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You are here: Home / Archives for A/E/C

Jan 02 2019

Stop! Should You Really Submit that Proposal?

 
By Scott D. Butcher, FSMPS, CPSM

Note: this blog post originally appeared as a LinkedIn Article as “Proposals: Red Flags and Dirty Tricks.”

If you’ve spent any amount of time creating proposals, then you’ve undoubtedly seen all sorts of questionable behavior by proposal requestors. Sure, they send out an RFP (or post it online), asking for responses, acting like they want many proposals in order to make an informed decision. And then then they create traps to disqualify those proposals so they don’t have to read them. Some common approaches:

  • Extremely tight proposal deadlines making it almost impossible to respond
  • Limited number of pages, making it almost impossible to be responsive to the RFP criteria
  • Strict requirements on font, point size, spacing, etc. – little things that make it easy to get your proposal disqualified (“You used 10-point font size? Off with your head!”)
  • Vague language with no knowledgeable person to contact for clarity
  • Highly restrictive requirements for staff experience, license/certification, or relevant past experience
  • Outrageous project schedule requirements or contract terms (that may not even be insurable)
  • Continually revising the RFP and changing the requirements / scope while not changing the due date

These are all red flags that demonstrate the pitfalls of responding to a proposal unless you really know the client/agency and have an established rapport with them. That’s not to say that you need to have a deep relationship with every client you submit a proposal to (how often are the final decision makers / selection committee members “hidden” to the proposers, anyway?), or even that a good relationship would prevent some of these behaviors. Rather, these are clues that if you’re not “in the know” about the opportunity, then you shouldn’t waste your time submitting a proposal (the proposal requestor doesn’t want it, anyway!).

In many cases, your competitor very well may have written the RFP document. They wrote it so restrictively that only their firm could check all the boxes! And you know what? You’d do the same thing if given the opportunity (and many of us have). However, there’s also a trap here. Another bad behavior you’ll come across is the proposal requestor that reaches out to you for a proposal and detailed scope of work to a project that may not be well-defined. “What do you think this project will take?”, they ask. And then after you spend many hours pulling something together, everything goes quiet – or you get ghosted. You thought you had a 95% probability of being awarded the project, yet they won’t even return your calls or emails. And then, low and behold, one day an email arrives from that prospect. Unfortunately, it contains a Request for Proposal which just happens to include that detailed scope of work you developed – almost verbatim. And they sent the RFP to your competitors, as well. So essentially you did all the legwork for the RFP, and now you have to bid to get the project.

Most of my time is spent in the architecture, engineering, and construction (#AEC) space, but I’ve been involved with proposals from other perspectives as well, particularly in the nonprofit realm. Recently I saw some of the same old red flags and dirty tricks in an RFP – as well as a new one! These included:

  • Sending RFPs to groups that had no business in actually responding – they didn’t have the qualifications or the capacity
  • Including RFP requirements so time-consuming that it would be impossible to comply in the allotted time
  • Including RFP requirements so cost-prohibitive that few (if any) recipients could submit a truly responsive proposal

You may be shaking your head because you’ve seen this kind of thing before. But here’s the new one:

  • Not publishing any limitations on word count or file size (only that the proposal must be electronically delivered in a single Word document), and then rejecting any file 1 MB or larger at submission

So you could spend weeks working on the proposal, trying to cross as many t’s and dot as many i’s as possible (not that it was possible to get them all!), finalize the proposal just before the deadline (the world most of us work in), click the link to upload the file, and only once you have attempted to submit the file find out that there is a limitation on file size!

I don’t have a fundamental problem with file size limitations, but there are two glaring issues here:

  1. Not making proposers aware of any file size limits in advance.
  2. Requiring files to be less than 1 MB – what is this, 1993?

The average smart phone photo is probably 2 or 3 MB – no different than it was in the early days of smart phones, thus a 1 MB file is small by today’s standards. For most proposals, it’s downright tiny. Therefore, a 1 MB file size limit would be a “red flag” had it been published to proposers. Not disclosing that limit and essentially using it as a way to reject proposals is a downright “dirty trick”!

