"Cold calling is killing me"

The Greater Ottawa Carleton Home Builders' Association Boat Cruise last summer. Relationships developed within this association have been vital to my business -- If you are going to cold call the association's members, (or for that matter, if you plan to call the members of any association) however, results will be much better if you join first.

This posting on contractortalk.com touches close to my heart.

Cold Calling is Killing Me

Okay I printed out the entire list off the local Home Builders Association website. On the "L's" right now and dammit I'm tired, I could work a 10 hour shift and not be so wore out haha. Out of about 50 so far I have a few e-mails to send two guys to meet and that's about it.

I have also have put out upwards of 3000 door mailers/flyers and 3,000, two months ago, and 6,500 more to come.

Dammit this stinks we have NEVER had to go out and look for work and we have been in business for eight years. Any ideas, guys.

As the thread progresses, we learn that the contractor had moved from Atlanta where his business thrived on word-of-mouth, to Knoxville, TN, where he is struggling to build relationships.

My quick and somewhat superficial advice: Join the HBA before making the cold calls to fellow members, and possibly look for relationships based on shared geographical experience.

The latter idea is something anyone who has moved should consider. I will never forget the clearest example of its importance.

I was watching (alone) a cricket game in Bulawayo Rhodesia/Zimbabwe in 1979 when I heard a voice: "Mark, is that you, Mark?" I looked at the person, and needed a few minutes to connect the dots. A couple of years ago, we had worked together but not closely on the student newspaper at the University of British Columbia.

My former student newspaper colleague had somehow found his way to the same remote (at least to anyone from Vancouver) African city at the same time. He had become a police officer (to be closer to a South African woman he knew) and I had found employment as a sub-editor on the local newspaper . Despite our different careers and place in life, we naturally had plenty in common, now, and so formed a close friendship which continued through our time in Africa and upon our return, at least until our paths separated again.

With the Internet, news groups, and existing client bases from your "old towns" you can I believe forge useful relationship-building connections by relating the old and the new, and then your word of mouth will take hold.

My first suggestion, to join the HBA before cold calling its membership, is more obvious but in some ways more challenging to execute.

The reason is that just joining a HBA or any association with the hope of creating immediate business is likely to be disappointing and frustrating.

Certainly the renovation contractor would be much better placed to get his foot in the door and the opportunity to win some bids -- certainly, the HBA in our area, the Greater Ottawa Home Builders' Association, adheres to its motto: "Be a Member -- Do Business with a Member", and the amount of business we've obtained through the years through this membership is impressive.

But association memberships, and many other marketing methods, require you to focus on what you can give rather than what you can sell; you need to think in terms of contribution, support, sharing, and the like -- and I know these qualities are probably farthest from the mind of the contractor simply trying to find enough business to keep the doors open.

Still, I think the contractor would find real value in joining the group -- and possibly connecting with his community associations in the areas where he lives or wishes to serve. The latter are much less expensive, and a little voluntary work can go a long way to cementing relationships. Maybe, in fact, he'll find some people he knows from Atlanta at an association event -- and start building even closer relationships.

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The simple answer that raises more questions

Yesterday, I received this question from an offshore reader:

I will be most grateful if you can assist me with some ideas with regards to business development for an engineering consultancy service.

My brief, perhaps curt, answer:

I'm not really qualified to suggest ideas in your market although the basic principals outlined in various blog postings may be helpful.

You are going to need to build your business from your relationships; and if you don't have them, you will need to connect the dots and find your way to be near the people you want to do business with.

"Marketing" for consultancies is almost 99 per cent relationship-building and virtually any other resource you try will only work if that is at the root.

Trouble is, my answer didn't go far enough because it doesn't answer the question: "How do build relationships?" The simple answer is:

Join relevant associations (of individuals likely to be decision-makers within your market) and contribute your skills, passions, and time freely, wholeheartedly, and without any expectation of return.

You may scratch your head at this idea, especially if you need some fast cash to stay afloat or your boss is breathing down your back to meet your sales quota.

This question, of course, is from someone seeking to build a consultancy. Realistically, how can you expect to succeed unless you connect with potential clients in an environment where they can assess you safely, without feeling pressure to do anything?

They need to see you in action and need to both like you and feel you really can solve their problems.

Associations provide that link. Get involved.

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The Races and Construction Marketing

Members of the Ottawa chapter of Construction Specifications Canada at the Rideau-Carleton Raceway. My only bet, a $2.00 ticket, lost. Of course I didn't actually purchase the ticket.

Although the local racetrack and slot machine emporium is close to my home, I've never visited the facility since it opened in its new and "modern" form several years ago. The idea of putting coins into machines in hopes of winning big when you know the odds are stacked against you from the start hardly excites my sense of rational business awareness.

