Author: BUILT Strategies

by Michael Monahan, Founder, President & Lead Consultant, BUILT Marketing Strategies

Your company’s brand is one of the most important aspects of doing business. It directly affects the way consumers and stakeholders think, perceive and react to what your organization is offering.  

Whether your company is starting from nothing or “building its brand”, here are three helpful questions for marketers and business owners to consider as they define or refine their company’s brand positioning:     

1)     What do you do better than anyone or any other organization?   

This may be an easy question to answer for some of you. If it is, then congratulations on finding a clear niche area and specialty to offer in the marketplace. Ask yourself “what makes our organization unique.” Then identify three things that make you unique in the marketplace.  

In his book, “Traction,” author Gino Wickman says “If you line yourself up against ten of your competitors, you might all share one of these uniques. Some of you may even share two, but no one else should have the three that you do.” 

Wickman goes on to compare Southwest and Spirit Airlines as examples. Southwest and Spirit are both budget airlines, but are completely different businesses. “Low price” may be one differentiator, but it’s not the only thing that makes each airline unique. 

2)     What do your clients value? 

Once you have decided what makes your business unique, compare that with what the market values most. Often, you’ll hear things like price, quality, efficiency or expertise, but that’s not always the case. 

For example, did you know that early sales of Peloton bikes increased after Peloton raised the price of its bikes? In a 2019 interview with Yahoo! Finance, Peloton Founder and CEO John Foley said, “It was interesting psychology that we teased out,” he recalled in an interview last year with Yahoo Finance. “In the very, very early days, we charged $1,200 for the Peloton bike for the first couple of months and what turned out happening is we heard from customers that the bike must be poorly built if you’re charging $1,200 for it. We charged $2,000 dollars for it and sales increased because people said, ‘Oh, it must be a quality bike.’ 

I have also heard the old adage of “fast, good or cheap…pick two.” This is an example of determining what the market values most. How price sensitive is your target market? How much does your audience value your expertise? If the market does not value that particular offering, you should reconsider whether you should be doing it. 

3)     What are offerings your competitor(s) either devalues, or is not paying attention to?  

Finally, compare the answers to the first two questions and compare that to the competitive landscape in which you work. If your brand positioning suggests the importance of relationships to your business, consider how that compares to the competition? Do they stress relationships as well? If they do, you may want to consider how you nuance your messaging around that point. Are you the low-cost provider? Do you want to be? Producing a product or service at the lowest price possible can be a race to the bottom and risk the commoditization of what you are offering. 

Answering these three questions will enable you to pinpoint your brand’s sweet spot, as shown in the attached graphic. If you are having difficulty answering these questions, consider engaging with a marketing or brand strategist with experience in your space, who knows how to ask the right questions to help you best identify your businesses’ unique characteristics, what the market values most and what your competition might not be focused on. If you chose the right partner, you will end up with a powerful brand positioning and brand messaging statement that will help refine your messaging across your integrated marketing efforts. 

by Michael Monahan, Founder, President & Lead Consultant, BUILT Marketing Strategies

AdventHealth‘s history in Orlando dates back to 1908. At that time, a group of Seventh Day Adventists purchased a wooden farmhouse for $9,000. Initially equipped with 20 beds, an X-ray machine, and a single doctor, it’s come a long way. Today, AdventHealth is a healthcare giant. With over 5,000 beds in Central Florida alone, it’s part of an $11 billion healthcare system. This system spans nine states, includes 54 hospitals, and invests $600 million annually in capital.

Robert Wahlers, vice president of philanthropy at the AdventHealth Foundation, argues that this is only half the story. He suggests that the future of healthcare in Central Florida is about outpatient care and health parks. These facilities will cater to the area’s booming population.

AdventHealth facilities in Central Florida are busier than any other hospital in the U.S., according to Wahlers. He says, “It’s exciting to see how many patients we serve here.” As people continue to move to the area, he predicts growth to meet increasing demand.

Wahlers was part of a group from Advent Health who spoke at an event in April. The event, organized by Contractors, Closers & Connectors of Orlando (CCC Orlando), focused on AdventHealth’s Central Florida Development.

Keith Lowe, Director of Strategic Real Estate at AdventHealth, offered his thoughts on the future. He suggested that healthcare will become more accessible. “In a hundred years, we might look back and think we were just getting started,” Lowe said.

