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Align technical ideas with persuasive content
Imagine coming out of college with the “big picture” of marketing principles. You look for a marketing job in any industry, and you get hired at an engineering firm…or perhaps an architectural firm or construction firm.
We get it. No one taught anyone in school how to market an engineering firm. Marketers and growth professionals have to learn on the job!
It’s fun and challenging all at once…for the marketing team and for the technical professionals who have to explain what they do!
The first tip: Go back to those principles you learned in college. Regardless of your role, industry OR your level of experience in AEC, the role of marketing is to engage and persuade. Your challenge is to blend technical jargon and concepts within your persuasive content and messaging.
But really, when you understand your audience(s) — you can write and speak more persuasively. So the second tip is to interview your clients and subject matter experts. Soak up what is discussed in planning sessions and project debriefs. Build your technical vocabulary within the industries you serve and learn to align it with persuasive marketing.
Obviously, you can’t spend all your time on marketing. Everybody is busy. But we encourage technical and marketing people to work together for the benefit of future pursuits.
The third tip: Read. Follow the trade journals for your client industries but also for AEC marketing. Think about growth concepts and approaches at your firm that are unique or different from what you’re reading about. Review past project summaries for clues about the services your firm delivers better than anyone.
The final tip: Practice explaining why a client/owner/project partner hires your firm. Create brand differentiating messaging as your foundation. Outsource this research to a third party for even more insights.
Working with technical experts to gather marketing data is a whole other skill. But really, it’s about showing curiosity, respecting knowledge on both sides and aligning your goals. Your mutual goal, once again, is to persuade others to work with your firm. You are elevating your reputation together through conversations, proposals and consistent marketing activities.
Bonus tip: Join an organization that specializes in your field, but also in AEC marketing. Ingenuity Marketing Group has been a member of the Society for Marketing Professional Services for many years, and we highly recommend this organization for technical leaders, marketers and growth professionals at all experience levels. You get networking, learning and professional growth. When we work together, our careers and firm growth improve.
Frequently Asked Questions
How should social media support AEC marketing?
Social media supports AEC marketing by being a secondary window into the firm. Use i to share your team values and culture so that prospects understand what it might be like to work with your team. Share “how we did it” posts about past projects. Use social media to highlight articles or speaking engagements by your niche leaders as well as awards your firm receives. Just make sure that your social media is well branded and recognizable as your firm. Try posting a few times a week on leader profiles to gain even more visibility.
How does AEC marketing support getting new projects?
Prospects often have a short list that they work from when seeking project relationships. Or they get a referral. This leads to “vetting” the firm by checking out their website, niche leader bios and social media. Search results for your firm should also show things like trade association involvement or perhaps community relations. That kind of visibility keeps your firm primed for future work that isn’t solely dependent on low bid or project type.
What kind of testimonials can I collect for AEC marketing?
Testimonials for AEC marketing can be from project partners, from owners/developers, from your own team members, from community influencers, and from the end users of your projects. Government agencies are less likely to provide testimonials, but it doesn’t hurt to ask!
Are there agencies that specialize in AEC marketing?
There are marketing agencies that have a special focus on professional services and AEC marketing as opposed to B2C or general business marketing. Professional services is a unique area where projects can take months or years to begin, which means the sales cycle is long and good relationships are vital for securing consistent and future work. If you choose an agency that already understands professional services, then you can speak the same language about key audiences as well as the challenges or opportunities that your firm can support. Plus, the agency can add value to internal marketing team learning.
How do I create a marketing plan for an AEC firm?
Marketing plans for AEC firms should be customized to the clients and industries that your firm serves. We often start by exploring the client and industry types that show the most growth potential. We recommend putting marketing dollars toward those priorities and building a plan based on the firm’s business goals for those high-potential clients. The tactics of your niche-based plan will be more successful by talking to a team lead or project manager who can provide industry context and thought leadership. Start with the strategy and then recommend the tactics that fit your time and budget.
How do I brainstorm blog ideas for AEC marketing?
There are a few ways to brainstorm blog ideas for AEC marketing. If you need quick inspiration, try AI. Take those ideas and vet them with a niche leader. Ask the niche leader about client challenges they have recently solved on projects. You can also look back at past project summaries and pull out ideas from the project approach that sound interesting or unique to your firm. Expand upon them in a blog post. Last resort? See what competitors are writing about!
Let us know if you have questions about brand research or translating technical concepts into persuasive marketing content. We do this all the time for A/E/C firms by first consulting with their technical leaders, in-house marketing and growth team! Here is an example.