More significantly, I know enough risk and chance in day-to-day business ownership. Compare this time last year to where things are today, and I would say that anyone who thinks business planning and assumptions can truly predict your future is dreaming in some very bad form of colour.

The difference between business risk and gambling risk, of course, is that the business owner has some choice in the outcome. I suppose horse racing gamblers have a form of choice -- they can review the handicaps and statistics before placing their bets -- and card game gamblers can try to count cards, but the gambling business has solutions to these risks: Odds adjust automatically as bets are placed, so at the races the house takes its cut (about 25 per cent, I estimate) no matter who wins, and card counters are banned from the casinos.

The world isn't fair, it seems, especially for those who think that dumbly playing the game is the way to win.

Fellow members of the Ottawa Chapter of Construction Specifications Canada are not dumb, however. We know that casinos and racetracks offer enticing deals on meals and entertainment, if you don't gamble. So we didn't. Instead we shared stories of how games are set.

Here is a good example. One member explained the simple convenience store owner rule for "pull tab" games -- you know, those little cards where you pay a dollar and hope to win a jackpot. Convenience store operators fill the jars with these tabs, and watch whether anyone wins as the jar empties. The CSC member explained that if the big winner didn't appear by the time the jar had reached 1/4 empty, the store owner "purchases" the entire remaining jar. Of course, at this point, a win would be inevitable. Knowledge certainly helps stack the odds in your favour.

In fact, in business, our knowledge, instinct and gut feelings, combined with an understanding of the rules and some genuine luck are all essential for success.

One person at my table, who insisted on not being identified or publicized in any way, spends $5,000 annually on a well-known leads service, for example. He then assesses the information and sends out information packages, seeking to sell concrete products to contractors.

He said: "I can't be identified because in fact the products I distribute are also sold by the company's other divisions, and if they have the information, they will compete against me." It turns out the end-user may purchase the same thing from the same company, but the distributor at the race track wins or loses depending on whether others know he is looking for the work and opportunity.

"Could the original supplier save some money by simplifying and consolidating its sales force and arrangements," I asked the distributor. "Sure, in theory," he said. "But the seeming inefficiencies actually spur competition and create more business for the manufacturer."

In other words, by allowing different players to compete in selling the product, the manufacturer actually sells more, at greater profit. This may not make much sense to the bean counters, but it certainly works in the marketplace.

Then the distributor relayed a story which shows how things evolve. A few years ago, before electronic equipment replaced mechanical methods, tolerances of up to 10 per cent were permitted for cut stone. These tolerances remained in the contract language for a major, high-profile project, even though then-recent technology advances had eliminated the need for them. One contractor bid the job, then creatively arranged to have the stone cut to the minimum tolerance, which of course guaranteed a 10 per cent gain -- and possibly even 20 per cent. This certainly improved the margin.

As some of us left early (after the fourth race), and walked through the slot machine section, we felt a sense of rational superiority over the fools playing the machines. They simply don't get it, and are poor as a result. The world is not fair to the dumb and the passive (and sometimes bad luck can bring down even the brightest and most honorable).

But when we are play the business game, we can choose our strategy and change course when we need to find a new direction. We enjoyed our inexpensive, information-sharing evening at the race track. We had found a way to win, sure-fire.

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Passion and marketing

Participants share a moment at the Greater Ottawa Home Builders' Association Golf Tournament earlier this year. If you enjoy golfing, and have products or services to market, association events like this can be invaluable for building your business (and you'll have fun while you play.)

Some of the saddest people I've seen are older (or for that matter younger) people who are working because they "have to"; for the money, for survival. Sometimes this situation is through no fault of their own, or is a trade-off for something better for the future. I have great respect for immigrants, for example, who take on menial jobs to create a future for their families.

But many times, people lose touch with what is really important in life. If you can't enjoy your work, then you doom yourself to a trapped life. The paradox is you may be "good" at your work and the pay may be excellent. But are you really living a good life?

"What does this thinking have to do with Construction Marketing?", you may be wondering. The answer is that if you can connect your own passions with those of your current and potential clients, you'll have the perfect marketing space -- and you'll be successful in ways that transcend your paycheck (though you will probably do well financially.)

These thoughts come to mind as I prepare to write a feature about the Ontario Masonry Contractors' Association. I've had the privilege of speaking with several of the association's leaders and supporters in preparing the article, and one thing came through to me loud and clear: They really care about their stuff.

They aren't just in the brick and masonry business to make some money (though undoubtedly they are successful at it). They really care about and consider their work to be truly important.

Now, you wouldn't want me anywhere near a construction site actually doing the work of a mason, (or for that matter, handling the responsibilities of an architect or engineer.) My passion has always been journalism and business, and writing.

