When it comes to digital marketing for home builders, remodelers, and contractors, the landscape is always changing. Google search algorithms change, new social media platforms arise, and new forms of paid advertising crop up every few months.
One thing that will always stay the same is that the construction industry is a very visual one. Open houses may shift to digital tours embedded on your website. Facebook posts may need boosted budgets to show up. But at the end of the day, your target audience will always be searching for examples of your work through photos and videos.
The Rise of Video Marketing for Builders, Remodelers, and Contractors
Today's buyers are likely researching you and your competitors long before they reach out to you. Some of their first impressions include your website, your social media platforms, and any helpful articles you've written that answer their questions.
Photography used to be a huge differentiator to set you apart from your competitors - but now nearly every builder, remodeler, and contractor has professional photography taken of all completed homes and projects. (Some of my personal favorites are the drone aerial shots of new homes and decks!) Your potential leads are seeing similar pictures of white subway tile kitchens, living rooms with engineered hardwood floors, home offices revamped in finished basements, and herringbone tile master bathrooms all across Instagram. I'm willing to bet my new house's down payment that if you performed a blind study by selecting 100 images from yours and your competitors' social media profiles, removed all branding, and showed them to potential buyers that no one would be able to tell the difference between your work and your rival's.
So how do you stand out from the competition today? The answer is simple, but it's one that often holds a lot of anxiety if you're new to it. Video marketing is the quickest and most affordable way to set yourself apart from other builders, remodelers, and contractors. It offers those in research mode to get to know you and start to build trust with your brand before even reaching out to you.
Most Popular Forms of Video Marketing in the Construction Industry
There are dozens of ways to layer video into your digital marketing strategy, so let's narrow down to a few of the most popular and easily accessible video marketing tactics we're seeing work right now!
Tactic #1: Home Walk Through Videos
- Why they work so well: 2020 launched a new world of video walk throughs in place of open houses for new construction and remodeling projects. Now homeowners and homebuyers expect to be able to tour your model homes or see your projects virtually.
- When to shoot these videos: Invite your photographer/videographer to visit the home once it is completed. This can be done with our without staging, but the goal is to make sure there is no more punch list and everything looks flawless.
- What platforms to share on: These videos work particularly well on Instagram and on Facebook. You can also add videos to Houzz projects now! For an extra boost, you can upload to YouTube and even embed on your website if you build out a project page for this home!
Tactic #2: Talking Head Videos
- Why they work so well: If you're looking to really set yourself apart from the competition, sit in front of your own web cam and start talking! Your audience is looking to better understand your process, what makes you unique, and why they should choose you over your competition. Tell them!
- When to shoot these videos: The easiest way to shoot these types of videos is to set an hour aside per quarter and knock out 3-6 videos. Wear your best branded shirt, order a ring light, type up some bullets so you stay on topic, and hit record! By batching these types of videos, you'll be able to elicit help editing them and have enough new content to launch monthly before sitting down the following quarter to shoot more.
- What platforms to share on: Describing your process, meeting your team, talking about your company history... These are all great examples of videos that you should embed on your website. They make good social media posts, but they're at their most powerful and persuassive when someone is already on your site researching you.
Tactic #3: Client Testimonials
- Why the work so well: We tell ourselves that we make rational decisions. We write pros and cons lists, do research, and ask others for their opinions. But at the end of the day, we make emotional decisions. We hear our stories coming to life when we watch honest, relatable client testimonial videos.
- When to shoot these videos: After a client delight moment, don't be afraid to ask for a review! If your client leaves a raving review of how wonderful it was to work with you, ask if they'd be willing to say it on camera. You can either ask them to send you a file from their smartphone recording, or you can book your professional videographer to come shoot their testimonial. (Bonus points if you can batch this also and book a studio and videographer for a day and line up 5-10 clients back to back for testimonials!)
- What platforms to share on: In a word - everywhere. You can include these types of videos on your Testimonials page on your website, and you can also share on any and all social media platforms!
Tactic #4: Before and After Compilations
- Why they work so well: Don't have the budget for a professional videographer just yet? You can download any video editing app and splice together your most visually appealing new homes or completed projects. This is a great top of the funnel tool to attract those in the research phase because they're currently feeling the frustration of living in the "before" images.
- When to shoot these videos: At the end of every year, gather some of your best photography (and worst before shots) to splice together this "year in review" style video.
- What platforms to share on: These types of videos are social media gold mines. Before and after images tend to be the top performing picture style posts on Facebook and Instagram. Sharing the same type of content but in video format plays right into Facebook's algorithm.
Build A Robust Video Marketing Strategy Alongside Your Digital Marketing Strategy
If you're not sure where to get started with implementing videos into your current marketing plan, we can help. No matter if you're already a client of ours or if you're just looking for some direction on video marketing for your construction business, Builder Funnel offers a wide array of services to meet you where you are.
Full-Service Video Marketing Services for Contractors, Remodelers, and Home Builders
Including Strategy, Execution, and Implementation
If you're like most of our clients, your phones have been ringing off the hook since last March and you may even be booked out through the rest of 2021. Now is the perfect time to focus on increasing your average project size. In order to communicate that you're a brand of superior quality and process, this full service video marketing package includes:
- We travel to you!
- Client testimonials, explainer videos, Etc.
- Includes scripting and all equipment neededFilming 5-8 full length videos
- Clipping 2-3 punchier videos from full length videos
- Geared towards social media
- 15-20 short videos total!
- Drone footage of the area for B-roll
- Shooting 5 projects or new homes
- Half day strategy session
The goal of this package is to provide enough content for a website redesign, content to share for the next year, and a powerful and customized video marketing strategy for your construction business. We'll walk you through how to optimize videos on YouTube, where to embed them on your site, which ones to share on social media, and how to develop a targeted Facebook ads campaign maximizing your videos.
Testimonials and Formal Video Execution Package
Already have a strategy and just need the actual videos to put everything together? We can help here, too! This option includes:
- We travel to you!
- 3-5 full length client testimonial videos (onsite or offsite)
- 2-3 full length scripted company videos
- Examples: about the company, process, teammate highlights, interview with designers, etc
This package focuses on creating the content to fit into a strategy that's already been built. You don't have to level up your branding across the board to implement a strong video marketing strategy!
Video Marketing Consulting and Editing Package
Want to test the water before committing to a major marketing shift? No problem. We're here to come alongside you wherever you are in your marketing strategizing journey. This package includes:
- Video topic planning and scripting
- Consultation on video shooting techniques, software, and equipment
- Minor editing support
You don't need to be a film major to start adding videos into your everyday marketing strategies. This consulting and editing focused package will help you commit to a plan and start producing videos on your own.
Not sure where to get started?
You Don't Need to Hire A Marketing Agency to Start A Successful Video Marketing Campaign
Adding video into your digital marketing strategy doesn't have to be an expensive endeavor or a massive time commitment. All it takes is holding your smartphone out, turning on your selfie camera, and clicking the red circle.
Yes - adding videos into a cohesive strategy will lead to more consistent lead generation and shorter sales cycles. If you put thought and effort into thinking through the buyer journey when interacting with you, you'll be able to find a few spots where you can make a deeper connection with your audience through video.
If hiring an agency to support your video marketing strategy, integration, and execution, then all you need to get started is to get started. Try recording a simple video of you walking through a project that is underway. Explain a few of your methods, material selections, and why the layout is the way it is. Upload the video to your Instagram stories and Facebook page and watch those views and engagements skyrocket.
Here's the thing. If you're not connecting with cold leads through videos on your website, in your emails, and on your social media, then you can bet your competitors are.
