

Speaker 1:

And then step five is all about brand consistency. Brand consistency is key. It's all about maintaining your identity, values and strategy over time. Consistency helps your marketing and your business development teams deliver messaging that aligns with your values. Helps foster trust, shape brand perception, evoke positive emotions, helps differentiate your brand and promotes visual brand elements that make you recognizable. So make sure your marketing, collateral and marketing content aligns with your branding and reflects your brand guidelines. I'll be diving deeper into how to maintain brand consistency in the next episode in this branded series. So make sure you're subscribed so you don't miss that episode.

Speaker 1:

And then don't forget about the power of a clear call to action. Step six is all about your CTA call to action, first things. First, make sure that each piece of collateral has a CTA as a reminder. A good CTA prompts your reader or your client to take the next step, whether that's visiting your website, connecting with you on social media or reaching out to someone specific at your firm. You want to keep your CTAs short, clear and focused on one single action for the user to take. Don't overwhelm them with too many options at once. Don't be like follow us on Facebook, follow us on LinkedIn, give us a call, email. This that's too much in one piece of collateral. Just pick one CTA and make sure it's short and clear and focused. For more ideas on CTAs, check out episode 114. And that episode is called calls to action 101. What are they and why they matter for AEC marketing?

Speaker 1:

Lastly, in step seven, let's talk about the right tools. While we focused on the message and the text of your marketing collateral, the visual elements are equally important. Thankfully, there are tools to help you choose, edit, find and share the digital assets you need to create visually impressive marketing collateral. In episode 103, I share the marketing tech stack every AEC marketing department should have, including some of those tools that I use every day to help me with my visual elements. So now let me recap those seven steps to create effective online marketing collateral. They were number one ask the right questions. Number two define your mission statement for your firm, for your collateral or your marketing campaign. Step three evaluate your target audience. Step four decide who is going to write the collateral you or if you're going to hire a freelancer or an agency. Five emphasize brand consistency. Six, utilize a clear call to action. And then seven use the right marketing tools. All right, there you have it the ins and outs of marketing collateral and how to use it to boost your online brand awareness and thought leadership. Remember, it's all about establishing your authority, showcasing your expertise and connecting with your audience.

Speaker 1:

And this wraps up another episode of AEC marketing strategies. And remember, this is the second episode in this new mini series called Branded how to Build and Manage your AEC Firms Online Brand. I hope you found this dive into marketing collateral helpful. Stay tuned for my next episode in the series, where I'll share some tips to maintain consistent brand experience. And this branded series is made possible by Open Asset, the industry leading digital asset management solution for AEC firms. To learn more about Open Asset, visit marketerstakeflightcom. Forward slash open asset. And, as always, I'm Lindsay Divan, your host, reminding you to create compelling marketing cloud collateral, establish your authority and make a meaningful impact with your AEC firms online brand. Until next time. Bye for now.

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Lindsay Diven, CPSM

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