Non-traditional ways to promote your business

If you’re operating a small business or working as an independent contractor within the building and construction industry, it’s unlikely you’ll have the time or the specific resources needed to engage a full-scale, in-house marketing initiative.

While many larger businesses employ teams of marketing experts to design, execute and analyse their promotional campaigns, there’s still a host of creative and non-traditional ways that you can realistically implement yourself to advertise your small business.

In a world flooded with advertising, modern consumers quickly become bored with the same, tired business promotion efforts they’re inundated with. That’s why the most effective business promotion activities are often those which rely on more unusual methods of raising public awareness and showcasing their products or services. Here’s some non-traditional tips you can adopt today to advertise your small business in the building and construction sector, and stand out from the crowd.

Start a blog on your website

Most small businesses realise the importance of having a website ― and with the range of DIY website creation tools that are now so widely available, there’s no excuse not to have one. However, not all businesses realise the potential of their web presence, and tend to use it as a passive placeholder rather than an active business promotion tool.

Starting a blog is an ideal way to get more out of your website. Blogs allow you to develop a personal ‘voice’ for your business, which helps you to connect with your audience and strengthens the relationship you’ll have with your customers. It’s also a way for you to attract visitors to your website — particularly if you’re using content which optimises search engine visibility and helps boost your website to the top of search engine rankings.

Your blog doesn’t need to be fancy or formal. You may wish to simply use it to showcase the projects your business is currently working on, highlight the uses of a new product or discuss interesting news regarding the building and construction industry more broadly. However you choose to use it, make sure you update it regularly. When readers know you update your content frequently, they’ll be more inclined to revisit your blog — and other parts of your website too.

Take advantage of free social media platforms

Social media apps such as Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, Instagram, Google + (and many, many more) provide a free or very low cost platform to promote your business from for very little effort, in respect to more traditional forms of marketing.

Social media is a natural vehicle for the sharing of good content; when users see something they like (whether that be a post, an image, a comment or a news item), they’re likely to share it with their friends and followers. This means that anytime you create content that is shared across social media, you’re effectively amplifying the promotional effort of your brand for free.

Look beyond the standard Facebook page when you’re considering what forms of social media to connect to. Facebook is now so common amongst consumers that it’s almost expected as a bare minimum profile to legitimise your business. Ideally, you’ll develop a core mix of social media platforms which can be used to host your content and represent your business.

Promote your services on YouTube

As a small business or independent contractor in the building and construction industry, you might not be familiar with how to advertise your small business using online video platforms such as YouTube. This method, however, is extremely effective as a means of increasing your website traffic and attracting new customers to your business. When people see a product or service being used by real people, in action, they’re far more likely to imagine interacting with the brand themselves.

It’s predicted that by 2017, online video will generate 69% of all online traffic. To make the most of this powerful resource, consider creating basic how-to videos (such as how to stay safe on the construction site, what to look for in a reputable builder, or how the residential construction process works). You might also like to offer videos of your business in action on the building site or as a case study for a project you’re currently working on, or even provide staff profile videos so that people can get a more comprehensive view of your business.

Have you joined Quora?

Quora is an online collaborative content tool which enables users to ask a question — any question, about anything they like — and obtain responses from the public. Unlike forums such as Reddit, users must use their real names. Because it’s more transparent, Quora tends to be thought of as a more reputable forum than others available today.

Quora is useful to businesses because it not only allows them insight into the market (in this instance, the ability to see what kind of questions consumers have in regards to the building and construction industry), it enables you as a business to answer questions that are within your realm of expertise.

Without being overt in your attempts at business promotion, this can be an excellent opportunity to point out what consumers need to look for in a construction contractor. If you choose to do so, do include your business name and contact details in your Quora profile; this eliminates the chance that other users will feel ‘tricked’, but also gives them the chance to find out more about you.

Enter to win an industry-sponsored award

Aside from boosting the morale of you and your employees, winning an industry award can have long-term benefits for business promotion. For instance, placing in building and construction industry awards such as the HIA-CSR Awards or Master Builders Housing and Construction awards will grant your business exposure to new customers, and raise your public profile. Winners of such awards are usually showcased in media and industry publications, which means you can potentially reach a much wider audience than your traditional marketing efforts have achieved.

Winners of awards are able to display official emblems or logos to signify their achievement. By displaying these beside your brand logo on promotional material such as websites, email signatures and flyers — as well as inside your office and on company vehicles — you will create a sense of social validation to new or potential customers, and increase the likelihood that they will look to your business when they want to hire a construction contractor.

Whether traditional or contemporary, the first goal of any marketing activity is to engage your audience — at least long enough for them to read, view or hear what you have to offer. That’s why the most successful marketing efforts are often the more unusual ones. By surprising your audience with something unexpected, you break the traditional marketing cycle that people automatically shut off from (for example, many people are so used to receiving junk mail that they are conditioned to immediately throwing it away without opening it).

Whichever strategy you choose to promote your business, focus on ways to grab the attention of your audience and demonstrate a point of difference from your competition. Don't just tell potential customers that you/your team are the best for the job; use a unique promotional strategy to demonstrate why.

End of financial year is a perfect time to revive your business with brand new marketing campaigns such as those discussed above. But before you undertake any new projects, make sure you’re up to date with your housekeeping; all that dry paperwork you’ve been putting off all year. To get a head start, download our free efficiency template pack for project managers.

To find out more about Latham products, please visit www.latham-australia.com. To talk to a Latham product expert, call 1300 LATHAM (528 426) or email sales@latham-australia.com.