Construction Sales and Marketing Newsletter

January 2014

Happy new year and welcome to this month's edition of the Construction Sales and Marketing Newsletter. With optimistic forecasts from the construction market we are starting 2014 by providing a number of blogs and webinars to help you refresh your specification strategy. We are also offering a complimentary specification strategy review, to help you make the most of new opportunities from a growing market.

Construction market activity

Once again we can report a positive outlook. The ONS has released its latest construction output figures for November 2013 . These figures show that estimated construction output in November 2013 fell by 4% when compared with October 2013. But, output is estimated to have risen by 2.2% in November 2013 when compared to November 2012, giving an overall picture of growth.

The Construction Products Association has released its latest forecasts for winter 2013/14. These show that construction output is expected to rise by 3.4% in 2014 and 5.2% in 2015. However many uncertainties remain, especially around the long-term sustainability of this recovery period; growth is still expected in 2016, but at a much slower pace.

Although housing remains a major contributor to growth, it is extending to other sectors, with the CPA expecting retail to grow by 2% in 2014 and then 5% in 2015. Factory activity is forecast to increase by 6% and warehouses by 10% this year.

The Nationwide House Price Index has reported that house prices increased by 1.4% in December 2013 and were 8.4% higher than December 2012. Despite house prices gaining momentum in the latter half of 2013, they are still around 5% lower than the peak in 2007, according to Nationwide. The Halifax House price Index shows the final 3 months of 2013 to be 1.9% higher than the preceding 3 months. And in the final 3 months of 2013 prices were 7.5% higher than the same quarter in 2012.

Growth in the industry is still being led by housing and Galliford Try have reported that that they are enjoying a strong start to 2014 and are expecting a record half year profit for the six months to 31 December 2013. Persimmon Homes announced they had a 16% increase in new house sales for 2013, which they mainly attribute to the government's Help to Buy scheme.

Although the housing market is recovering from the recession, the National Housing Federation says that this emerging recovery may be distorted by a widening gap between supply and demand of housing. They are concerned that with house prices increasing, rents are also beginning to soar, causing many people to be locked out of home ownership in the future.

Regulations & initiatives - a quick update

Latest research shows over eighty per cent of people will take action when it comes to making homes more energy efficient; which is positive news for the Green Deal.

The government is consulting on a proposed new model for English Heritage and the management of the National Heritage Collection of more than 400 buildings. Alongside this is Ł80 million to invest in the collection which must represent an opportunity for many companies in the construction sector.

There is growing concern about the performance gap between theoretical design and actual construction. To add to the understanding the NHBC Foundation has published details of research conducted on co-heating, which works by heating the interior of a building to a uniform temperature and then recording the amount of electrical energy needed to retain this temperature over a period of around two to three weeks. This determines the building's 'as-built' heat loss coefficient.

Recent articles by the NBS provide a brief history of BIM (and afterwards) and BIM the movement not the acronym. If you are looking at how to incorporate BIM into your specification sales strategy then take a look at our latest eBook.

Managing your specification strategy - what do architects want?

For the construction product manufacturer marketing to architects is a key business strategy; creating awareness of products so that they'll be included in designs, thereby creating 'demand pull' through the supply chain, and eventually sales.

The architect is one of the most important members of the design team, distilling the requirements and advice of other members of the Decision Making Unit (DMU). In my recent blog I explore the role of the architect and what specification requirements they have.

Read the full blog article

5 steps to building strong relationships with specifiers

To be effective, the process of relationship building really needs to start before a project has even been conceived. But how do you achieve that? Developing a specification strategy is a team effort that takes consideration by both marketing and sales. In our latest blog we review 5 steps to follow to achieve strong relationships with specifiers.

Read full blog article

Complimentary specification strategy review

Competitive Advantage are pleased to be offering a free Specification Strategy Consultation to get your 2014 off on the right foot and help you utilise opportunities from a strengthening construction market.

How it works

Drawing on our construction experience and in particular our extensive knowledge of the specification process, we'll listen to your priorities and recommend strategies. Referencing our current research we know what works when influencing specifiers, and what's a waste of your money. In the planning discussion, we'll cover:

Which products are right for a specification sales approach
Your current practices and what changes to consider to develop your sales strategy
How to understand your target customers better
The communication channels you can utilise and the tools your team can use to reach your target customers
The implementation of BIM and how this could impact the specification of your products
How to develop your team and everyday working practices to make the most of new opportunities from a strengthening construction market

Pledge of Confidentiality: Anything you tell us will be kept completely confidential.

To book your consultation email: learn@cadvantage.co.uk and we will be in touch to confirm an appropriate date and time that suits you.

What's being said - a round-up of useful marketing items

Following the Construction Marketing Awards in December there has been some media coverage of the winners. Including my article on how contractors can lead the way in marketing, highlighting some ideas we can take on board from the winning entries. For further inspiration take a look a the SpecifiedBy blog on construction product marketing

If you are still completing your planning then Pauley Creative's recent blog provides an interesting challenge: what will you do differently in 2014?

And with the start of the new year we are providing a complimentary specification strategy review to help you make the most of a strengthening construction market. The construction industry is changing and with it the way product specification happens, the future of specification is something I cover in my recent article for RIBA Insight, having a robust strategy in place will enable you to move with the times and make the most of new opportunities.

Finally if there is a topic you wish to learn more about then why not complete our short survey. Tell us what you'd like us to cover in our next research report, eBook, training and webinars. It only takes two minutes to share your feedback.

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