10 February 2023 4 min read

7 Ways Construction SMEs Can Market on a Tight Budget

 
karolina-dobrowolska

Karolina Dobrowolska
Content Marketer

A tight budget is always a burden. 

You can’t test different marketing strategies, and your ways of getting new customers are limited. 

Luckily nowadays, the Internet creates new marketing opportunities. Today, we’ll show you how to use them to promote your business.

7 ways to promote your business on a tight budget

1. Create a Google My Business Account

View on a Google Business Account of a construction company

Google is usually the first place where people look for your business. 

That’s why by making your company visible on Google, you can attract more visitors - and in the end, more clients. 

You can do it by creating Google My Business Account. Why?

  • It’s visible on the right side of the browser window
  • It contains crucial information about your business: name, address, contact details
  • It shows the customers’ reviews- which boosts your credibility
  • It’s free of charge 

While registering, you'll need to add the following data:

  • Essential information: company name, opening hours, location 
  • Forms of contact: phone number, email, website 
  • Photos & logo: a good way to catch customer's attention and make your company more memorable 
  • Link to your website: to nurture a reader toward the sale

Click to create your Business Account step-by-step 

2. Improve your Website 

Your homepage is another great source of getting new clients. It's where you can present your services and provide all the details.

But you have only 52 seconds to catch your readers' attention before they leave your page. 

That's why your homepage must: 

  • explain well who you are and what you're offering,
  • be written in simple words,
  • motivate your readers to contact you/book your services,

See How Archdesk Does It

Let's focus a little bit more on these three points:

1. Explain well who you are and what you’re offering

Your prospects check your website to know more about your company. 

Give it to them by creating a short message describing:

  • Who you are,
  • Who is your customer (for what type of companies do you provide solutions),
  • What do you offer,
  • What value do your product/services bring (why they should buy it), 

Value Proposition of a Qbre company

Example from https://www.qbre.co.uk

In marketing, it’s called a Value Proposition, and its goal is to present your company's mission and motivate your readers to discover more. It’s usually placed at the top of the page with an eye-catching image. 

Check out a guide on how to create an excellent Value Proposition

2. Keep it simple 

You have less than a minute to make your readers stay on your page. 

That’s why:

  • Don’t overwhelm your readers with text,
  • Put only the most important information,
  • Break your text with smaller paragraphs that are easier to read,
  • Catch attention by adding images, videos, or animations,
  • Add numbers to impress your readers (number of clients, projects, or solutions)

3. Motivate your readers to contact you/book your services

The main goal of your marketing actions is to convert prospects into clients. Keep that goal in mind while updating your page. 

It should naturally lead them to book your services, submit a form, or click contact details. But don’t be too pushy.

Try to do it by adding:

  • CTA (call to action) button with distinctive colour
  • Incentives in your text to book your service: Check out how you can improve your projects now/Book service to kick-off your projects right away

For more tips, read 15 ways to Fix Your Website Immediately 

3. Start a blog 

Archdesk Construction Management Software Blog

To get new customers, you must be visible on the Internet. When your prospects search for topics related to your industry, your company’s website should be on the first page of Google Search. 

Thanks to that you can gain many new contacts.

In practice getting on the first page on Google is difficult. But you can work on it through content marketing.

Content marketing is creating content (blog, videos, social media posts) that doesn’t sell your products directly. Still, it promotes your business through engaging topics and valuable information.

But how to find a topic that will be interesting for your audience?

For that, you should conduct Keyword Research. Find and analyse the most common topics your prospects search for in Google. 

You can check that with the help of free tools:

Once you have a term you want to develop, check the part People also ask on a browser. Often it contains other aspects of the topic that you can include in your article.    

For more tips, check out: How to Write a Blog Post Guide 

4. Run Company’s Social Media

Nowadays, you have an excellent opportunity to market your business on social media. 

Unlike a blog, social media posts:

  • Are much faster to produce
  • Do not require in-depth research and SEO optimisation
  • May touch on topics loosely related to your industry
  • Can show a more human face of your company: your team, daily work, company’s celebrations. 

