For Building Material Manufacturers that rely on both direct and indirect sales channels to promote their product platforms like Houzz, Pinterest and Instagram are very powerful. When used right they can be provide a powerful way to meet your customers where they are and market your products to niche professionals online. Building Material Manufacturers are utilizing these social platforms to create a compelling brand story and highlight their products to professionals that end users are looking to hire for residential renovation projects.
It's natural to be overwhelmed with all the digital platforms your brand can live on. Your online presence is one of the most important focuses for lead gen strategies, brand awareness, and maintaining a competitive advantage. Because our clients shared with us their questions about social marketing, we took the time to break down the top three platforms our clients are finding the most success in.
Houzz
Houzz is a platform for interior designers, remodelers, contractors, dealers and homeowners. It lets you market your business online, offering a platform where you can showcase your products and services so that homeowners can find professionals and hire them for their next project. Likely, these professionals will be searching for products like yours for these homeowners. That is where Building Material Manufacturers have an opportunity to use Houzz to connect to these professionals where they can market their products to contractors being hired direct.
Here are a few ways Building Material Manufacturers are utilizing Houzz for their marketing strategies:
Keywords
Tag images with keywords that describe your products accurately including the type of project that the product could be used for. Houzz works like a search engine, so keywords are very important. Think of keywords your customers would use when searching for your products.
Upload High-Resolution Photos
Before and after photos are a big hit on the app. Be sure to also tag the photos with quality keywords for search purposes. It is recommended to share photos of your products, but also sharing other quality photos of other great work. This shows variety and potential to inspire others to get creative with your product and can spark ways to connect further.
Include Create Ideabooks to collaborate with users:
With Ideabooks you can collect inspiration and show your style and collaborate on a project virtually with your client. You have the option to make them public or private. You can upload your own photos or find photos on the website - be sure to use proper keywords for when users are searching they can find you easily.
Ask for reviews
People hardly buy anything online anymore with positive reviews attached to a product. You can ask other professionals you have collaborated with in the past to leave you a review. Reaching out to current customers is a great way to boost reviews. The more reviews the higher your product will appear in search results.
Be responsive
On Houzz users can ask questions, so it is important you respond promptly and answer all questions being asked.
Wear your Houzz Badge Proudly
Houzz offers a button you can sport on your website. This badge will show customers you are on the platform and link them back to your Houzz page where they can learn more about your products.
Pinterest is a visual platform that allows you to create and share new ideas by posting or pinning images and videos to a pinboard. The platforms reach to professionals looking for Building Materials is massive, with over 100 million active users, there is a huge opportunity to engage and inspire architects, contractors, and homeowners with your products.
- Make Pinterest Shareable
- Variety is key. Stray from only showcasing your products instead share inspirational projects that are equally as impressive.
- Build a community with group boards. This is a great way to meet other users and share industry knowledge and exposure.
- Pin well and rank high. The key words you use for each board are important if you want them to be seen. Describe the content behind the pin, but ensure the terms are what other people may typically use.
- CTA's: Pins with descriptions and attention grabbing questions with hashtags will direct the user where to go after viewing the pin.
Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms. More than 1 billion users are searching and discovering new images, videos, brands and content daily. Users are discovering new products and visiting the platforms business accounts often. Having an instagram account is vital for Building Material Manufacturers, especially if your target is architects, who are constantly looking for inspiring images.
Instagram GRid
Your Instagram grid is extremely important. Your photos should be cohesive, clear and consistent otherwise people may not be inclined to follow your account. Be sure to use a camera phone that takes high-quality photos when taking photos on the fly for real time updates. Take advantage of Instagrams editing tool to clean up your pictures.
This Instagram account, by Comex is a great example for how to take consistent and quality photos highlighting your products while also making it easy on the user to shop and find what they need.
Show who you are in a creative way
Always highlight solutions that you can provide your professional customers, rather than simply advertising the products you have. Images on your account don't always have to be your products or come from your factory. You can highligh customers work by posting images of buildings that have used your products. It can be useful for architects to see other architects work in different applications.
Post Videos
Videos receive twice the amount of comments as other posts. Videos can help show a more human side of your brand from taking your followers behind-the-scenes to filming your team working in the factory. Be sure to take advantage of Instagram stories to distribute content and generate brand awareness. You can reach professional clients while they are exploring similar content on the platform.
Engagement
Measuring engagement allows you to know if you are reaching the right audience with your brand and if your content is relevant to them. To build better engagement you have to interact with your audience. Create community by mentioning users and other companies in comments, etc.
Hashtags
Using hashtags correctly can expose your brand to new audiences and a wider range of people that care about your niche. Do your research and find which hashtags may best fit the content you are promoting. Creating a branded hashtag unique to your business is also a great tactic for quick access to your posts.
Consistency
Timing and consistency are how you can thrive on social platforms like Houzz, Pinterest and Instagram. Consider creating content for a few posts out so you have things ready to go. The more quality content the more opportunity to get in front of your audience. If you aren't utilizing these platforms yet as a Building Material Manufacturer we highly encourage you to use these tips and start promoting your brand where your audience is, online.