You can argue whether there was Machiavellian intent, or it was simple ignorance that caused the issue. However, when you look at the other red flags – before even getting to this little trick – you can clearly see that the proposal requestor had little interest in actually receiving any proposals.

They had already pre-ordained the winner – and perhaps the “winner” was the status quo. (A colleague once told me that the biggest competitor will always be the status quo.)

If you make the RFP so restrictive, invite unqualified groups to submit, and then create a layer of “security” to disqualify any potentially-responsible proposals, it’s easy to say, “We didn’t receive any proposals that met our criteria, so we are going to (fill in the blank).”

And in this case, the blank may be “proceed as planned,” “stay with our current firm,” or “not move forward with the project/initiative.”

Downstream, however, there’s a feeling of frustration, disappointment, even dejection. Large amounts of time have been wasted in pursuit of an opportunity that was never going to pan out. The opportunity costs can be staggering when this kind of thing happens.

I’m a big proponent of making quality, objective Go/No-Go decisions based upon data and facts (as opposed to the all-too-common subjective, “Sure we can do that!” decisions). And yet, there are many red flags that go unnoticed or are intentionally ignored, costing organizations huge wheelbarrows of cash and their employees massive black holes of productive time.

What are some of the proposal red flags and dirty tricks that you’ve seen?

Interested in upping your proposal game? jdbIQity offers a four-hour proposal workshop for project managers and marketing professionals to learn about best practices and proposal trends. Contact Scott Butcher at sbutcher@jdbe.com or 717-434-1543 to learn more.

Connect with Scott

  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdbutcher
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/scottdbutcher

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Written by Scott Butcher · Categorized: A/E/C Industry Posts, Business Development, JDB IQity, Marketing, Proposals, Trends · Tagged: A/E/C, Marketing, Proposal, Proposals

Dec 17 2018

Seller-Doer Tools: Networking (Free Book)

Networking Skills for A/E/C Professionals

By Scott D. Butcher, FSMPS, CPSM

In previous posts within the Seller-Doer Tools series, we looked at several techniques that involve limited personal interaction with prospects and clients – content marketing, which takes many forms including blogs, and social media, which is a way to connect with prospects online and create a “virtual network.” We also looked at warm calling, leveraging a relationship or knowledge to make a connection that isn’t totally cold, and account mining, which entails developing deeper relationships with existing clients.

This post is focused on an extremely effective tool for establishing new relationships and enhancing existing ones: networking.

This also happens to be a tool that many professionals fear unnecessarily, primarily because they’ve never been properly taught how to network. There’s too much “stranger danger” apprehension among technical professionals, and a persistent misconception that networking is only for extroverts. In reality, introverts and ambiverts possess the skill set to be very effective networkers. Furthermore, you are networking every day, whether you realize it or not! You already know how to do it!

There are many resources available to help you become a skilled networker, but A/E/C industry-specific options are minimal, and many of the resources don’t delve deeply into real-world scenarios and recommendations.

Networking for A/E/C Professionals by Scott D. Butcher, FSMPS, CPSM

That’s why I wrote this free ebook, Networking for A/E/C Professionals: A Blueprint for Seller-Doers. Like several of my other books, the content began life as an educational presentation, later evolving into a book. The guide contains more than 150 tips to help you through the networking process, from pre-event planning to the event itself to post-event follow-up. You’re only as strong as your network, and thus networking skills are critical at every stage of your career, whether looking for your first job, advancing within your company, or running your own firm.

Please download the ebook by clicking on the link or image above, and feel free to share the download link with your colleagues. If you prefer a hard copy, you can order one here.

Rather than reiterate the content of the book, I want to briefly address the “why,” “what,” and “where” of networking. You could literally attend a different networking event every night of the week, every week of the month. But who wants to do that? Knowing the right places to connect is just as important as possessing great networking skills.