Lowe posed the question, “Have any of us waited too long for an appointment with our primary care physician?” He went on to discuss how the patient experience is changing. In particular, he noted the impact of Florida’s 2019 repeal of the Certificate of Need (CON). This repeal, according to the National Law Review, removed barriers for building or expanding medical facilities in Florida.

Lowe mentioned that future health parks will be closer to consumers. These parks will house 30,000 – 40,000 square foot healthcare facilities. They’ll offer primary care, imaging, labs, and other essential services, alongside amenities such as cafes and retail pharmacies.

Lowe highlighted two sites that AdventHealth has purchased. One is the former Holy Land attraction site. AdventHealth plans to put a medical office building and freestanding emergency department there. According to Lowe, this area of Orlando is currently underserved. The other site is in Minneola, where AdventHealth owns 30 acres.

These two projects are part of AdventHealth’s larger construction portfolio. Bryan Emde, executive director at AdventHealth, estimates this portfolio at $1.8 billion. It includes over 250 projects at varying stages of completion.

CCC Orlando, a non-profit, seeks to unite the local building and construction industry for charity. At their April event, they raised $4,000 for the AdventHealth Foundation.

Orange County officials predict a population increase to 2.1 million by 2050. This 48 percent increase over the current population will bring about 690,000 new Central Florida residents.

Accommodating this growth calls for 276,000 new housing units. These include various forms of housing such as detached homes, duplexes, courtyard apartments, townhouses, and midrise buildings. COVID-era migration trends have only amplified this need.

At ABC Central Florida’s Builders’ Breakfast, Alberto Vargas, Planning Manager at Orange County Government, addressed the issue. He stated local municipalities are likely to absorb about 250,000 of the new Central Floridians. This leaves a shortage of around 92,000 units.

However, Orange County has a plan. Vargas detailed Orange County’s Vision 2050, a roadmap prioritizing context diversity and development. This initiative aims to ensure environmental preservation, community character, and mobility options.

“We’re shifting from a one-size-fits-all approach with the development community,” Vargas said. “We’re veering away from the segregation of land uses.”

The county’s comprehensive plan sets guidelines for development in different areas. This includes rules, objectives, and goals for the process.

Vargas added, “We’re changing future land uses under Vision 2050. We’re merging the uses into integrated use to create places and targeting specific densities and intensities scenarios.”

Vision 2050 identifies three core elements: market areas, sectors, and place types. Market areas refer to six specific regions: northwest, southwest, core, east, south, and the rural east. These areas will help the county better understand and manage expected growth and future economic drivers.

In addition, county planners will assess different market sectors. They aim to identify areas suitable for growth, contrasting them with more established or rural regions. They also consider areas for preservation or those with special purposes.

Lastly, they’ll examine place types to identify optimal locations for future growth, including population centers, neighborhoods, and corridors.

Vargas said that county planners are collaborating with the development community. They’re evaluating new applications through an accessibility and mobility model. This model aligns development opportunities with the county’s broader plans for the future.

(pictured above, from l to r): Jay Lovell, director of design and construction at FaulkBuilt, Mike Chatham, AIA, president – HHCP Architects, David Leyte-Vidal, project manager – RLF Engineering and Architecture, Ben Hooley, director – multifamily – Scott + Cormia and Evan Bourff, AIA, principal at dwell design studio, discuss challenges facing architects at a recent Builders’ Breakfast, presented by the Associated Builders and Contractors of Central Florida.

By Michael A. Monahan, Founder, President & Lead Consultant, BUILT Marketing Strategies

“We’re just trying to get the deal to pencil,” said Evan Bourff, AIA, principal at dwell design studio, as he described some of the challenges architects face today in an environment fraught with challenges ranging from supply chain and talent acquisition issues to increasing interest rates and the fear of an upcoming recession.

Bourff spoke among a group of leading Central Florida architects, including Mike Chatham, AIA, president – HHCP Architects, David Leyte-Vidal, project manager – RLF Engineering and Architecture and Ben Hooley, director – multifamily – Scott + Cormia. Jay Lovell, director of design and construction at FaulkBuilt moderated the panel, at the June 29 Builders’ Breakfast a program of the Central Florida Chapter of the Associated Builders and Contractors.

