In building products, the best promise wins, not the best product. Most manufacturers are incredibly focused on having the best product in the industry. And while your product should perform, at the end of the day, if your promise to your customer does not resonate, it doesn't matter. In this episode, Zach talks to Andrew Legge, Founder and Managing Partner at Havelock Wool, about the unique promise he makes with his commodity product, and how that is turning into incredible sales and brand loyalty.

Smarter Building Materials Marketing

Your Building Materials Promise Is More Important Than Your Product

In this episode, Zach talks to Gus Houghtaling, Director of Sales at Renin, whose e-commerce strategy is largely tied to learning what new products perform well that they can then bring to actual brick and mortar stores E-commerce is typically seen as a way to grow sales and get closer to the customer. But there's actually a key benefit to selling online that most people don't think about and it applies to in-store sales as well.

Building Materials E-commerce Strategies that Improve In-Store Results

In this episode, Zach talks to Nicole Panko, Director of Marketing & Design at Vetter Stone Company, who has undergone a massive digital revamp to help improve their presence so they can be front and center with interior designers to help them grow their sales. Interior designers are constantly changing in their design techniques and methods. As a building material manufacturer, you've got to stay ahead and stay alongside of those shifts to make sure that you can help and be a part of the specification when it comes time to the sale.

How to Market to Interior Designers

In this episode, Zach and Beth talk to guest TJ Shaheen, Executive Vice President at Builders’ General Supply, who shares some hard truths about the frustrations and pain points he and his customers are feeling as we all struggle to deal with COVID, and how manufacturers can make business run more easily. We’ve talked a lot about how manufacturers and dealers have successfully pivoted their business during COVID, but the truth is that not everyone is achieving success. If your business is feeling the pinch, there’s one key strategy you may be missing.

Surging Demand for Building Materials

COVID has changed everything, from the way we live, socialize, and shop, the way building materials manufacturers and distributors are reaching their customers. Whereas e-commerce used to be a “nice to have” feature, now it’s expected. But does it work for every part of the building materials sector? On this week’s episode, Zach talks to Carson Combs, Founder at Zenbuild, about how, if he can incorporate e-commerce into selling some of the heaviest building products out there, you can work it into your sales strategy too.

How to Sell Heavy Building Products Online

On this week’s episode, Zach talks to Jennifer Williams, Director National Strategic Accounts at Royal Manufacturing about how they’re growing direct sales while remaining a trusted partner in the channel. For building materials manufacturers, growth often means getting closer to the customer. But selling direct can create conflict with your channel partners. Today we’re talking to one manufacturer about how they’re managing their channel and growing customer relationships at the same time.

How to Sell Building Materials Directly to the End User Without Creating Channel Conflict

In this episode, Zach talks to Amy Post, who is the National Marketing Manager for the Pro Division at ODL about digital transformation and how to make that leap to build an incredible online experience. Undertaking a digital transformation can be a daunting task. Maybe you've been in print, with a lot of traditional marketing materials in place, but you want to make that shift to online and bring the business into the 21st century. It can feel overwhelming, but it’s the way more and more companies do business.

Making the Change from Print to Digital in Building Materials Marketing

In uncertain economic conditions, it’s hard to know how to make a big business move. Many companies are navigating new ways to sell during, since tried and true face-to-face approaches aren’t available. Now imagine the challenge of launching a new product during a pandemic. In this episode, Zach and Beth to Ryan Galick, Marketing Director at Fuzion Flooring, who is doing exactly that. They’re charting new territory, finding new ways to get in front of clients, and launch products in the COVID era.

How to Launch a Building Materials Product During COVID

In this episode, Zach and Beth talk to Sebastian DeGregorio, Business Strategy Manager at Allura, about what they're doing to market and sell during and post-COVID and how they're supporting the channel. Even during COVID, manufacturers want to know how to get closer to their customers and learn the real problems that they need help solving. The opportunities to meet face-to-face are less frequent, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still be present as a trusted partner.

Creating a COVID-Proof Building Materials Brand

In this episode, Zach talks to Rich Pond, Chief Marketing Officer at Prescient, about how they’re driving business by focusing on the value proposition and how they communicate it in a way that actually moves the needle for sales. Your brand is becoming more and more important in today's marketplace. There are so many different ways to find products, so creating a brand that's not only memorable, but speaks to your audience's pain points is critical.

The Value of Your Building Materials Branding

One of the ways that you can get closer to your customer, is by using technology that helps them do their job more effectively. A lot of manufacturers find that to be a daunting process and don't know where to get started. In this episode, Zach talks to Jay Shilstone, product owner for COMMANDqc at Command Alkon, about how they’re not only educating and helping their audience, but how their technology helps drive demand for their customer’s products.

Creating Sticky Customers With Building Materials Technology

In this episode, Zach talks to Steve Booz, VP of Marketing at Royal Building Products about how to get started with your digital journey, what does it take to get off the ground, and what does success look like. Digital transformation isn’t an overnight process, it’s a journey. Here’s one manufacturer who is ready to share insights on what's worked, what hasn't, things to think about and what to avoid when you're going down this path, as well as some of their success.

Navigating a Building Materials Marketing Digital Transformation

In this episode, Zach talks to Justin Dewey, Sales Center Manager at American Olean and Marazzi Tile about how to structure your social media accounts on a local standpoint, the content you should be creating and how to get your reps involved to actually close a loop and grow your sales. Everyone talks about how we need to be “doing” social media as part of their marketing, but if your social media strategy isn’t integrated with the rest of your marketing tactics and your sales funnel, you're cutting the process short.

Drive Local Demand for Building Products Using Social Media

In this episode, Zach talks to TJ Norris, who is the Director of Sales and Marketing for PCI Construction Products about how they are white labeling their product and selling at mass quantities to dealers and helping them be more effective in the business that they're trying to grow. The Amazon Effect is oftentimes thought about as a need to sell direct to the customer. How do we get as close to them as possible? When we say “end customer”, we think about the contractor, the builder, the owner, but many people miss out on thinking about how they sell direct more effectively to the dealer.

Pros and Cons of White-Labeled Building Products as a Marketing & Sales Strategy

In this episode, Zach talks to Ryan Chandley, VP of Sales for Thomas Concrete, about how they’re using social media to not only drive brand awareness but also separate themselves from the competition. Social media can be an incredible tool to build awareness. It drives business. It helps you reach out to new prospects, grow company culture or even can help you in recruiting. Here’s how one manufacturer’s organic social media efforts have done all three.

Building Your Building Materials Brand on Social Media

The building materials marketing landscape is changing faster than ever. Creating an engaging online presence is crucial to the success of any building materials manufacturer. But can your Facebook profile actually grow sales? Will you earn more market share if you change your website? How can you outperform your competition online? Zach and Beth tackle your most burning questions about digital marketing for building material manufacturers, share proven strategies to grow leads and sales, and bring in other industry experts to share what’s working in the building product space.

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Smarter Building Materials Marketing

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