As Simon Sinek likes to say, “Start with why.” That’s a good place for you to begin, too. Why are you attending the networking function? There are myriad reasons:

  • Become better known in the community – meet local leaders
  • Develop firm name recognition
  • Build your personal brand
  • Meet prospective clients
  • Meet “influencers” and “connectors” – people who can help your firm gain new commissions and meet the right people
  • Gain competitive intelligence
  • Find potential teaming partners
  • Meet potential future employers
  • Catch up with friends and colleagues
  • Fill in the blank: ________

Once you determine the “why” of networking, you must next determine the “what.” What are you hoping to get out of attending an event? What is your goal? There’s an opportunity cost associated with networking – both in terms of company activities and personal time. If you haven’t articulated the “what,” don’t go. Your time is way too valuable.

After you’ve established answers to the “why” and “what” questions, the final question to answer is “where?” Where do you need to be to accomplish your “why” and “what”?

If you want to network with local leaders, then perhaps a local chamber of commerce event, economic development organization program, or service club meeting (Rotary, Sertoma, Kiwanis, Lions) makes sense.

Conversely, if you are looking for teaming partners, you may want to focus on A/E/C industry organizations like SMPS, AIA, ACEC, AGC, USGBC, ULI, etc. For those firms doing federal government work, the Society of American Military Engineers (SAME) is a great place to develop teaming relationships. These same organizations also provide excellent networks if you are looking for a job.

Prospective clients often gather in their own affinity groups. Some organizations cross multiple industries, like the International Facilities Management Association (IFMA), while others are very industry-specific, like APPA for higher education (formerly known as the Association for Physical Plant Administrators) and ASHE / American Society for Healthcare Engineering for health care.

There are many tradeshows and conferences serving the various industries, and these provide fertile ground for networking. There may even be local, regional, and national conferences and expos to consider, depending upon your reasons for wanting to network and the geographic territory you’re focusing on. In the marketing vernacular, this is your target market. Define your target market demographics (industry, organization type, organization size, geographic location, contact profile, etc.), and then focus your networking activities there.

Once you figure out why you are networking, what you are trying to accomplish, and where you should be, you can then start to plan your networking activities and build upon your skill set.

That’s where Networking for A/E/C Professionals: A Blueprint for Seller-Doers comes in. The content is broken down into easy-to-digest sections:

  • Why Networking is Important
  • What Networking Is & Isn’t
  • Who Belongs in Your Network?
  • Before the Event
  • Know Thyself
  • During the Event
  • How to Determine if Someone Belongs in Your Network
  • Potential Stories to Bring
  • After the Event
  • Grow & Nurture Your Network

The book is formatted for those of us with short attention spans – 150+ ideas/recommendations, each with a few supporting paragraphs. That way you can go back again and again to use it as a refresher!

The book also contains a list of more than 70 affinity organizations and societies, borrowed from another one of my books (Reputation Design+Build: Creating Winning Personal Brands for Engineering, Design & Construction Professionals). Additionally, you’ll find a list of resources – books that will further enhance your networking abilities should you wish to elevate your knowledge. From the back-cover, the four primary reasons you may want to read the book:

  • Discover the networking techniques that you feel most comfortable with
  • Learn to utilize networking tools to expand your contact base and develop deeper relationships
  • Analyze your current network of contacts to determine who belongs in it and how it can grow
  • Identify the most important contacts in your network and develop a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) program to maintain regular contact

The book link is a direct download, not hidden behind a wall (no personal information required), so what are you waiting for? And again, please share the link (or this blog post) with your friends and colleagues who could use a refresher or need to sharpen their networking skills!

Once you’ve read it, drop me a note to let me know your thoughts. Do you have some great networking tips or lessons learned along the way? What tips worked best? I also offer a half-day networking skills workshop and would be happy to discuss it with you. Reach me at 717-434-1543 or sbutcher@jdbe.com.

Connect with Scott

  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdbutcher
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/scottdbutcher

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Written by Scott Butcher · Categorized: Business Development, JDB IQity, Marketing, Networking, Seller-Doer · Tagged: A/E/C, Business Development, Business Networking, Networking, Seller-Doer

Nov 07 2018

The State of the A/E/C Industry

State of the A/E/C Industry

By Scott D. Butcher, FSMPS, CPSM

What are the current economic conditions within the architecture, engineering, and construction industry? How are the market sectors and geographic regions performing?

