Challenge: Go Live For 7 Days With These Ideas To Build Your Trade and Construction Marketing.
I’m going to cut to the chase.
And tell you exactly why you need to consider social media Lives for your Trade and Construction marketing.
(For those Trades who may not know what a ‘Live’ is – it’s a video tool on many of the social media platforms where instead of recording a video and then uploading to your page, you can stream a video in real time to your audience so they can see exactly what you’re up to right now – think of it as your own Live TV.)
Here’s the benefits:
✅ It’s free.
✅ A quick way to become visible to the masses.
✅ Easy to do on your mobile phone.
✅ We get to know what services you offer in your Trade and Construction business.
✅ See the people behind your Trade and Construction business.
✅ Familiarise ourselves with faces and voices.
✅ Exposure to your brand – think branded workwear, vehicles etc.
✅ Familiarise ourselves with faces and voices.
✅ Begin the KNOW-LIKE-TRUST factor before we’ve even enquired.
Did I tell you I also read minds?
Because I know what you’re thinking.
‘There’s no way I’m getting on camera for my Trade and Construction business, especially going LIVE – there’s so any things that can go wrong!’
I’ve got your back.
Want to learn how to get over stage-fright?
Read Going Live: How to get over stage-fright for social media marketing in your Trade and Construction business.
Then come back here.
Once you’re all clued up and raring to go on the Live front, you’ll need some ideas of what to go Live about, right?
Well.
I’ve designed you a 7-day challenge.
A different idea for everyday of the week.
The power in going Live (like anything social media related) is about consistency.
Let’s drill down into it…
1. Show us behind the scenes of your Trade and Construction business.
One of the easiest ideas you can go Live with.
And one the biggest pros of social media overall.
Let me break it down for you.
Social media can play a huge part in branding and marketing your Trade and Construction business.
Along with lots of other strategies.
Let’s take your website design as one of those strategies.
Both are online.
Both included video, text and images.
Both are accessed on phones, computers and tablets.
Lots of similarities, right?
So, where do we define the difference?
Well.
Treat your website as your shop-front.
Polished.
Showing off all the highlights to your Trade and Construction marketing.
Being nothing short of pure professionalism.
Now.
Treat your Trade and Construction social media as the business ‘sketchbook’.
It still needs to be professional.
But it can be less formal.
A little more rough around edges.
It doesn’t need to be ‘television’ or ‘magazine’ worthy like your ‘shop-front’.
It can be a bit more raw – like you might plan and work in a sketchbook.
Still legible, still given thought and consideration.
But it has a different feel to it showing the parts of your business that your shop-front might not.
So why do I tell you all this?
Given that this idea is about going ‘behind the scenes’ this is where that ‘sketchbook’ concept comes in.
Let’s say you had a workshop where you prepare client work.
Maybe you’re a locksmith or you spray paint client kitchen units there.
This workshop may not feature in any of your current marketing.
In fact.
Clients may have no idea you even have or use one!
This would be a GREAT ‘behind-the-scenes’ to show us around.
As it’s Live, it doesn’t need to be super high production – doing it on your phone is perfect.
We get an insight into where you spend time during the week, the facilities you have that are going to play a future part in our potential projects with you and we get to be nosy around a space that is somewhere new to us and that we might never have seen before.
Interesting and educational!
Plus.
⏰ There’s little or no preparation time in showing us ‘behind-the-scenes’ for your Trade and Construction business… because you’re going Live from where you on any given day anyway!
Bonus.
Here's a few ideas of ‘behind-the-scenes’ ideas that you might like to consider for your Trade and Construction business:
✅ Show us your workshop or office.
✅ Walk us through a behind-the-scenes on a job (where safe and appropriate).
✅ Appointments for your company – e.g. a vehicle showroom if you’re investing in a new van or having some branded clothing made.
✅ Company deliveries you may have had – new tools or print you’ve ordered.
✅ Incredible views you may have that ‘ordinary folk’ may not get the chance to ever see – brilliant for the likes of Roofers, Scaffolders and Tree Surgeons for example.
✅ Letting us know where you are and the purpose of the event – i.e. if you’re at a Networking Meeting or Charity function.
I think you get the gist.
Go ‘behind-the-scenes.’
Let us get to experience as a customer what it’s like there.
2. Give us a problem-solving quick tip from your Trade and Construction business.
This one may need a bit of planning.
But is so worth the trouble.
I think this is one of the biggest game-changing social media Lives any Trade and Construction business can do.