I happened to connect with the construction industry about 20 years ago, almost by accident. Over the years, I've had the good fortune to meld my interest in journalism and publishing with the construction industry, and begun to understand it at a greater depth than most writers. This means, even if I can't actually operate the equipment or perform the actual skills of the construction industry, I can still sense its heart and the passion of industry practitioners and tradespeople.

If you want to be successful at marketing, your challenge is to connect your passion for your trade or profession, with the passions and interests of your potential clients. (You can see for a start that if you don't really like what you are doing, I would advocate you find some way to get to do what you really enjoy).

How do you achieve this connection? One place you can make the links are relevant client-focused associations. Usually they have special interest groups and committees. In other words, if you love golf, you offer to help co-ordinate the golf tournament. You'll be connecting and playing with potential clients who enjoy golf, like you, and (best of all), your respective business passions and interests will "connect" in an environment of common interest. Yes, you'll have fun -- and discover business at the same time.

I've applied these principals by using my writing and journalism skills with the relevant association for construction industry marketing, The Society for Marketing Professional Services. By writing for the association's magazine, I've made many truly useful connections and developed some great business opportunities. But I haven't struggled to do the work. I truly enjoy it.

Take a close look at your circumstances. If you love what you are doing for a living, you are on the right track. If you can connect with others by finding common ground with what they truly enjoy doing, you'll achieve true marketing success -- and have lots of fun in the process.

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Construction marketing: Outsiders, insiders and the point of transition

At the Design and Construction Network Happy Hour in Washington on June 30: Sarah B. Dolby, Associate Account Manager with Atlantic Risk Management Corporation, Kathleen C. O'Leary, Business Developmentt with Scott-Long Construction, Inc., Lindsay B. McGhee, Account Manager with Atlantic Risk Management Corporation, and Brad McCoy, Account Executive with Mainbrain. You can connect with this group (no cost!) by visiting mydcn.com.

Successful construction-industry marketing is all about winning a place within your current and prospective clients' inner trust circle. When you get there, your relationships don't feel like business, they are more like enduring friendships. Money is still important, but your clients don't begrudge you your price (and profit) because they know you have their best inters ts at heart.

If your clients are "forced" by regulations or standard practice to ensure there are competitive bids, they will wire things so that you virtually always win. (I still remember a Labor Day weekend email containing the complete bidding documentation of a competitor sent to me by the bidding authority. No, I didn't ask for this confidential information, or imply even indirectly that this unofficial communication should happen. It just did.) In the U.S. public sector work especially at the federal level operates under Brooks Act rules, which takes price out of the picture and puts relationships and trust at center-stage.

The first construction marketing success question is how you win this trusted place? Equally important -- and providing a great clue to the the second question's answer, is "How do you retain the trust?"

The second question of course is easiest to answer. You retain the trust by delivering the goods with sensitivity, respect, and a sense of community, compassion, security, and adventure. In other words, you do your work so well and with your clients' interests so much in your heart that they would be insane to leave you.

(If you have in good times had a successful business by 'relying' on referrals for new work and repeat orders, you mostly have the second question answered correctly.)

Most importantly, you need to solve the second question before you even try to answer the first question. In other words, if you cannot truly deliver value for your clients, you must stop, think carefully, and either revise your business or do something else. You will be spinning your marketing wheels.

Nevertheless, even if you are great at what you do, you still need to answer the first question. You need new clients to replace ones that leave and to grow. You need to show people who don't know you, or who know you but aren't ready to accept you, that you are worthy of their consideration. Solutions include:

Connect your current, satisfied clients with new/prospective clients
This is where organized referral programs are helpful. These could be as simple as inviting clients for a meal and seeing if they know friends or colleagues who would do business with you, or as sophisticated as co-ordinating Networking and Thank-you events for your current/prospective clients.

Achieve media recognition and respect
Positive articles about your business in credible news media provide powerful trust-developing capacities. You aren't selling, you are delivering. The best media publicity is mostly "free" in that you don't pay directly for it, nor can you control every word or image that is published, and you don't have marketing control over the time and schedule of the publicity. Advertising-supported editorial (advertorial) publishing can be an effective compromise. It is what we do best and we can often provide this service without any cash or financial requirement from your business. See the Design and Construction Report for example.

Connect with your community
In the consumer market, this includes sports and community groups and associations; in the business market, you'll gain much traction by contributing to relevant client-centric associations. (Yes, participate in your own trade association, but your marketing clout will be highest when you participate in the association reflecting your clients' interests.)

Get your web presence in order
You need a great website optimized to attract leads and client interest within your marketplace. Most people now head to the Internet when they are looking for someone new, or to verify the credibility of someone they have heard a little about. High search engine rankings are better than top billing on the old Yellow Pages (these still work in some places), or community classified ads because they convey both credibility and provide immediate connections between potential clients in immediate need and your business. (We can help you out here, of course, especially if you have discovered this blog through the search engine process!)

