Find out more about the impact content marketing can have on your architecture firm and discover a few ideas of what content you can start creating today for your website.
Architects spend a lot of time training and building a portfolio of experience before they even become chartered.
Your profession demands a great resource of technical knowledge. When it comes to safety and security, there’s no room for error. And so, you spend the years building your academic knowledge to ensure that errors never happen.
This expertise is what makes architects such admirable and respected professionals.
To a layperson, your technical knowledge may seem pretty impressive. If you were to have a face-to- face conversation with them about your field of work, they would probably leave with a new level of appreciation for what you do.
But when it comes to trying to build your client base in today’s digitised market, things are different. As such, you need to find a new way to have these conversations.
With search engines being so enormously overwhelmed with the number of available architects out there in the world, how can you make sure you are being seen by the right clients?
Introducing the power of content marketing
Now, you may be thinking, ‘why do I need to use marketing to get clients? Surely my impressive portfolio of work is enough to bring in new clients of their own accord, right?’
Well, not quite.
Architecture as a service is one which is influenced largely and based on expertise. But unless people are aware of your expertise, they’re never going to be able to find you.
And this is where content marketing can help. With enough time and effort, your content will help you to reach those individuals and start a conversation with them.
What is Content Marketing?
By definition, content marketing “is a technique of creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience- with the objective of driving profitable customer action.”
That content can be any kind of media, including blog posts, infographics, social media posts videos, podcasts, e-books, magazine articles, and so much more. Essentially, any kind of media distributed digitally is content.
But the key difference between content marketing and traditional advertisements (billboards, TV ads, etc.) is that content is not promotional.
And it’s vital you understand this difference if you are to succeed with it.
Content marketing should be used to inform, entertain, educate, and answer all your target audience’s questions.
To put it simply, it requires you to place yourself in a position as an expert. This means you must offer as much help as possible. If you can do this, then you will be able to show that you are an expert in your field.
And if you can prove that you’re an expert. Then your content will allow your readers to trust your knowledge.
Naturally, it’s this trust which is essential to forging long-term connections with them. So, when they then need what you are offering, they will remember your name or brand. And, they will automatically know that they can trust you to deliver a quality project.
Content Marketing Will Develop Connections Needed by
Architecture Firms
Architecture is a profession that’s built on good relationships.
Good relationships lead to trust. And your clients need to believe they can trust you to deliver the best project possible if they are to work with you. But how can they do that from behind a computer screen?
With high-quality, relevant, and valuable content, of course.
If you really want to reach more clients and encourage them to collaborate with you. Then you need to appeal to them on an emotional level.
Content gives you the opportunity to connect, create new relationships, and build trust. It’s the key to forging strong connections.
We currently live in an age when trust between consumers and brands is tarnished. It’s now, more than ever, essential to showcase the ‘real voice’ behind your firm. A voice that is authentic, approachable, and willing to offer guidance where it can.
If you can achieve this, you’ll no longer be ‘just’ an architecture firm. But a real organisation that’s run by real human beings.
In this way, content can help you place a distinction between you and your work. It highlights the value of your work, and the value of you as a professional with expert knowledge. Content marketing takes you from being a brand – or just a deliverable – into being truly understood and appreciated for what you do. You become an individual of value with creative thinking and demonstrated skills.
The more your clients understand the wisdom you have for creative solutions, the more they will be inclined to work with you. As a result, they will potentially offer more money for your expertise on a project than your competitors.
Content Marketing Will Also Make You More Discoverable
on Search Engines
Take a look at your website. How many webpages does it have?
Maybe it’s between 5-10? Just the bare essentials – contact information, an ‘about’ page, and maybe a small section demonstrating some of your previous work?
When you think about the billions of web pages that exist on Google today, how will your small catalogue of pages ever be able to stand out?
Naturally, content marketing will mean you produce a whole load of content. After all, you need to work hard to convince others that you are the go-to expert within your niche.
That content will also be tailored around what keywords your target audience use. These are the questions related to your field of architecture. And are most commonly searched for on Google.
As a result of creating content that’s based around these queries, your pages will start to rank. They’ll also appear in search engines result pages for these search terms. Optimising your content in this way is known as search engine optimisation (SEO). It’s a term you may already be familiar with.