Chatham emphasized that supply chain issues make it hard to finish projects on time. He said, “Everything’s taking longer.” He added that receiving late updates on supply chain issues significantly impacts their services.

To ease supply chain issues, Chatham suggested general contractors and suppliers share shortage information earlier. This can help architects design around those shortages.

Leyte-Vidal highlighted the value of good communication and partnership. He said, “A five-minute call will help determine the outcome of a particular decision on a project.”

As an example, Chatham mentioned HHCP’s work on Orlando’s planned Pulse Museum project. Initially envisioned as a steel structure, they considered concrete due to cost pressures.

However, Chatham also noted the difficulty of planning with uncertain future material prices. “It’s a leap of faith,” he said.

Chatham also noted talent acquisition as a significant issue. He likened the difficulty in finding talented architects to that of sourcing materials.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Outlook Handbook anticipates approximately 9,400 job openings for architects annually from 2020 to 2030. Most of these will replace workers moving to different occupations or retiring. The BLS reported the median annual wage for architects was $80,180 as of May 2021.

The next Builders’ Breakfast will occur on July 7 at ABC Central Florida’s office. Port Canaveral Port Authority Commissioner Wayne Justice will provide a Space Coast update.

“Cruising is everything,” said Canaveral Port Authority Commissioner Wayne Justice. He spoke at a recent Builders’ Breakfast. The Central Florida Chapter of the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) hosted the event. The event took place on July 7 at ABC’s Orlando office.

The port expects to make a profit of over $100 million this year. This matches pre-pandemic levels. Large ships from Carnival, Disney, MSC, and others drive this growth.

Port Canaveral is among Florida’s largest cruise ship terminals. It handles about 5 million passengers yearly. Miami and Port Everglades show similar numbers.

However, Justice highlighted Port Canaveral’s advantage. It attracts the big ships.

“Terminal One was completed four years ago,” he said. “The world’s largest cruise ships dock there.”

The fleets of Carnival and Disney feature large LNG-powered vessels. These are the Carnival Mardi Gras and the Disney Wish.

“Every Saturday, 6,000 people board and 6,000 people disembark,” he added. He stated the Port’s operation size creates thousands of Central Florida jobs.

In November, new ships will arrive. The Wonder of the Seas from Royal Caribbean and Prima from Norwegian Cruise Lines are due. Another vessel from MSC will join them, along with Mardi Gras and Wish.

Justice mentioned LNG systems when discussing port operations. Barge vessels transport LNG from places like Pascagoula, Mississippi and Elva Island, Georgia.

Cruising is the flashy side of port operations. Still, cargo movement in and out of Central Florida is vital. The top cargos include fuel for aviation and aggregate for construction projects. Salt and lumber also pass through Port Canaveral’s waters.

The space sector adds to the port’s activities. Both NASA and private companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin conduct operations here.

Justice explained the port’s reinvestment strategy. It puts cash back into capital projects. These include new bridges, wider channels, retail partnerships, and an aquarium.

“We see $90 million a year of construction input on average,” he said. “This keeps everything moving.”

By Michael A. Monahan, president, Founder, President & Lead Consultant, BUILT Marketing Strategies

Digital marketing has become one of the best ways to grow construction businesses. The industry, itself, is evolving and so are the ways you can reach potential customers.

By Michael A. Monahan, Founder, President & Lead Consultant, BUILT Marketing Strategies

Having trouble attracting and retaining high-quality marketing talent for your business? In 2022, you’re not alone.

According to professional staffing firm, LHH in its 2022 Workforce Trends Report, marketing hiring managers have found it challenging to source candidates with the technical skills, adaptivity/creativity skills and leadership skills they need on their teams. Most hiring managers, according to the report, plan to close the skills gap by hiring new full-time employees 63 percent say they plan to identify and upskill high potential employees within their organizations.

Additionally, many businesses continue to work through effects of “The Great Resignation,” where employees are switching jobs in greater numbers than before. According to survey by executive search firm Korn-Ferry “Of nearly 700 professionals…a third (31 percent) say they would quit their job even if they didn’t have another one lined up.”

That is a stat most marketing hiring managers and business owners have not seen before.

The challenge, though, is the critical nature of marketing to the success of your business, in building your brand, connecting with your customers and helping drive sales.