Will any of these resources provide a quick-fix to your business/marketing challenges? Certainly, you can quickly develop your current and previous client relationships and build on them.

You may hit it off immediately with someone new, "Love at first sight", but obviously if you are banking on this happening with strangers, routinely, you are asking for trouble, both personally and in business.

What about price? Can you win trust by lowering it?
I think this is the hardest and most foolhardy way to win marketing battles. Do you really want to work with clients who hammer you down so far that you can't earn a profit?

And if you are marketing on price, how will you ever make enough money to make your business worthwhile? The only exception is if you have such a technological or operating advantage that you can truly be profitable while undercutting your competition. But most of us don't have that advantage.

As you read this, you may be scratching your head. You are being under-cut by fly-by-nighters, your loyal clients have deserted you to save some money (even though you provide great service), and you aren't worried about whether a potential client is an outsider, insider, or some fly on the wall. You just need business, quickly.

My advice for you is to take a deep breath, roll up your sleeves, reduce your business expenses and overhead as much as possible, and spend an hour a day studying marketing. Then compile a list of your current and former clients, and figure out some "gives" (time not cash!) to justify a call or visit.

As you do this, start your community/association connection and publicity strategies. Call or email me at 888-432-3555 ext 224 or buckshon@cnrgp.com for some ideas.

How do you know you've reached the point of transition when you turn from an outsider to an insider? That magic moment occurs when someone you know and respect calls you, without hesitation, and either offers you business without worrying about price, or forwards a referral, seemingly unrequested. At that moment, you can celebrate true marketing and business success.

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Relationships underlying marketing

You achieve the magic construction marketing moment when you reach the level of communication that trust and respect are considered the core of your relationship -- not "selling something".

In fact, I would argue that with rare exceptions you aren't going to sell very much until you achieve this status.

However, you can't usually achieve this high relationship quality by conventional selling practices. I mean, do you really trust someone who telemarkets you, or really believe the advertisements you read?

But it is easy to lapse into the conventional, in fact, it is natural -- you think this is the way it is done, and so do it. You are "marketing" after all.

Yet, when you look at your business, you see that virtually every (profitable) sale you make actually occurs when the relationship founded on trust is so strong that your price doesn't matter. (Well, your price indeed matters, to an extent, because if you have a relationship based on trust, you would never abuse the trust by gouging someone or charging a price outside of the realistic value you are delivering.)

The irony is that our business is primarily selling the standard stuff -- advertising -- but we sell most of what we sell by connecting more closely with our clients and their own relationships.

You probably appreciate these principals if you have built your business in good times by "relying" on referrals. You do your work well, you build the relationships with your clients to such a level, that they tell their friends and colleagues about you, and your order book is full.

Unfortunately, when things slow down, you may be tempted to fall into conventional marketing traps -- or be sold a pile of crap by conventional marketing sales representatives.

How do you get around these marketing myths and achieve meaningful results. I'll go out on a limb and suggest three ideas to follow:

1. Build on your referrals. If you have great client relationships, connect (more closely) with them, in a systematic but human way. You'll achieve far greater results with this form of marketing than any other option.
2. Look at media publicity as the most cost-effective non-referral marketing opportunity available to you. Media publicity can include your own media; namely blogs, videos, and Internet forum participation. It can also be independent editorial coverage in publications, websites and radio/television stations. We make most of our money by providing advertising-supported editorial publicity; done right, this can be a great seed for independent editorial coverage, and is far more effective than conventional advertising.
3. Remember that relationships don't need to correlate directly to any selling or "business development" but you want these relationships to focus within your ideal client community. In other words, focus on giving, sharing, and connecting without worrying about return, but hang out in the right neighbourhoods or with the right business associations.

Does this stuff work? Absolutely. And you don't have to sell a thing to find the clients you really want to serve if you get it right.

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The perfect (and near-perfect) marketing place

The BILDCOttawa event provided plenty of networking opportunities, in a natural environment. Perfect for marketing.

Yesterday afternoon, recovering from my spammy survey market research effort, I attended a perfect marketing event. Perfect for my business, that is. Nevertheless, the event also proved to be near-perfect for most of the other participants.

The event: A BILDCOttawa afternoon panel discussion focusing on the "Anti-Recession Infrastructure Program". BILDCOttawa is a lobbying and information-sharing consortium of associations representing the Ottawa Regional Society of Architects (ORSA), The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) -- Ottawa, the Consulting Engineers of Ontario -- Ottawa Branch, the General Contractors Association of Ottawa (GCAO), and the Iinternational Facilities Management Association (IFMA) -- Ottawa Chapter.