The more content you create, the more search terms and keywords you will begin to rank for. As a result, your website will become more discoverable. Your firm will appear in a whole range of architecture-related search queries.
Over time, this can bring more visitors to your site. When those visitors interact with your content and discover how much of an expert you are in your field of architecture, they will then be inclined to submit enquiries to work with you. So, in the long-term, you will be getting more leads from your content alone.
3 Types of Content Marketing You Can Create for Your
Architecture Website
So, we’ve established the importance of having content on your website. But how do you know what content to produce?
Remember, the whole premise of content marketing is that it takes your website from being purely aesthetic, to one which adds value to prospective clients that land on it.
A great way to think about what content you should start creating is to put yourself in the shoes of your target audience. Think about what they want to see and learn on an architecture website. What problems are they trying to solve?
There are plenty of ways you can communicate ‘answers’ to these queries. And only you will be able to unveil what content best connects to your audience.
But as a starting point, here are three quick ideas for creating content for your firm’s website.
1. Share Your Problem Stories
Storytelling remains one of the most compelling ways to communicate with audiences.
Some of the best marketers in the world leverage the power of storytelling. They do this to improve their conversion rates and to help their branding stand out.
Why?
Well, for starters, people tend to remember stories 22x more than facts and figures alone.
People love to see, read, and hear stories because they create human connection. A compelling story will relate to the reader. As a result, they will be able to draw connections between it and their own scenarios. This makes it far more memorable and impactful than any other form of communication.
Storytelling is known to increase levels of oxytocin too. This is a hormone that promotes bonding and positive reciprocal behaviour. And this makes stories a huge factor in helping to convert your visitors – possibly by a significant 30%!
People are always searching online for answers to their problems. During the research process of that search, you need to think about how to provide a solution for these individuals.
Look to your own experience
When it comes to content marketing for architecture firms, use your experience. As an architect, you’ve probably got a few stories from projects that had problems. But which, you were able to resolve due to your expertise.
Think about what you did as an expert that helped solve that problem. What was it about your level of knowledge that helped the project to succeed?
If you can demonstrate how you overcame a problem for a client with a great story. Then the reader will believe that you can overcome their problem too. As such, making you the obvious choice for who they should partner with on a future project.
Don’t forget that all good storytelling needs to be contagious and inspiring. Good storytelling needs to grip the reader and trigger an emotion within them. The more you can make your experience visceral, the more people will want to work with you.
So be descriptive in your content writing. Set it out clearly, and most importantly, let your voice shine through it. As we’ve mentioned, relationships lie at the success of all architecture transactions. So, make yourself seem as appealing as possible in every piece of writing that goes up on your website.
2. Frequently Asked Questions
As we’ve established, when people search online, they are usually searching for answers to their query. And the best content is that which can answer those queries.
Quite often, these queries are simply a commonly asked question which relates to your industry.
For example, questions such as ‘How much will a two-storey house renovation cost?’. Or ‘At what point in my project should I involve an architect?’
Creating content that directly answers these queries can be easy to make. But it can also be a quick- win in terms of ranking for some of these commonly asked questions. Especially if your content is the best in terms of quality and relevancy.
But how do you know what some of the most frequently asked questions are?
Well, just type in anything to do with your particular niche of architecture on Google. You will find a whole range of commonly asked questions under the ‘people also ask’ section.
Alternatively, you could think about every meeting you’ve ever had with a client. When you meet with them ahead of projects, what are some of the most commonly asked questions during your conversation?
Perhaps there are questions which they’re not asking which are important for those initial conversations. These could make an excellent topic for content creation.
Compiling all of these questions and turning them into some stellar content will have two main benefits:
- Having answers will place you in a position of expertise, making readers more inclined to trust and believe you to be a great architect.
- If your clients have already read and understood some FAQs, then when you meet, you will be able to eliminate any unnecessary conversation and dive straight to the juicier details of the project.
Remember, great content is all about thinking about the kinds of problems people have. Then, finding ways to solve them. As long as you know what issues they may face, you’ll have an idea of what content you should create.
3. Videos Demonstrating Your Area of Expertise
As great as written content can be, there is definitely a place for video in the world of architecture marketing. Particularly when it comes to demonstrating a portfolio of work.
Video marketing can be daunting. But when it’s done well, it can be a great way to bring in new leads.
