Construction Company CEOs, You’re Wasting Money on Marketing
Here’s how you can plug some of those leaks and continue growing profitably
Newsflash! It’s 2022 and there is A TONNE of fires to put out! Material costs are wild, supply chain issues, Covid regulations that are changing damn near every day, and don’t even get me started on the labor market!
I think it is safe to say that as a CEO, you have more than enough on your plate. However, you still need to GROW your business which means putting a cap on wasteful spending. I’m specifically talking about the money that you’re spending on marketing that does not work. Here’s how you can claw back some of that cash:
STOP hiring college kids to run your social media accounts. It doesn’t work and it’s wasteful. I get it, they’re your nieces and nephews and they know all the cool moves and understand all the new platforms that popped up seemingly overnight. And yes, their skills are impressive however in order to grow your business, you need more than views and likes. Your social media activity must be tied to a comprehensive marketing strategy that creates meaningful relationships and converts fans into buyers. Anything short of that is a waste of money.
STOP paying for marketing that is not data-driven. I’m talking about ad space in a physical magazine or newspaper, roadside signs, event sponsorships, etc. Now, don’t get me wrong, these are all great places to advertise. The problem is that a lot of business owners are only guessing that their customers are going to see and respond to their advertising. They have not taken the time to document exactly who their customers are, where they hang out and what they read. There is no evidence that your magazine ad is profitable because you don’t know who is seeing it. This is what I call “Hail Mary Marketing”. Until you have gathered data that indicates with certainty that your advertising is going to be profitable, don’t pay for it.
STOP trying everything all at once. It is tempting when you go to events and webinars to jump on to the next great thing. And everyone seems to be doing it so why not? But then how will you know what’s working and what’s wasting your money? This is a sure way to end up frustrated and broke. Don’t do it.
So what should you do instead? Here’s what I recommend you start doing to turn a profit from your marketing investment.
Hire a marketing professional to create a strategy that uses a proven framework. This should be tailored to YOUR business goals and the way that you operate. It should also include a documented customer journey, actionable metrics, and the specific tools and tactics that you need to implement in order to achieve those goals. Once you have a comprehensive strategy, then feel free to hire your niece or nephew to implement the social media piece of it and make sure that they track and report performance back to you.
Take the time to document who your customers REALLY are. And not just their age group and their neighborhood, you need to go deeper than that. Know what their goals and values are, where do they hang out? which books do they read? which influencers do they follow? what frustrates or angers them? etc. This is the most important exercise in marketing and is literally going to save you money when it comes to choosing where to spend your advertising dollars. When you know who your customers are, you can have confidence in choosing the right media to target them and the return on investment will be unmistakable. Here’s a worksheet to get you started on documenting your customer avatar.
Optimize one channel at a time. The best place to start is with what’s working for you right now. If you’re getting a good amount of leads from conferences or events, focus on how to convert more of those leads into buyers. One way is to capture their email addresses so you can implement an automated email marketing campaign. Send them content that answers their burning questions, showcases your previous projects, and promotes your customer testimonials. Doing this one thing will double the number of leads that convert into buyers. Once you have exploited that single source of leads to its full potential, then you can expand into new channels.
Remember that great marketing is profitable. If you’re not certain that your marketing is working, then stop paying for it.