GCAO representatives encouraged me to attend, and organizers made me welcome by waiving the $25.00 fee (which included lunch and dinner). Representatives of several companies providing products and services for facilities management paid to be sponsors and had space for their exhibits.

The meat of the event: Representatives of the Canadian federal government and the City of Ottawa explained exactly how much money they had from anti-recession infrastructure programs, and how they planned to spend the cash. This is golden market research information for the general contractors and architects in the room and great stuff for Ottawa Construction News. (I was the only journalist there.)

I'm sure you don't need to be a rocket scientist to see why this is a perfect marketing venue for me.

• The participants and organizers wanted me to be there because my presence lends support and credibility to their efforts;
• The participants are mostly decision-makers and senior executives within the community of people who can facilitate revenue-generating features and advertising for our publications;
• We were in a warm, educational, and relaxing environment, where we had plenty of opportunity to network, communicate and share stories.
• The event cost me nothing but time (and this time is well spent -- I have significant editorial content for our publications, as well as valuable marketing and sales leads).
• Our presence there creates a positive connection between our publications and the marketplace; in other words, it helps the brand.

In reading these observations you may be saying "good for you, but how does this help my business?" The answer is that you can find similar opportunities, right under your nose, if you look in the right places.

Consider these points:

Association involvement, especially with associations that connect or serve your clients or key influencers, provides powerful marketing opportunities.

You may find you can take things a step further by building liaisons and linkages between your specific trade association or group and client-centric organizations, to create new levels of association involvement, such as BILDCOttawa. Leadership in these endeavors ultimately puts you in the right place, at the right time, among potential clients.

Consider the power of your niche, namely your specific skill or service, and how it applies in the marketplace.

We sell advertising; you might install drywall or build office towers, but you have something of value to offer. Meld this within the association and community framework, and you hit a marketing home run.

Look at the associations named in this article: Yes, they are local, Ottawa chapters, but most are part of associations with chapters in most major cities. In other words, the synergies and inter-relationships here could truly also apply in your own market areas.

From a near-perfect perspective, I don't think the suppliers who paid for exhibit space at this event feel they lost out on the deal. They had direct and immediate access to people who could truly specify their services, and they could overtly promote their services in a meaningful environment.

Regarding my spammy market research test, yesterday's blog entry resulted in some useful emails from readers with practical suggestions and ideas to overcome the marketing challenges exposed by that experiment. This blog's openness may represent one of its most powerful marketing advantages. Bob Kruhm pointed me to this Raintoday.com posting: Using Social Media to Build Trust and a Brand, which explains how blogging and showing your business as it is, warts and all, can be really helpful in your marketing process.

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A tale of two markets

Dinner at the annual Greater Ottawa Home Builders' Association boat cruise. Events like this allow trade contractors and builders to "connect" and develop relationships, which ultimately lead to business opportunities.

On Thursday, I had conversations with two sub contractors, one in Ottawa and the other in suburban Washington D.C. Their stories are like night and day.

(I can't name the contractors here because the successful contractor doesn't wish publicity, and I have a policy not to identify anyone in this blog in a less-than-positive manner.)

The Washington-area contractor is struggling. His daughter-in-law phoned me to ask my advice; she had seen my blog postings about canvassing, but they were having little success.

The contractor, in business many years, claims on his website to be excellent at rapid framing and described success with the hotel and hospitality sector. Now the commercial business bidding opportunities the contractor is receiving bids so low that he cannot hope to make a profit.

"Many residential contractors are getting into the commercial space," he told me. So he decided, since his business can do "anything", that he would embark in the residential market where hopefully the margins could be higher.

I scratched my head. How can someone who has specialized in commercial framing in a bid-for-work environment succeed in the residential space, when (as he said) his residential-side competitors are moving into the commercial markets?

Could he have any chance at success with cold call canvassing for framing services, with a web site touting his company's great work on hotel projects?

"Do you know of any good leads services," he asked, saying he was considering one of the major brand names in the leads services business. I told him the leads would be a waste. 'If the competition is killing you now among commercial clients you know, how will a leads service which sells the same information to dozens of competitors help you?"

A couple of hours later, on the Greater Ottawa Home Builders' Association annual (Ottawa River) boat cruise, I met a sub contractor who specializes in crown mouldings. That is his business, and his only business. And business is good.

"I make a fortune off of the Yellow Pages," he said. This immediately caused my ears to perk up.

What is a contractor whose business is mostly with tract builders doing in the Yellow Pages?

It turns out that the residential clients responding to his Yellow Pages ads are impressed by his service, and his highly competitive prices. "I don't need to bait and switch. My materials are much less expensive because of the volume purchasing for all the home builders I work for. And I tell my Yellow Pages clients that they will have to wait a week or two for service -- then use "fill in time" to accommodate them."