There are quite a few indicators that track the health of the industry, and we’ve gathered many of the major metrics in one place to make your environmental scanning easy as you head into planning for 2019!

Click on the image to enlarge the State of the A/E/C Industry infographic, or surf here for a downloadable PDF for sharing!

Architectural Billings

State of A/E/C Industry - ABI

The first stop on this tour of the A/E/C industry’s economic health is the American Institute of Architects’ Architectural Billings Index (ABI), which is broken into several categories. Overall, the ABI for billings is at 51.1 for the latest month. As the ABI is a diffusion index, any score above 50.0 demonstrates growth over the prior month, while any score below indicates decline. The most current data available is for September 2018, and the score of 51.1 demonstrates a billings increase over August. However, the August score was 54.2, so we know that although the billings continue to increase, there is a decreasing rate of growth.

The AIA tracks Design Contracts and Project Inquiries as well. While billings is a lagging indicator – that is, the work has already happened – Design Contracts are very much a real-time indicator, capturing what is happening right now. In August, there was a retraction in contracts with a score of 49.6. However, the index rebounded in September with a score of 54.1, a significant jump. Project Inquiries is a leading indicator of future workload. The September score of 58.8 is impressive, building upon the 58.0 score of the prior month.

Additionally, with the latest ABI survey, the AIA asked architects about revenues for the year, and as an average, AIA members are projecting a net revenue growth of 7.5% for the year.

State of A/E/C Industry - ABI Geographic

The ABI is also broken into four large geographic regions. Three of the four experienced billings growth in September:

  • Midwest = 59.7 (52.5 in August)
  • West = 51.3 (54.2 in August)
  • South = 54.1 (57.0 in August)

The Midwest experienced a major increase in growth, while the West and South both reported slowing growth. However, the Northeast did not fare as well, seeing a steeper decline in billings than it had the prior month:

  • Northeast = 46.6 (46.9 in August)

State of A/E/C Industry - ABI Sector

In addition to geographic regions, the ABI is also broken into major market sectors as follows:

  • Commercial/Industrial = 50.8 (53.6 in August)
  • Institutional = 55.1 (52.3 in August)
  • Residential = 54.9 (55.6 in August)

All markets experienced an increase in billings in September, although the growth in Commercial/Industrial as well as Residential billings slowed compared to the August data.

A/E/C Employment Trends

State of A/E/C Industry - Architectural Employment

The next series of charts depicts the employment trends for A/E/C firms, based upon data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. All three data sets demonstrate healthy growth over the past year, although architectural employment, as well as engineering and drafting employment, both depict summer peaks and autumn declines. This is typical of prior years.

State of A/E/C Industry - Engineering Employment

Architectural employment in July hit its highest number since November 2008. Likewise, engineering employment hit a new peak in August. Construction employment has not seen the autumn decline of architecture/engineering, and October data shows the highest employment figure since April 2008.

State of A/E/C Industry - Construction Employment

Please note that the figures for September and October 2018 are preliminary.

Confidence & Momentum

State of A/E/C Industry - Consumer Confidence

Consumer Confidence in the United States, as tracked by The Conference Board, reached an 18-year high in October 2018 with a 2.6 point increase over September.

State of A/E/C Industry - Construction Confidence

There’s also an industry-specific confidence metric, published by Associated Builders and Contractors and known as the ABC Construction Confidence Index (CCI). The ABC index is broken into Sales Expectations and Profit Margin (as well as Staffing Levels), and is a quarterly metric. Second quarter data from 2018 was released in late September, and is the most current period available. Like the AIA’s ABI, the data utilizes a diffusion index, with any score above 50.0 demonstrating an increase over the prior period. Survey participants are asked about their expectations for the forthcoming six months.

The CCI for Sales Expectations climbed to 72.6 in the second quarter, up from an already-impressive 72.2. Likewise, the CCI for Profit Margin climbed to 64.5, up from 63.4 in the first quarter. The CCI for Staffing Levels (not shown) fell back slightly, from 70.2 to 69.5, but this figure is still historically high according to ABC.

