How specifiers research you before they ever get in touch
How specifiers research you before they ever get in touch
The invisible research phase and why being findable matters more than being contactable
When a specifier contacts you, don’t be fooled into believing it’s their first touchpoint with you as a potential supplier.
Prior to making an enquiry, a specifier such as an architect, main contractor or developer will have conducted extensive research to decide whether you are worthy of their consideration for a project.
This ‘invisible research phase’ is far more critical to suppliers than you may think. It certainly has more direct influence on securing contracts than how easily they can contact your sales team.
The specifier invisible research phase
The invisible research phase is a decisive period when you are directly compared to other suppliers and either shortlisted or silently rejected. It happens weeks, maybe months, before specifiers make contact.
For specifiers, risk underpins all decisions. They have to be sure you won’t fail at any point of your involvement in a project. This failure could occur on site, or be the result of poor product performance, delivery or service issues, or shortcomings in compliance.
The invisible research phase is the time specifiers spend reducing risk before any commitments are made.
How do specifiers research suppliers during the invisible research phase?
This can vary. Some examples are:
- Reading through your website looking for particular specifications, accreditations or certifications
- Looking for CPDs of your products with technical specifications, industry trends and answers to key specification questions
- Researching how you are described on other main contractors’ approved supplier lists or in published case studies
- Scanning LinkedIn or Companies House for posts, positive and negative, or activity such as redundancies or changes in ownership
- Seeing if you appear on procurement platforms operated by industry heavyweights such as RIBA or NBS
- Looking for published evidence of passing tests and achieving accreditations.
While specifiers are undertaking this invisible research, you are unaware of this crucial activity taking place. Your sales teams don’t have the opportunity to add information, discuss the project or run through comparisons against your competitors.
How is being contactable different from being findable?
Contact details, such as your email address, LinkedIn profile, phone number or enquiry form, doesn’t solve problems for specifiers. Finding information about you and your products does. And specifiers need that information fast. If they can’t find your safety certificates, for example, almost immediately, they will move onto another supplier in a heartbeat. They certainly won’t contact you to request the information they need.
Ways in which you can be findable to specifiers and make their invisible research phase a doddle include:
- Putting your technical data where a specifier expects to find it, on your website or on the NBS site or RIBA Product Selector. Having to request a pdf is a major barrier that is unlikely to be navigated
- Ensuring all published certificates are current and easy to verify without having to make contact
- Verifying that the digital 3D models and data files used in your BIM objects are accurate, accessible and compliant
- Presenting case studies on your website that demonstrate the efficacy of your products in a range of contexts so that a cross section of specifiers can understand the products’ performance and benefits.
All the specifier has to go on is what they can find out about you; what you have published online, information provided by third parties and documents supplied by official agencies. This is why it is more important to be findable than contactable.
How can specification marketing help with the invisible search phase?
Specification marketing ensures that all your ducks are in a row, or more specifically that you and your product information are findable, when specifiers enter the invisible search phase. You can imagine them doing all the work while you put your feet up.
Here’s how.
Essentially, specification marketing is a focused marketing strategy that attracts the attention of specifiers. It involves a clear plan incorporating content, SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) and social media.
Content marketing
Informative and clearly presented content is crucial during the invisible search phase. Whether it is articles, case studies, videos, CPDs (Continuous Professional Development presentations) or social media posts, content is essential to draw specifiers in and tell them what they need to know.
CPDs are particularly powerful. A specifier’s technical understanding of your product or service instigates contact and develops a relationship with you and your business. A CPD should be engaging, factual and informative, not a sales pitch. Specifiers should be given enough information to understand the unique elements of your offering.
SEO
A specifier’s research could be as rudimentary as using a search engine to find particular products or services. Despite what many might think, search engine optimisation - the process of elevating your website to nearer the top of a search engine listing - is not witchcraft. It’s marketing.
Outranking your competition puts you to the front of the queue when it comes to a specifier’s attention. Results on the first page of a Google search receive over 90% of traffic.
Social media
Love it or loath it, social media is a vital window to your products and services that cannot be ignored. It defies geographical limits, widening your organisation’s reach. A targeted social media marketing campaign shares vital information quickly, enhances brand awareness, generates higher conversion rates, and increases website traffic.
Prepare for specifier research with targeted specification marketing
Time54 Construction Marketing Specialists understand the specification process and what it takes to be noticed by decision makers in the construction industry.
Get in touch to find out how we can prepare you for the invisible search phase.
Interested in finding out how Time54 can help your business?
Simply book a discovery call using the form opposite (or below if viewing on a mobile).
Or call us on 01606 241054 or email at info@time54.co.uk
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