As well, for him, the Yellow Pages aren't a complete waste from an Internet marketing point of view. He has a simple website and a logical URL, so it doesn't take long for people searching for crown mouldings in Ottawa to find him.

Now, lets look more closely at these two businesses. Both are contractors straddling the consumer and commercial markets; both have websites, and both are in cities where the construction market, while greatly diminished by the recession, has not been totally destroyed.

(Certainly, GOHBA boat cruise attendance dropped by 50 per cent from last year, but the builders say they know things are much better here than Toronto or Montreal. Ditto for Washington, compared to the Carolinas and other U.S. markets. Capital cities almost always fare better in recessions than most communities).

But why is one contractor succeeding and the other failing?

Focus

Crown mouldings is a clear niche. Whether you are a home owner, a tract builder, or even a commercial business, if you want crown mouldings, you are not going to go to a generalist who can do "everything". Of course the Washington area contractor had a niche as well, "rapid framing" which is perfect for the high-velocity and tight schedule of hotel construction (I'm writing an article on that sector this month for our Canadian publications). But it doesn't convert very well for the residential market. Are you realistically going to call a renovation contractor whose claim to fame is "rapid framing?"

Rational synergies

The crown mouldings contractor takes his materials volume discounts from home builders and combines it with blocks of "off time" to convert Yellow Pages listing calls to solid revenue. The pieces fit together. Can a "fast framer" used to bid-for-work speed adjust to the pace and cycle of residential renovation without a major business rethink. I think not.

Rational marketing

I believe Yellow Pages advertising is a waste for most contractors, but would never question the crown mouldings contractor's decision to continue using them. They work. And the Yellow Pages advertising requires virtually no management effort, other than writing cheques for the services.

Canvassing can be cheap and fast, at least in terms of hard cost, but how would you respond, as a homeowner, if a canvasser from someone whose website proudly proclaims "fast framing" and hotel work knocked on your door to sell you on "we can do anything around your house?"

Assuming they reached my door, I'd sit outside and try to give them a free lesson in marketing, but they certainly wouldn't get my business.

Can we learn anything from these two stories? The crown mouldings contractor doesn't need any marketing advice from me. He's doing everything right. Even as he earns profitable revenue from the Yellow Pages ads, he is doing the right thing to maintain his business within the tract home builders' market. Remember, I met him on the home builders' association boat cruise as he conversed with current and potential clients.

I spent about an hour on the phone with the Washington-area contractor. His business volume and scope are large enough that he could theoretically qualify for my publishing marketing services, which have a minimum $1,500 fee. But I couldn't in good conscious push him to take up my offer (which includes guidance, consulting, and support far beyond the service itself). The reason: He simply had so far to go to get to the basics of getting it right that my services would be a waste of money for his business.

I told hm he needs to change his website and URL, and he needs to focus on his current clients and learn what they need, and what they read/view and study, and that he needs to learn a lot about focus and niche marketing. (I suggested to his daughter-in-law that she go to the library and look up the book Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind by Al Ries and and Jack Trout.) If he wants to do residential and homeowner work, he will need to ditch the hotel website, or at least set up another business presence focusing on the residential market.

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"Your best marketing investment is time"

Why are golf tournaments, like this annual event from the Greater Ottawa Home Builders' Association, so successful? They provide members the opportunity to connect and be together in a relaxing, social context -- where relationships develop and business opportunities are nurtured.

"Double-A" on contractortalk.com writes:

The best investment I've found you can make in new business development is time. Advertising is great, but people don't like to do business with a flyer, a yellow page ad, or even a coupon. They'd trade all of that for a personal relationship or associating with the owner or an employee.

In other words, a person on the "inside".

Church, kids sports programs, business groups, self improvement groups, etc. are the place to network and meet people. Pass out business cards and "press the flesh". Once folks have met you, and spoken with you, they will remember you with the time comes. All the fancy web sites in the world won't help much when everyone is on the web. Same with yellow pages. A full page ad, the front and/or back cover ad.... all worthless if folks don't feel a connection to your company.

The best new business comes from old business. Mining the customer base. Asking for referrals, calling to check on completed work, asking for new work, etc. are some of the best ways to put raw material into the machine.

Advertising has its place, from a branding stand point, but it should not be the only driver for new business. You should be pulling in as much new business from personal contact as you are from ads, perhaps more. The ads serve to give you a place and to instill a sense of your company "belonging" in and to the community it serves.

Also, the best advertising we do is not in the traditional places. People like to buy from folks just like themselves. This means we seek out ads in church flyers and calendars, sponsor kids sports teams and ball parks bill boards, participate and sponsor food and clothing drives, as well as, volunteer build/paint days with the city, county, etc.