State of A/E/C Industry - Dodge Index

Another relevant metric is published by Dodge Data & Analytics, known as the Dodge Momentum Index. The index is published monthly and the prior month is often revised at the same time. Dodge further breaks the data into Commercial Building and Institutional Building.

The overall figure for September demonstrates a decline of 2.6% in the index, with Commercial Buildings down 4.3% and Institutional Buildings down 0.1%. This was the second straight month of decline, although the third quarter figure is up from the second quarter. Because the index tracks the first, or initial, report of a nonresidential construction project in the planning stage, a handful of large projects can influence the index from month-to-month. Overall, the trend for the year is still positive. For benchmarking, the year of 2000 represents a Momentum Index reading of 100. This index is an indicator of future construction.

Spending, Backlog & More

Construction Put in Place is a data set published monthly by the US Census Bureau. Although it is a lagging indicator – construction has occurred – it is a useful metric for trending, and also provides a way to analyze the activity in 16 market sectors.

State of A/E/C Industry - Construction Put in Place

The data is reported two ways; first, the current month is compared with the prior month. Second, the current month is compared with the same month the prior year. For this report, I’m using the year-over-year comparison, which demonstrates that 14 of 16 markets have experienced growth over the past 12 months.

Only Communications and Religious facilities saw declines over a year ago. Furthermore, seven sectors saw double-digit growth in September 2018, compared with September 2017.

Overall, the metric is showing an 8.9% increase in Construction Put in Place compared with a year ago. Water Supply, Conservation & Development, Transportation, and Lodging were the biggest gainers, while Commercial, Manufacturing, and Health Care saw the smallest levels of growth. This data demonstrates an increase in infrastructure construction – something that has been talked about for years.

State of A/E/C Industry - Construction Spending

Another metric reported by the US Census Bureau is US Nonresidential Construction Spending, and again it is compared against the previous month as well as 12 months prior. Although the data shows a decrease in construction spending from August 2018 to September 2018, there is significant growth over September 2017.

State of A/E/C Industry - Construction Backlog

In addition to the Construction Confidence Index, ABC also publishes a quarterly Construction Backlog Indicator, broken into regions and project types. The columns on this chart demonstrate the average backlogs in months, while the circles depict variances from the previous quarter, in percent.

The average backlog is now 9.9 months, which is a new high for this index. Note that this data is for the second quarter, which is the most current data available. This is also an increase of 12.2% over the previous quarter.

Broken into regions, firms in the South are experiencing the largest backlog levels, slightly more than 11 months. The Middle States region tracked by ABC is the only geographic area not seeing double-digit backlog figures, and also the only region to see a decline, although slight, over the prior quarter.

Firms operating in all three market sectors tracked by ABC experienced growth in backlogs, with both Commercial/Institutional and Infrastructure firms seeing backlogs of just over 10 months. Firms operating in the Heavy Industrial sector report backlog averages of 7.8 months; however, this is a jump of 33% over the prior quarter.

State of A/E/C Industry - Open Construction Jobs

One final metric tracked in this report is open US Construction Sector Jobs, based upon data from multiple sources including the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The figure for August 2018 – the most current available – was 298,000 open jobs, significantly up from the 215,000 figure of August 2017. This trend is not new, although it appears to be picking up speed as construction firms across the country continue to struggle with finding qualified employees. In addition to negatively impacting construction firms’ ability to pursue and deliver projects, the worker shortage also appears to be leading to increased wages, potentially driving inflation growth in construction costs. Stay tuned to see what impact this trend will have on the A/E/C industry.

There’s our latest A/E/C environmental scan. Are there other metrics that you regularly track?

Are you pulling together your strategic and marketing plans for 2019? Need help with planning or facilitation? Contact me at 717-434-1543 or sbutcher@jdbe.com to discuss how jdbIQity can help position your firm for a successful year (and beyond)!

Connect with Scott

  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdbutcher
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/scottdbutcher

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Written by Scott Butcher · Categorized: A/E/C Industry Posts, JDB IQity, Marketing, Trends · Tagged: A/E/C, Architecture, Construction, Economics, Engineering, Environmental Scan, Trends

Oct 25 2018

The Secret Value-Add to Your Project Team: You

by Scott D. Butcher, FSMPS, CPSM

I’ve been a member of the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) for more than 25 years, and in that time I’ve contributed more than a dozen articles (solo or with co-authors) to Marketer, The Journal of the Society for Marketing Professional Services.

