Builders products PR - reaching specifiers, merchants and contractors
The builders products sector is one of the most underserved areas of manufacturing PR. Specification-led selling means communications must reach architects, specifiers, contractors and merchants simultaneously. Here is how to do it.
Why builders products PR is different
Most manufacturing sectors sell to procurement teams or category managers. The builders products sector adds specifiers - architects, structural engineers, building services engineers and quantity surveyors - to the communication chain. A specifier can put a product on a drawing that generates thousands of units of sales without ever placing an order themselves. Reaching and influencing that audience is the central challenge of builders products PR.
The specification chain: how buyers actually make decisions
The typical specification journey in construction starts with an architect or engineer encountering a product in an editorial context - a technical article, a case study, a CPD presentation or a trade show. It progresses through specification on a drawing, through a quantity surveyor's bill of materials, to a contractor's order with a merchant or directly with the manufacturer. PR activity needs to be present at every stage of that chain.
Trade press for builders products
The specification press is the most important media channel for most builders products manufacturers. Titles like Architects Journal, Building Design, RIBA Journal and sector-specific titles covering heating, plumbing, electrical and other building services disciplines have direct influence on specification decisions. Building relationships with the editors and journalists of these publications is a long-term investment that pays commercial dividends at every stage of the specification chain.
CPD programmes and technical credibility
Continuing Professional Development programmes are one of the most powerful tools available to builders products manufacturers. Delivering a RIBA-approved CPD to architects creates direct specification influence in a credible, non-commercial context. PR supports CPD programmes by generating awareness of their availability, building the technical credibility that makes architects want to attend them and communicating the expertise they demonstrate.
Our builders products credentials
We have worked with Furfix on fixings and fastening communications, Baxi on heating systems trade PR and Heatrae Sadia on water heating products communications. These are businesses that sell through specification, through merchants and through contractor relationships - and our PR programmes were built around those specific commercial channels. We know how the sector works from the inside.
Want to talk through your manufacturing PR challenge? Get in touch - we will give you an honest view of what is possible and what it would take.
For a broader view of manufacturing PR, start with our guide to manufacturing PR agency services or read more on building a manufacturing PR strategy.