“Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind” explained Rudyard Kipling while Frederick R. Barnard noted that ”a picture paints a thousand words”.
Since the dawn of time, words and images have remained the fundamental elements of effective communication. And it’s worth remembering the aged, timeless mantras when considering marketing and communications plans in the construction industry. The world of communication may be complex but the tools are not.
From ancient wall carvings to quill and ink missives; from the telegram to the email; and from the child’s first storybook to War and Peace; they all rely on words and/or images to convey a message.
While the myriad vehicles we use to transport words, images and videos are changing at remarkable speed, keep in mind these uncomplicated basic tools and you are halfway to making sure your message is being understood by your target audience no matter how confounding the journey may seem!
Whatever your business, arm yourself with a team which can produce words and photos or videos on your activities. Your factory, a great project, your products, your team, your fleet, your musings on the industry; these all make worthwhile snippets of information which today’s marketing vehicles can use in so many different ways to tell your target audience about you and your company. Responsibility could be given to internal members of staff or an external professional team, or, ideally, a mixture of both. The key is to produce a regular flow of information.
Content – today’s buzzword is what today’s communication is all about. Yes, words, images and film; it really is as simple as that. Produce enough of good, relevant fodder, via an in-house team or a professional; and today’s channels will use it so that, however your customer likes to receive information, you have it covered.
Once you have the “content”, you can choose the vehicles you want to employ depending on business objectives, marketing plans, and budget. The list is long – media articles, customer newsletters, websites, advertisements, billboards, vehicle livery, YouTube/your video channel, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, bloggers, on-line literature. They are all there ready and waiting for your content and it needn’t cost a fortune.
And a final consideration; think about how you feel about the author when you read a piece of badly-written text or a spelling mistake, a muddled website, or a blurred, poor quality photograph or video. Take time to get these basics right.
So what’s new? What’s changed? It’s still as simple as ABC!