Below you’ll find my latest article, “The Secret Value-Add to Your Project Team: You.” The article looks at ways that marketing and business development professionals in A/E/C firms can engage with project teams to offer expanded services – billable or value-added – on projects. These include a number of approaches:

  • Provide content for client social media, eblasts, and newsletters
  • Conduct market research for the project
  • Help the client plan and manage events
  • Write or ghost write op-eds for the newspaper
  • Assist the client with media relations
  • Develop project presentations and videos
  • Prepare project talking points and value messages
  • Serve as project photographer / videographer
  • Manage components of the project that are beyond a typical design and construction project
  • Develop project graphics and signage
  • Create a project website to inform stakeholders
  • Serve as spokesperson for the project
  • Facilitate stakeholder meetings or community charrettes

The article also includes thoughts from Mandy Arnold, president of Gavin, a digital public relations and marketing agency serving firms in a number of industries, including A/E/C. Check it out:

Secret Value Add Article

Secret Value-Add

 

Copyright info for the article: ©Marketer, The Journal of the Society for Marketing Professional Services, October 2018, www.smps.org.

Connect with Scott

  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdbutcher
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/scottdbutcher

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Written by Scott Butcher · Categorized: JDB IQity, Marketing, Project Management · Tagged: A/E/C, Marketing, Project Management

Jul 18 2018

Seller-Doer Tools: Content Marketing

 

Content Marketing

by Scott D. Butcher, FSMPS, CPSM

In a prior post, we looked at the value of social media and social selling as a business development tool for seller-doers. In this post we’re going to review a related, but totally different approach: content marketing.

Sometimes referred to as education-based marketing, inbound marketing, or thought leadership marketing, the idea behind content marketing is to provide interesting, useful information – aka, “content” – to your target audience. This is often accomplished via blogs, but can really be online or offline, and include:

  • Online
    o Blogs
    o Ebooks
    o Whitepapers
    o Video
    o Infographics
    o Social Media Posts & Comments
  • Offline
    o Articles
    o Books
    o Presentations
    o Panel Discussions

This is not an all-inclusive list, but does cover the primary content approaches. You have knowledge, and the process of sharing that knowledge with your target audience can open new doors and even generate leads and new business. That’s the essence of this seller-doer tool: “Build it and they will come.” (Of course, it’s not quite that easy!)

Before the era of blogs and social media, I was a big fan of content marketing, although I never called it that. Writing articles for business journals, trade publications, society journals, and company newsletters were a way to provide value and demonstrate thought leadership. Likewise, giving presentations to professional and client organizations or participating in panel discussions were effective approaches to building credibility and gaining a new audience.

These approaches still work, and should be a critical component of any content marketing campaign. Furthermore, the online content approaches of today often lead to opportunities for offline content sharing. For example, you write a blog and one of your readers invites you to speak to their organization or requests that you submit to speak at a forthcoming conference.

JT 26 wk Preemie

I was blogging before I really knew I was blogging. In 2007, my son was born severely premature (14 weeks early, 19.2 ounces). He would go on to spend 124 days in the NICU, and I needed a way to communicate with family and friends. Our third day in the NICU, one of the nurses told me about Caring Bridge, and how I could provide information on that website and share the URL with people, thus updating everyone at once. I thought it was brilliant, and soon began making regular updates. Too regular, in fact. If I would miss posting one day, the next day I would be flooded with calls and emails asking if something was wrong. People became so used to watching for updates: they were subscribing to receive them via email, and sharing the URL with friends. Soon our guest book was filled with well-wishes from people we had never met. Our little blog – written in my son’s voice – was going viral!

A few months after my son “graduated” from the NICU, I was talking with the editor of our local newspaper, and he asked if I had ever blogged. I said no, but then told him about my Caring Bridge experience. He responded, “Scott, you’re already a blogger!” And soon I was blogging about historic architecture for the newspaper website. That was in 2007, and few of us were on Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter yet.

