The process of content marketing for building materials should fall under the same category as any other B2B business where information is king. Before buyers consider buying your building materials, they want to know more about your product. Online discussions are a great way to reach these buyers with content they will value.
Thanks to different channels available online, you can consolidate digital marketing and direct communication with potential clients. Through this process, you can start discussions and find out exactly what buyers want in the way of building materials. As a result, you can instantly market yourself without using hard-sell tactics.
Nowadays, hard-sells have the look of spam, so the concept of a conversation online works much differently. Where can you start online discussions with potential leads so you provide information and gain important buyer information at the same time?
Building Materials Social Media
Even with limitations for word count, social media is still the best place to hold conversations about anything. While you may think most popular conversations are only about pop culture on places like Twitter, a hashtag search for terms related to building materials will likely surprise you. Twitter has conversations going about virtually every subject, and you’re likely to see more than one discussion about your product category.
When you see a conversation underway, it’s best to make it natural as you would if meeting someone in person. You probably wouldn’t do a hard-sell tactic in a real-life scenario, and you shouldn’t do one on social media. Just show that you’re knowledgeable about the building materials industry first. Those you converse with will likely follow you automatically where they’ll also see all your posted marketing content later.
It works the same on places like Facebook where you can answer questions through your direct messages. In the B2B industry, prospective buyers want to ask plenty of questions about various product features, especially how your materials get made and what ingredients you use. With many buyers concerned about sustainable materials, they also want to know how green your company is.
Don’t wait to get back to those who ask questions on social media. No matter if you have to give short answers, getting back to them within the same day is essential. In direct messages, you can also engage in further discussions with individuals if they need several questions answered.
Third-Party Forums
Do a Google search for third-party discussion forums related to the building material industry. You’ll find numerous ones out there, and it’s a perfect place to hold more lengthy discussions with people who matter. Most discussion forums don’t have word count limitations, so you can really show your expertise here.
Don’t limit these forum discussions to just one place. The more you can post on with expert information, the more people will connect with you, even if you shouldn’t hard-sell here either. Place a link in your profile to your website, and other posters will visit you based on your proven knowledge in your posts.
Q&A Sites
These sites are sometimes poked fun at, especially Yahoo! Answers. Other Q&A sites exist that are more professional for specific industries. Scope out ones related to the construction industry and go on them to answer any questions. Leave behind contact information so those who left the question can get back to you.
A lot of people who buy in the B2B industry seek out information from third-party sites, including places that collect reviews. It doesn’t hurt to encourage past buyers to leave reviews about your building material quality.
How Building Materials Companies Can Monitor Online Discussions.
Google Alerts, Mention.com, or Follow.net can be used to uncover and monitor not so common online communities discussing your company’s or competitor’s building products. This will help you rank for long-tail keywords.
Contact us if you’d like help in your digital marketing efforts for your building materials company. We’ll show you how important online discussions are for the ultimate in buyer trust.
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