Putting your name out there is a matter of selling your company full time. Advertising is a way to re-enforce what you and your people bring to the job personally and professionally each and every day. I've found that just being there... where ever that might be, is enough to generate leads and really helps to close sales.

"I saw you at my kid's ball game the other day! Does your boy play ball?"
"No, I sponsor your son's team and I go to every game I can. Not as many as I'd like, but I make as many as I can."

With 20-30 kids on the teams, and grand parents factored in, not to mention friends and non-immediate family, I figure I'll meet and talk with 60-80 people a month just from that one sponsorship. Now, how many are "qualified leads"? Dunno and don't care. If they need me, they know I'm there for their kids/grandkids/neighbors/nephew and that I'll be there for them, too.

You can't put that in an ad.

Double-A is right, especially when your market pool is very local or your network of decision-makers is truly exclusive (as is usually the case for significant business-to-business or non-residential work.) However, systematic client-focused advertising developed by a process where you listen to your clients and connect with their interests, is effective when you combine it with healthy personal relationships and community involvement.

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The most effective option for reaching business decision-makers

In a previous posting, I outlined some of the challenges of marketing in the business-to-business space, where decision-makers are few and far between, shielded by gatekeepers, and subject to influencers often outside your visibility or control.

In that posting, I offered some suggestions including speaking, writing, and community service, but left out perhaps the single most valuable resource available to you -- membership and participation in relevant associations.

First, you should consider and engage with the association that parallels this blog's focus, The Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS). The association name more accurately should read: "Society for Marketing Architectural, Engineering and Construction Services" because this multi-chapter organization is focused within the AEC industry, with training resources, conventions, chapter meetings, professional staff and consultants, and a powerful network both online and off.

Second, and a fundamental of business-to-business marketing, you should engage with associations relevant to your clients' own interests. The power of the relationships and connections you can achieve this way cannot be underestimated. Consider this email I received yesterday from Chase, who is on the board of directors of the Barrie Construction Association, within the service area of The GTA Construction Report and Ontario Construction Report.

He spent the day at the association's golf tournament, as a volunteer. (I have removed the names of specific clients for obvious privacy reasons)

Met two advertisers today for two current features . . . and will follow up next week to confirm ad size.

Also meet with two perspective clients for features. (One) client called me last night when he got my message I would be in town for the tournament if he wanted to meet. We did today while he was playing golf, (and are) meeting next Wednesday while I am back in town for BCA Directors meeting.

Also met a new member. . . who wants to do a feature for our August issue . . . Projected revenue from this trip is roughly $4000 ($700 for July and $3300 for August).

Since our business is publishing and selling advertising for the construction industry, not surprisingly, we engage with associations serving the industry. And you can find marketing value within your own relevant trade associations, especially if you are working in other communities and connect through the association's referral network. Your own trade association may also be able to reference you to consultants and other service providers who are familiar with your industry (like us!)

But the really powerful association-based marketing occurs when you reach to your client associations. Can you connect with property managers, builders, developers, school district superintendents, hospitals, and the like? Yes, if you find the right association(s) and get involved.

Note this is not a quick fix. It takes time to build trust and relationships, and you will have an uphill battle if your competitors are already in the space (for their relationships will be well-developed and truly hard to dislodge).

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Associations: Contributing to larger goals

Brian Blackmere, a senior planner with Stantec Consulting's Kitchener, Ontario office, and president of the Waterloo Region Home Builders' Association, in Ottawa for the Canadian Home Builders' Association Urban Council.

Yesterday, Brian Blackmere, the new president of the Waterloo Region Home Builders' Association, met me at a downtown Ottawa hotel. Blackmere is in Ottawa for his final meeting as a member of the Canadian Home Builders' Association Urban Council, which represents CHBA members in larger communities. (The CHBA is similar to the U.S. National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), built on state and grass roots local/regional home builders' associations.

The conversation started with Blackmere citing the current association PR mantra: Members in Ontario, especially are concerned about the impending implementation of the Harmonized Sales Tax, where the federal Goods and Service Tax is to be melded with the former provincial sales tax. The issue of exemptions, and the fact that Renovations are not exempt, is causing anxiety among many builders and renovators, who fear that the underground economy will get a boost.

I pushed back on this and other standard points. Sure, of course, the new tax will cause some challenges, but doesn't it also include built in savings through input tax credits. (Non-Canadian readers reading this blog may be utterly confused by this stuff -- this is always a challenge when reporting on specialized or regional topics.)

We discussed environmental issues, the Not In My Back Yard (NIMBY) issues relating to development, the challenges of defining "affordable" housing, and the huge cost in battling local development charges when they are imposed unfairly. (Blackmere said his association's 230 members tackled a local issue where municipal authorities were trying to use residential development charges to fund the infrastructure costs of an industrial subdivision. This cost the association's 230 membership hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal expenses -- and required significant fee levies distributed in a manner where the biggest builders/developers paid the highest costs.)