Today, there are many more online tools at our disposal! Today, I can write a blog for the company website, then promote it via my social media feeds. My connections might like or share my social media comment, or post a direct link to my blog, thus exposing it to their network – and many people that I don’t know.

Social sharing is an excellent way to expand your network and gain new connections; however, the foundation for social sharing is quality content. I’ve been the sales and marketing blogger for Engineering News-Record since 2014. A recent post about business development trends led to 25 new A/E/C connections on LinkedIn. I’m an “open networker” for A/E/C – the people I connect with virtually might have a need for JDB Engineering’s services, or might invite me to speak at a conference, or might want jdbIQity to help with marketing consulting or training. In other words, it is important for me to continually expand my network – online and off. (And with networking, sharing is a two-way street, but we’ll save that for a future post!)

At JDB Engineering, we had been dabbling with a blog for several years. We had a handful of staff members that would get excited about blogging, write a few, and then be finished with it. However, when we refreshed our brand in 2016, we knew that we needed to elevate our marketing game. JDB Engineering’s slogan of “Engineering with Creativity, Leadership by Design” essentially evolved to become our mission. But it needed proof. In 2017, we concluded that a content marketing campaign was exactly what was required to promote our brand and expand our network. So we launched a campaign in November, with a goal to produce regular, informative content (3-4 posts per month).

Six months in, we’ve seen our website traffic more than triple. We’ve generated a few leads. We’ve gained first page listings on Google for several keywords. But content marketing is a marathon, and for us it has just begun.

When I talk to industry professionals about the seller-doer model, and how content can be a useful tool, I’m often met with skepticism. “That will never work,” they say.

They’re wrong. It will and does work; however, consistency is key. One blog or article a year is simply not enough. Nor is an occasional presentation. In the advertising world, they used to talk about the “Rule of 7”; that is, someone must hear a marketer’s message at least seven times before they remember it. That “rule” apparently dates from the 1930s, when there were a lot fewer marketing messages competing for our attention. The Rule of 7 has been adopted for other functions, too, like it takes seven attempts for a seller to contact a prospect before they get through, or a seller must speak with seven prospects to get a meeting with one. Or, insert the version you’ve heard here.

Sometimes the Rule of 7 is the Rule of 10 or even 12.

What really matters is the “spirit” of the rule: you need regular messaging to gain attention. In the context of content marketing, it means that you need regular blogs, or social media posts, or presentations, to generate name recognition and create demand.

Before choosing to move forward with a content marketing program, there are several basic questions you must first address:

  • What is the Purpose? Why are you doing this? What is the endgame?
  • Who is your Audience? Is there a certain industry or position that you are targeting?
  • What is the Stage of the Buying Process? A lot of content falls under the awareness stage – it helps to generate awareness. But in B2B marketing, there’s apparently a lack of consideration stage content; that is, thought leadership that can help inform a decision on whether to move forward with your firm or not.

Perhaps the most-cited reason for the ineffectiveness of the seller-doer model is the lack of time. Seller-doers spend all their time doing, so they are too busy to sell. This negatively impacts all the tools – account mining, networking, social selling, and more. This is why content marketing can be so valuable – if you choose to blog, you can do it anytime, 24/7.

One of the keys to JDB Engineering’s success to date – and we’re still early in the process – has been a focus on making content marketing cultural. We are now an AIA CES provider, and have more than 20 one-hour programs for which we can award Learning Units. So we can give lunch-and-learn programs at architect or contractor offices, and attendees gain a CEU for their license or certification renewal. We can also present our content at industry events and conferences, and it helps that we have CEUs already approved.

We’ve also repurposed some of this presentation content and taken it directly to owners, who often have staff in need of continuing education units – and everyone is in need of continuing education, regardless of whether or not they have education requirements for license or certification renewal.