According to consulting firm Deloitte’s 28^th CMO survey, where it interviewed more than 300 senior marketing executives, marketing’s importance increased during the last year. The Deloitte survey said respondents indicated that they expected to increase their marketing investment by 13.6 percent this year, which is on top of 10.3 percent and 5.2 percent growth over the past two years. That increase is also driving demand for full-time talent, as Deloitte’s survey respondents also said they expect to increase hiring of marketing talent by 10.5 percent over the next year.

Another option, however, could be to seek out an agency partnership, where your third-party marketing partner takes on the responsibility for attracting, training and managing talent on your account on a fractional basis. An added benefit of this model is that team members working at an agency gain exposure to work in other businesses or even other industries that they can bring new and creative solutions to your company’s marketing challenges.

According to another report from LHH, its 2022 Marketing & Creative Outlook, 30 percent of hiring managers said they will need to expand their marketing and creative department this year, another 24 percent of hiring managers say marketing roles are the most difficult to recruit. Additionally, 37 percent of hiring managers say creative skills are increasingly difficult to find in potential candidates, post-pandemic, according to the report.

In addition to providing additional horsepower from a marketing strategy point of view, an agency can help overcome challenges in hiring niche functional areas across the marketing spectrum in areas like media buying, graphic design, digital marketing or public relations, videography or web design, where you may not need a full-time professional to do the work. While both the agency and the client benefit from a long-term partnership, many agencies may be willing to work on a project basis. An agency partner could even develop a marketing plan targeted specifically to help you attract and retain talent in other areas of your business, helping you create digital, print, billboard or radio campaigns to help attract top talent in other areas of your business.

If your need is large enough, I’ve even seen agencies embed their team members alongside yours, so you get all the benefits of a full-time employee along with access to all the additional skills mentioned above.

Knowing that multiple options exist to keep your marketing engine running, despite disruptions in the marketplace for talent, can help ensure senior marketing leaders and business owners can continue to invest in their marketing program and continue building their brand.

Logistically speaking, Florida’s geography makes the state difficult and expensive. It is more than 440 miles long and 350 miles wide, mostly surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Gulf of Mexico on the other, meaning ground freight shipments can only come into the state from the north. Additionally, Florida does not manufacture much in the way of raw goods, meaning many of the trucks that come here from more centralized Southeastern locations like Savannah or Atlanta leave here empty.

Those logistical challenges of trying to deliver to Florida from warehouses located outside the state have worsened over the past several years as customer preferences for ecommerce versus brick-and-mortar shopping, near instantaneous delivery options from online retailers, like Amazon, and pandemic-fueled economic shifts in labor and supply chains.

Before 2019, “we had about 12 or 13 percent retail penetration via eCommerce,” said David Murphy, executive vice president, CBRE. “That shot up to over 30 percent overnight with the pandemic,” adding that “for every billion dollars of additional eCommerce spent, you need 1.25 million square feet” of industrial space.

Those changes in demand have added tremendous pricing pressure on available industrial space.

“The market has doubled or tripled. Rental rates have doubled. Sale prices have doubled, or in some cases, tripled,” Murphy said, citing a statistic from 2017 when industrial land sold for $150,000 an acre. Today, it is between $600,000 and $700,000 an acre, which has created challenges and opportunities between buyers and sellers, with buildings optimized and built for specific purposes for things like logistics centers, warehousing and fulfillment centers, and new dynamics between tenants and landlords.

“I have clients that are on the cutting edge of their industry and that means that I have to be at the forefront of all these issues as well,” said Cindy Campbell, real estate attorney at Seyfarth Shaw.

Campbell said that she has seen dramatic changes in terms and timing on the contracts she handles, as well as the speed of the transactions.

“Typically, the LOI will say, you have 10 days to return an agreement or a lease. Now, I can’t follow the LOI. Sometimes, she says, she needs to say to a client, “I need this tomorrow!”

Campbell also said the number of deals she is seeing has grown dramatically, closing more than three dozen transactions in one recent year.

Some retailers, such as Amazon, are looking at the buildings they use and the buildings they build in innovative ways to focus on efficiency and sustainability.

Jeff Neville, general manager, Amazon, spoke about the company’s commitment to The Climate Pledge, where more than 300 businesses have come together with the mission of meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement to be net-zero carbon by 2040, 10 years early.

At the construction level, Neville said Amazon is looking at how to construct buildings differently.