Thanks to Social Media, you can successfully build your company’s image and catch users' attention with more fun, engaging content. 

Once they know your company, it will be much easier to present your services and convert them into clients. 

You can post:

  • Tips, bits of advice, and how-to topics -people love to learn how to do something better,
  • Promotion of your new blog content,
  • Recent projects - show that you’re working hard and delivering the best services for the industry,
  • Reviews you received from your customers
  • Life of your company - it’s a great way to build a relationship with your audience,
  • Info about training and certifications of your employees - it enhances the image of the industry’s professionals. 

Here are examples of construction social media accounts that do it right:

If you’re looking for more information: How to Promote your Construction Company on LinkedIn

5. Include online reviews of your business

Online reviews are a fantastic way to show that you’re reliable and trustworthy.  

And they can be a breakthrough point to convince prospects that it’s worth working with you. 

  • 9 out of 10 customers read reviews before purchasing a product or service. 
  • 8 in 10 customers check out reviews for local businesses. 
  • More than half of customers read at least one review before purchasing

[Oberlo, 2021]

Nowadays, with market competition and each company claiming to be the best, online reviews have become a powerful tool. 

They deliver social proof that other companies trust your business and are satisfied with your services.

That’s why in your marketing actions, try to use them as often as possible. For example, on:

  • Your website - reviews catch the attention of your prospects and positively impact your brand image, 
  • Emails- reviews work well in both sales emails or newsletters- social proof of your services,
  • Social Media- you can create a post series with new reviews every week- a way to engage with your audience and existing clients,
  • Marketing materials- if you have marketing materials about your projects, success stories, or case studies, you can also add reviews there.

Read more: How to Grow Your Construction Business with Online Reviews

6. Show you’re an expert in your field

View of a construction topic on Quora Forum

Example of Construction Topic in a Quora Forum 

People want to work with professionals. Show yourself as such. 

Apart from a company’s blog, you can participate in online construction forums. 

Here are the most popular forums:

From the marketing perspective, participation in construction chats:

  • Show you as an industry professional who knows industry reality,
  • Increase the chance of new prospects discovering your company,
  • Create relationships with potential clients,

But to get these benefits, there are some ground rules that you should follow:

  • Add to your profile: company name, position, and a short description of what you’re doing, for example: John DoeGeneral Director at XYZ, helping contractors transform real-estates,
  • Take part in discussions important to your industry- it increases the chance that your potential clients are reading it,
  • Submit answers that are helpful to your client- make sure you deliver value, solutions that your clients can use,
  • Don't brag too much about your business and offered services- readers might feel pushed toward buying when they're not ready,
  • Don't fight in the comments- show professionalism even if somebody criticises your points of view.

Also, there’s one extra point. Thanks to online forums, you can create better content on your Blog:

  • If you find an interesting topic worth expanding into a longer article, it’s a great way to rank higher on Google and get more readers. 

7. Create professional signatures

Archdesk Signature of a Customer Success Manager

Another easy but often underrated action to market a business is an email signature. It takes only a few minutes but has a huge impact on your email reception:

  • Your emails look more professional,
  • Your readers have quick access to your contact details,
  • Signatures make your company easier to remember,
  • They show that a person is sending mail, which makes readers more engaged with the content.

If your company still needs an official email signature, it's high time to create it. For example, Hubspot offers a free email signature generator.

To make sure your signatures will impact your audience positively: 

  • Keep them consistent among all company members,
  • Add on your signature crucial data: name, email, company logo, phone number, and link to your website,
  • If your employees want to use a photo, use a business one.

Key to success- create a professional and trustworthy company image 

View on two construction workers shaking hands

There are many ways to market a business on a tight budget. 

But the ground rule in any marketing activity is always delivering value for your prospects.

Show them that you understand their challenges and know the possible solutions. Share actionable tips on how to do things faster and better. 

Thanks to that, they'll perceive you as an industry professional and want to hire your company.

Also, don’t forget to take care of your clients. A satisfied customer is the best advertisement for a company (and a higher chance to continue cooperation in future projects).

 
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2025-02-07 11:32:34