Showing us how clients can fix or prevent a problem that will save them time, stress and money.
Now.
I know what you’re thinking.
Why should I show clients how to solve a problem themselves… as then they will never use my business?...
…And how would this benefit me anyway?
Here's the facts.
💥 The likelihood of us trying to solve the problem you’re showing us is unlikely for many – as we don’t have the skills, tools or time – but it gets us thinking about solving the problem.
💥 For many problems, if we did try to do it ourselves the likelihood is we’re going to hit a brick wall and know we won’t do it as well as you anyway, so will still enquire.
💥 By you showing us how to prevent a problem that we end up executing and are SUPER grateful for, means that when we do get a big problem that we DEFINITELY need professional help with, you are going to be front of mind.
💥 By going Live and showing us how to fix or prevent a problem means you are positioning your Trade and Construction brand as the experts - giving us confidence in your business over your competitors.
💥 Your Trade and Construction tip videos are interesting to those who have no idea about your line of work, so is a great way to build your audience further.
💥 We actually get to know YOU personally and start building trust.
Your Trade and Construction Tip Lives will need a bit of prep.
✅ Be sure you have everything to hand that you need to execute the Tip. I.e., tools etc.
✅ Make sure the camera is in the right position for us to see what we need.
✅ Consider your surroundings – that you’re not going to get a team member interrupting you, walking Infront of the camera or any loud noises in the background. (That’s fine for a general ‘behind-the-scenes’ if you’re walking around, but if you’re giving us a tip, we need to be able to hear what you’re saying fully.
3. Thank and share a testimonial that has been given to your Trade and Construction business recently.
Another simple idea.
That’s quick to execute if you have the content to hand already.
All those great reviews piling in on your Check-A-Trade, Facebook and Google pages?
Why not take the opportunity to use a Live to thank the client who left you that review and share the great things they said about your Trade and Construction business?
The PURPOSE of the Live is to thank them.
But in the process we are hearing why your Trade and Construction business has helped them with their problems.
Again, another idea that doesn’t take any prep time as the review has been left and you’re reading it to us or referring to it in your Live.
This also gives you the opportunity to do a few things.
🔵 Tell us the story behind the review – what was memorable about that job for you.
🔵 Particularly if this is a commercial client – bring visibility to THEIR business, which they will be truly thankful for…
🔵 … Which in turn may nudge or remind other clients to leave your Trade and Construction business a review to get similar exposure.
🔵 Encourage engagement – if that client sees your Live or perhaps other people who know them come across it, they may well interact more as they have a link to the story.
If you REALLY wanted extra brownie points, platforms such as Facebook and Instagram actually allow you to split the Live screen and someone else can join your Live.
So if you really are at an advanced level for marketing your Trade and Construction business, you could ask a client to join you on your Live and tell us the story for themselves.
🏆 Talk about winning!
4. Show us your favourite or most effective tool you use in your Trade and Construction business.
And no… We don’t mean the apprentice. 😉
You may laugh, but the first time I heard about dustless sanders from my decorator clients I was blown away.
For two reasons.
One.
Think of all the cleaning up you WOULDN’T have to do.
Result.
Two.
How game-changing that was for my clients who worked in a home where there was a vulnerable child with breathing difficulties.
It really stopped me in my tracks if I’m honest.
Now, I get it.
Your tools that you use day-to-day are probably no longer very interesting to you.
And something that you don’t even think about as a marketing opportunity.
Why would anyone care? I hear you cry.
And it comes back to remembering… your day-to-day is not OUR day-to-day.
And if your ideal clients are not from the same world as you – i.e., construction – then the chances are they aren’t clued up on little inventions like your tools and it could be the spark that ignites an enquiry.
Imagine my decorator going Live and talking about his dustless sander.
And how he feels it’s so important in his business because it means he gets to go into the homes of hard-working families and transform their lives whilst ensuring the safety of their vulnerable children.
What do we think parents who are in the market to decorate their home and stumble across his Live might think?
Likely to make an enquiry, right?
Because he used his sanding tool to start a conversation that shows not only how he solves a problem but also how he considerate he is.
Clever. Right?
5. Talk to us about how you got into your Trade and built your Construction business.
We’re nosy.
Back stories are always interesting.
Maybe your company stemmed from a family business.
Perhaps you stumbled into your Trade by accident.
Or you were inspired by somebody and knew it was your calling.