He said, the company talks about building vertical, so it does not need as much land. It talks about designing the interior of the building for things like HVAC and using automated and robotic systems in its facilities, which don’t need as much HVAC.

“How do we design the building from the bottom up for energy, conservation and efficiency.”

He said the second side of Amazon’s Climate Pledge commitment is at the corporate level, partnering with local organizations to learn best practices and partnering with local farmers who can use waste food product as fertilizer.

“A lot of the best ideas start small and go big,” Neville said.

Murphy, Campbell and Neville spoke on a panel moderated by DaLila Goodridge, sr. project manager at CBRE, at the Contractors, Closers and Connections (CCC) August event, at Workscapes’ Orlando office. More than 100 people registered for the event, which also served as a fundraiser for Route Seven Orlando, a member-based nonprofit organization of men centered on the principle of growth and development – of self, one another and community. CCC raised $2,500 for the organization at the event.

By Michael A. Monahan, Founder, President and Lead Consultant, BUILT Marketing Strategies

President Joe Biden signed into law this week the Inflation Reduction Act, which will direct hundreds of billions of dollars toward fighting climate change, reducing the cost of prescription drugs, and cutting the deficit.

“This is a significant piece of legislation that will have both immediate impact and longer-term economic impact, as well,” said Biden’s economic adviser Brian Deese, in a recent article on Yahoo Finance.

“It’s basically just a big green light for everyone—for the consumer, for the companies making these products, for building owners, for utilities, everybody—to start doing this stuff,” Ben Evans, federal legislative director of the nonprofit US Green Building Council, told Wired. “And we think that’s really going to change these markets. I don’t think it’s an overstatement to call this historic.”

Gernot Wagner climate economist at Columbia Business School told Wired in the same article, “What this bill does, in many ways, is at least as much psychology as economics. “You have your average conversation with your contractor about: Wait, should I really be installing a gas boiler here, with gas prices pretty darn high?” He then suggested spending a little extra today on energy-efficient upgrades that will pay for themselves in just a few months.

Here are some home services elements of the new Inflation Reduction Act, which went into law August 16, 2022:

• A 30 percent tax credit for energy-efficient windows, doors, insulation, water heaters, heat pumps, or newer models of appliances.
• A second tax credit encourages people to install solar panels on their roofs.

According to a White House press release, the act will create $14,000 in direct consumer rebates for families to buy heat pumps or other energy efficient home appliances, saving families at least $350 per year and enabling 7.5 million more families to install solar on their roofs with a 30 percent tax credit, saving families $9,000 over the life of the system, or at least $300 per year.

For companies engaged in these kinds of businesses, this is actionable market news they can use to market to new and existing customers.

Across the four main components of the marketing “PESO” model (Paid, Earned, Owned, Shared), here are some ideas marketers and home services business owners should consider:

Paid

• Invest in highly targeted digital ads on Google, Facebook, Instagram (or even Tik Tok), targeting homeowners whose demographics match your customer profile.
• Consider updating your radio advertising scripts if you have an ongoing traditional media presence.

Owned

• Focus on the psychological benefits of having an energy-efficient home by developing relevant “green” content featuring either the benefits of making such upgrades around the home or the economic benefits of how much money homeowners can save.
• Develop relevant copy for your website or even an entire landing page.
• Produce a custom brochure your salespeople can leave behind after they’ve visited with a customer.
• Run a sales promotion featuring the environmental benefits or tax savings your customers will enjoy.
• Develop a fact sheet with key details about the Inflation Reduction Act that may be relevant to homeowners.

Earned

• Reach out to local reporters and editors and offer to talk about how you plan to shift your approach to help support the fight against global warming in your business or how you’re looking at this as an opportunity to save your customers money.
• Ask a trusted customer if they will speak to a reporter about their experience with you and how you helped them. Getting this kind of endorsement can really help you sell your story.

Shared

• Develop shareable social media graphics or video showing how your installers interact with customers, features and benefits of the windows, doors, heat pumps or solar panels your company sells to make it easier for the customer to understand, which will help you overcome any final objections once you’re ready to close the sale.

By understanding the implications and benefits of this new legislation, you’ll be equipped with the right information at the right time in front of the right audience.

If you’d like to brainstorm additional ideas with us, or would like help, please  email [email protected]builtstrategies.com

or  visit www.builtstrategies.com