The turn toward a blogging culture is driven from the top of our organization. When we sit in meetings and share stories, you’ll here employees say, “That would make a great blog.” For instance, we have a lighting design group, JDB Illumination, and they’ve written a series about lighting temperature and illuminance, and how it impacts facilities and occupants. Just look at their recent posts:

  • Understanding Correlated Color Temperature
  • What is the Ideal Color Temperature for Your Lighting?
  • Illuminance and Perceived Brightness
  • Understanding Selectable Color Temperature

Furthermore, these blogs incorporate content from our educational presentations, which include:

  • Lighting for Occupants, Not Footcandles
  • Lighting Controls 101
  • Lighting for Mood
  • Lighting 101: Learning the Lingo & Working with Lighting Designers

We maintain an editorial calendar, but it is dynamic. Sometimes we don’t meet our deadlines. Other times we see a lot of content generated at once. Our subjects change regularly, so we keep a master list to ensure we don’t let some topics fall through the cracks. We’ve asked experienced staff members to write blogs – and young ones as well. This is part of the process of making it cultural. In fact, in our Monday morning staff meetings (held by most A/E/C firms to review workload for the week), we now have a time category for content production.

Everyone in your firm can and should contribute to business development. Some professionals are very comfortable on the “front lines,” attending meetings, trade shows, and networking events. Others are uncomfortable with those tools, so something lower impact – like writing blogs – still allows them to contribute.

For me, one of the most valuable uses of content is not the “direct” lead (when a reader of a blog or article, for instance, is so impressed that he or she calls you about a project – this can and does happen, but not all the time!), but rather the indirect uses. In an earlier post in this series of seller-doer tools, I reviewed account management. Within the A/E/C industry, we rarely contact our clients and past clients enough, so meaningful content provides us with a great excuse to contact someone:

“Hey Susan, it’s been too long since we last spoke! I hope life is treating you well! One of my colleagues just pulled together a really interesting blog about the color temperature of light in a building, and I thought you would be interested in reading it. Check it out when you have a chance: https://jdbengineering.com/ideal-color-temperature-lighting/. And then check your calendar to see if you if you have a few dates when we could get together for lunch. I’d love to catch up and learn what’s new with you.”

The real purpose of this email is to set up an in-person visit with a former client. But having the blog made for a great excuse to reach out and contact a former client! Plus, I now have a conversation starter when I make a follow-on call.

Here’s another example: One of our staff members was meeting with a prospect, who asked about our ArcFlash consulting experience. A few clients were mentioned, and after the meeting, the staff member followed up with a short email, directing the prospect to a blog we had published on the topic. That blog post alone demonstrated our credibility and understanding better than a list of projects could. Clients are smart – they understand that just because your firm has a list of relevant projects, it may very well be that the staff members who worked on the project aren’t even with your firm anymore! As a client once told researchers from the Society for Marketing Professional Services Foundation, “Firms have pictures. People have experience.” Content marketing is a way to showcase that knowledge!

One final benefit of content marketing: personal branding. If you share your knowledge via blogs, articles, presentations, videos, and more, you will become recognized as a subject matter expert. Your personal brand will grow and new opportunities will appear: project opportunities, public speaking opportunities, writing/blogging opportunities, and even professional association opportunities – like joining a board of directors. Content marketing allows you to elevate your company while building your personal reputation, a win-win for everyone!

Connect with Scott

Questions about content marketing? Reach out to me at 717.434.1543 or sbutcher@jdbe.com. Or connect with me and let’s continue the conversation online:

  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdbutcher
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/scottdbutcher

New Content Marketing Training Program

jdbIQity has launched a new half-day Content Marketing Training Program, covering types of content marketing, storytelling, audience, online vs. offline, how to find ideas, repurposing, promoting, and more. If your company is looking to move forward with a content marketing program, learn more here, then contact me!

You Might Also Like

  • Seller-Doer Tools: Social Media & Social Selling
  • Those that Lead, Speak. And Write.
  • Why Aren’t You Blogging? (External link)
  • The State of Social Media in the A/E/C Industry (External link)
  • Content Marketing: A Short Primer for A/E/C Firms (External link)

Written by Scott Butcher · Categorized: Business Development, Content Marketing, Seller-Doer · Tagged: A/E/C, Business Development, Closer-Doer, Content Marketing, Doer-Seller, Seller-Doer, Social Selling

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