Blackmere, a senior planner with Stantec Consulting, said the Edmonton-based multinational recruited him last year from a major local builder to set up the planning division within Stantec's multi-disciplined Kitchener office.

He loves his work, and the challenges involved in juggling his association and business responsibilities. Within the association at the provincial and national levels, he gains insights and ideas about best practices and marketplace solutions he can apply in his home environment.
Relationships count, too.

So, you may be wondering, what does this reporting have to do with Construction Marketing?

Outside of the sales and marketing committees/activities at his and other associations, undoubtedly you can gain knowledge, connections, and relationships through effective association involvement and support, both within your own industry/specialty and (this is most important) that of your clients.

Consider who are the leading influencers, decision-makers, and the most connected people within your market area, and inevitably, you will find they ascend to the helm of their relevant associations, selected by their peers, and with the energy and eagerness to contribute seemingly countless voluntary hours to their causes.

You won't of course hit the jackpot immediately through association involvement. Friendship and trust never build immediately -- and you need to give, share, and contribute before you can even begin to reap the rewards.

But I sense (and my experience tells me) that you will get further by engaging and supporting relevant associations than by trying to learn how to get rich quick on the Internet.

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The recession and the Ontario General Contractors Association

Attendance has declined for the first time in the six year history of the Ontario General Contractors Annual Symposium.

Here are two signs we are in a recession. The number of sponsors who paid money and/or services to market their services to general contractors at the Ontario General Contractors Association Annual Symposium increased to record (I think 59 total) levels. But attendance declined for the first time in the event's six year history. And, perhaps more disturbingly, I saw lots of empty seats at the first night dinner. Could this be a situation like a "sold out" hockey game where people with prepaid seasons tickets didn't show?

This blog entry is on the fly and maybe I have things wrong. But I sense the challenge is stress. As OGCA President Clive Thurston told the gathering, he is noticing a surge of bidding opportunities with new and unfair provisions transferring undue risk to the general contractors and/or requesting far too much information and detail at the initial stage of the bidding process. (The OGCA's position is simple: If the job is a fixed price project, does the owner really need to know how the contractor achieves this price, including the costs and names of individual sub-trades and project components?)

So, if you are a contractor and things aren't going quite right, can you justify the cost (even though it is highly subsidized through sponsorship), of a full day's learning sessions on Friday, plus two nights accommodation at the Blue Mountain Resort? The answer should be, of course "yes" -- with high speed Internet and blackberries you can certainly keep in touch with your business while attending this sort of event -- but the practical aspects of business, stress, and economic restraint still stand in the way of attending.

Of course the converse of low members' attendance is higher sponsorship. If fewer contractors are buying stuff (because they are able to sell less of their services, and often only at margin-busting prices), then the businesses which sell stuff to contractors of course have to work harder to find business themselves. So they engage in the rational marketing approach of reaching out to the relevant market through events like the OGCA Symposium.

As today progresses, I'll test the assumptions in this blog entry. Perhaps I'll edit it tonight rather than leaving it as written for posterity.

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The sixth annual Ontario General Contractors Association Symosium

Here is an electronic copy of the Ontario Construction Report's preview report about the OGCA Symposium

In a few minutes, I'll begin a seven hour drive to Collingwood, Ontario, for the sixth annual Ontario General Contractors' Association (OGCA) Construction Symposium. This rather unique educational conference, which will attract more than 500 general contractors and associated businesses from throughout the province, is a great example of how networking, education, associations, and business development and marketing can be concentrated to create highly effective results.

This year, representing the importance of the event (and the central place of the OGCA in our marketing strategy), our company is one of two Platinum Sponsors for the event, and three of us will attend -- myself, Cindy Pilgrim and Chase. (You can reach them by email by clicking on their names.) I'll be the chief reporter and writer, and am bringing both my digital and video cameras along.

In the business-to-business community especially, associations are often the most effective environment for marketing. For our business, along with others who truly need to reach general contractors to achieve our marketing objectives, this symposium is a near perfect marketing opportunity. We can achieve branding 'presence' but more importantly, have much opportunity for direct interaction and communication with current, former, and potential clients. The sponsorship support and active engagement of many suppliers and participants also keeps the costs for OGCA members low enough that they can easily justify the cost of attending the intensive event.

If you are at the symposium, and wish to share stories, concerns, or insights, please feel free to email me at buckshon@cnrgp.com. I'll text back my cell number and we'll get together. Depending on Internet access limitations at the resort, I'll do my best to communicate some updates as the day progresses, especially tomorrow, though will be 'quiet' during the long drive there today.

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