Currently, over 70% of marketers claim that video produces more conversions than any other content. And it’s hardly surprising why.
As a content platform, video is far more engaging and memorable. And it can communicate ideas quicker than text. Especially if you’re trying to explain complex matters.
The other great thing about using video is that your clients will be able to see you openly. Consider being in the videos yourself. As a result, your audience will get a better appreciation for your personality. This more personal element of video will connect with them on an emotional level too. It will give them a better understanding of whether they want to work with you.
So, what can you create videos about?
Well, pretty much anything that relates to your area of expertise.
Do you want to talk your audience through a complex story which you overcame as an architect? Is there a new technology in the industry which you feel passionate about? Maybe you have a client who is happy for you to conduct a tour of the building you designed?
You can also take a look at your competitors to see what they are doing. More importantly, what are they not doing? Are they even using video? Their content will inform you of areas where you are missing content. Alternatively, it will show you where you stand out against them.
Like written content, only you will be able to work out what topics and styles of content best connect with your audience. So you will need to take some time to experiment and see which videos garner the most interest.
This is something that comes with time. The more your content grows and connects with more people, the better understanding you will have of your audience. As a result, you will know what type of material they prefer. Therefore, helping to guide any future content marketing or architecture conversations.
Always Allow Your Content to Start a Conversation
As great as content marketing can be for architecture firms to reach bigger audiences and spike their interests. It is only effective at optimising your conversions if it opens a funnel for conversation.
Instead of simply existing, your content needs to focus on ‘direct response marketing.’ That is, it requires an action from those who visit your website. Ideally, you need them to leave their contact information with you.
Once you have their contact information, you can start a real conversation with them. Either via email or a phone call.
Don’t forget to provide value
Of course, it’s unlikely that your prospects are going to willingly submit their contact information. At least without anything in return. Therefore, you should offer them something that they can download for a return of information. Something of value.
This could be something as simple as password access to some of your most popular blog posts. Or maybe it could be a download link to a report you’ve been learning about. For instance, such as the problems people can face whilst remodelling their home.
Whatever it is, just make it as compelling as possible. The collection of contact information is the crux of content marketing. Without it, you’ll be putting in a lot of time and effort to churn out content. Content which offers little to no return on investment.
Summary
As niche as architecture is as a profession, the fundamental aspects of content marketing can help. Especially in terms of growing your client base successfully.
With today’s digitised consumer base, you can no longer wait for word-of-mouth to bring new clients through your door. Consumers today are savvy, and they want you to come to them.
For architecture firms, content marketing is the key to reaching clients and starting a conversation with them online. It’s a place to demonstrate your expertise in the industry. And to convince your readers that you are the person they need to be collaborating on projects with.
Of course, any content you do produce should always be aligned with your ideal clients wants and wishes. As such, everything you create needs to have the purpose to offer resolution to their queries. Therefore, establishing a trusting connection between you both.
Only once you have this connection can you then reach out to them and continue to nurture that relationship. And, in doing so hopefully convert them into a paying client.
There are so many content marketing opportunities available to architecture firms. As your architecture content marketing strategy develops, you’ll begin to understand which mediums best connect to your target audience.
But the biggest hurdle you’re facing right now is not having any content at all. So, enjoy the initial exploration. Then get ready to communicate with a bigger audience than you ever have done before.
Identify The Best Content Marketing Strategy With a
Marketing Consultant
For your content to create long-term growth in the number of contacts it’s pulling in, it needs to have a strategy behind it. One which will have the most impactful results for your business.
If you’re new to the world of marketing, content is one of the most daunting and challenging parts of your marketing. And it’s often the part which many get so wrong. There’s a fine line between offering your expertise, and ‘tooting your own horn,’ and you don’t want to cross it.
As a result, many architecture firms turn to a marketing consultancy like ours. In order to help them develop a consistently successful content marketing strategy. One which also encompasses SEO for optimum visibility online.
We’ve worked with thousands of clients across a whole range of sectors. As such, we have the technical experience to understand what content will resonate best with your clients. As well as which content will have the most impact for your website.
We also have access to some of the best technology in the industry. This makes it easier to understand what information your audience wants and can guide your overall content strategy.
To find out more about how we can work with you to create a long-term strategy, please get in contact. I’d be more than happy to have a one-on-one chat with you and talk you through our previous work.