Inbound Marketing for Construction Companies

If your construction company is still advertising in the phone book then you should read this.  

Operating  a construction company involves wearing more than just a hard hat. Your job doesn't stop at the construction site. Back at the office, you also have to be the; office, HR, accountant & marketing manger, among other roles. Many construction companies still rely on print media for their marketing and advertising goals. In today's world, the first thing someone does when they learn about a company is research them online. If your website isn't mobile optimized or you can't remember the last time you posted fresh content on your website. Odds are you are not showing up on first page search results, which account for over 90% of website traffic.

Enter Inbound Marketing 

If we take a look at the graphic below, you can see that Inbound Marketing involves leveraging your website as a "launchpad"for all of your marketing goals.  

Inbound Marketing Methodology

The name of the game is lead capturing and conversions.  Along with a user friendly website, below are 10 ways to increase website traffic, turn visitors into leads, and leads into customers. 

Thought Leadership

JE Dunn Construction does a great job in the thought leadership department, by building trust and respect for their brand. Good thought leadership brings consumers to you and has helped JE Dunn become one of the top general building contractors in the country with approximate annual revenues of $2.7 billion and 20 office locations coast-to-coast.

Keep in mind that content should be educational, in the form of studies, whitepapers, and videos, that avoid promotional tones. 

Blogging

Fresh content in the form of blogs are a great way to increase your Google search rankings. Known as "Queries Deserve Freshness" Google rewards websites based on the newest, most relevant content. Along with search engine rankings, blogs are also great way to generate leads as seen in the chart below. Companies that publish 16+ blogs per month, see 4.5x's more leads than companies that don't.

Social Media

Social media is a great tool for not only promoting thought leadership and your blog, but to interact directly with construction professionals, customers, and even potential employees. 

BPGS Contsruction does a a great job leveraging Twitter @BPGS_ to highlight:

• Community Engagement
• Current Projects
• Construction News

With the purpose of driving website referral traffic back to their website to increase leads and customers. 

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

As previously stated, over 90% of website traffic is from the first page of search results. Fresh content and social media also play important roles in your SEO ranking along with:

• Meta Description (the brief description below the search result)
• Mobile Optimization (websites are now penalized for not being mobile friendly)
• Links to other pages on your website

Call-to-Action (CTA)

CTA's are buttons that link to landing pages on your website to drive prospective customers to become leads by filling out a form (contact us, whitepapers, sign up for our email newsletter, etc.)

CTA's should be:

• Visually striking image that compels you to click the offer
• Action-oriented: Begin with a verb like "Download" or "Register"
• Located in an easy-to-find spot (bottom of blog post)
• In a contrasting color from the color scheme of the webpage, while still fitting in with the overall design
• Large enough to see from a distance, but not so large as to detract attention from the main content on the page
• Easy to understand and clear: Be sure to state exactly what the visitor will get if they click on the CTA and go to the landing page 

Landing Pages

Now that you've created CTA's you can't help but click on. Now it's time to capture some leads. Ask basic questions:

• Name
• Company
• Phone number
• Email
• Job title
• How we can help
• Etc.

What's Next? 

[Read: Construction Website Essentials]