Whatever your story, telling us how you got into your Trade and Construction business and how the company came to being can have a lot of power in you being memorable to us - as there’s likely lots of relatable stories at play.
This is one of the best Trade and Construction social media Live types that helps us get to know you as a person.
The beauty of this Trade and Construction social media Live idea is that it has lots of legs with your team – if you have one.
Imagine each of your team going Live over the course of some weeks, each telling us their story as to how they got into the Trade.
Brilliant for the all of these reasons:
✅ Lots of content being created super quickly and easily.
✅ We get to know all the people behind the business.
✅ You show us the size and scale of your business (which can have benefits in some situations).
✅ Where you feature team members, THEIR audience (friends, family etc) are more likely to interact - meaning your business gets under the noses of more people.
6. Tell us something you love to do when you are not working in or on your Trade and Construction business.
The beauty of social media is that though the focus is on your business, there are so many opportunities to make it about the people.
And that can be ‘non-business’ related.
This idea works similarly from the last.
A really great idea to use for yourself and your team (if you have one).
Tell us what you like to do when you are NOT working in your Trade and Construction business.
Perhaps you have a hobby such as rowing or hiking.
Maybe you’re involved with your children’s school or local charity and help with events.
Do you work on lot of self-development and into reading or meditation?
Our advice…
Use 20% - 30% of your Lives telling us about your non-business related life and what you’re up to.
⚠️ Don’t forget that even when your Lives are not talking about business related topics you are STILL representing your business brand – so think carefully about what you are going to talk about when mentioning your spare time.
💡 The BEST non-business social media Lives you can do are talking about topics or hobbies that your Ideal Client for your Trade and Construction business are also interested in.
For example.
If your Ideal Clients are affluent business owners who spend a lot of time on the Golf Course and you also play Golf, then you suddenly have a common ground that can spark conversation as well as create alignment with the client’s personal brand.
This can play a bit part in certain clients feeling like you’re the right team for the job.
Who would have thought non Trade and Construction marketing related social media Lives could play such a part in building your business?
7. Promote another business or organisation on a social media live for your Trade and Construction marketing.
Talking about our own business can take some practice.
And it will.
Talking about other people’s businesses – that we are either clients of or have collaborated with – feels so much easier.
So is a great place to start if you’re new to Lives.
Here's an example.
You run an electrical business for homeowners.
A new client of yours is renovating their forever home.
When on site, you end up meeting a plumbing company.
And have to work together in parts or around each other.
But really hit it off.
You love how they work and how they’ve helped make your job so much easier.
In fact, you are so impressed with their workmanship and attitude you will definitely be recommending them to your future clients.
Do a Live about them!
Why this is brilliant:
✅ They are a non-conflicting Trade so no competition.
✅ You get to tell us a story of how and where you met and why they were great – which is pretty easy content.
✅ By telling us the story of how you met them you are also reinforcing the kind of work and jobs you do without being ‘salesy’.
✅ You are positioned as considerate as you are talking about another business, not just your own all the time.
✅ The ‘plumber’ will be so delighted with you, they may feel inclined to do the same to THEIR audience and promote you and your Trade and Construction business – extra exposure for you!
It’s amazing how making your marketing about other people can do a lot of the heavy lifting in your own Trade and Construction marketing.
Fundamentally – your business page content should be mostly about your business.
But sprinkling in Lives like this about other Trades and other businesses that are helping you or that you want to thank means you get to show up more with easy, stress-free content, we feel like we get to know you quicker and you position yourself a certain way to us that we like and trust.
Do the Trade Live challenge for 7 days.
I dare you.
⬇️ Challenge: Go Live On Social Media For 7 Days With These Ideas To Build Your Trade and Construction Marketing Rundown:
1. Show us behind the scenes of your Construction business.
2. Give us a problem-solving quick tip.
3. Thank and share a testimonial that has been given to you recently.
4. Show us your favourite or most effective tool.
5. Talk to us about how you got into your Trade.
6. Tell us something you love to do when you are not working.
7. Promote another business or organisation.
🛠 Need a little more help nailing your Trades and Construction Social Media Lives?
Course you do.
First. Let’s work out where you are with all things Social Media.
Got 3 minutes?
Take our Trades Quiz to discover how you score with all things ‘Off The Tools’.
We have heaps of tips, tricks, and hacks for your Trade and Construction business in our cheat sheets, videos and ideas waiting for you on the other side… i.e., your results page.
So, you can improve your score. And NAIL your Trade and Construction business.
Nice.