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The construction industry and even construction technology companies seem to be quite slow at adopting innovations and social media.

While people in many other industries are getting excited about Spectacles, Snapchat filters and Instagram Stories, social media is not being used much in construction technology marketing, although some companies are starting to realize the importance of social media marketing.

As of 2016, 78 percent of the United States population had a social networking profile, and that number will continue to grow. A lot of marketers define social media just as new state of Internet.

Getting Started with Social Media

To begin, everyone needs a social media account for, at the minimum, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube. Each of these sites take a few minutes to set up and the goal is get more eyes on the company website. While it may be tempting to ask an assistant or intern to set up these accounts, it’s best done by management.

In order to save time on updating these social media platforms, look into tools such as  Buffer, Hootsuite, dlvr.it, Sprout Social and Tweetdeck that schedule all posts (with slight variations at once) and monitor reach.

Posting Content

Types of content to post include:

• original and shared content:
  • blog articles;
  • infographics, lists, eBooks, guides, templates, case studies, white papers, etc;
  • videos, including how-to videos;
  • testimonials; and
  • jobsite pictures.

• company updates, announcements, and news:
  • new staff;
  • new service announcements;
  • won contracts;
  • purchased a big-ticket item for the business (truck, tools, server racks, etc);
  • milestones (double-digit month, 90 days without accidents, etc);
  • on the move;
  • completion of a big job; and
  • attending a conference/event/show sponsoring a team/event/charity.

• news/media coverage:
  • interviews on a blog/podcast/other publication;
  • content published anywhere else; and
  • mention of the company or company personnel in an article or news story.

• industry news/predictions:
  • upcoming events;
  • legislation, laws, and international agreements affecting the construction industry; and
  • predictions and trends about the industry for the future.

• random things company personnel enjoy:
  • funny videos of something related to the industry;
  • inspirational quotes (in the form of a picture is always better); and
  • other relevant viral content.

Concentrate on visual content such as images, videos, gifs, etc. Think about streaming live video from construction jobsites. There are numerous tools to make images look great on social media, such as:

• http://www.canva.com
• http://www.visme.co/
• http://vizualize.me/
• http://piktochart.com/
• http://visual.ly/
• https://venngage.com/
• http://www.easel.ly/

Timing is Crucial

Try posting during these timeframes:

• Facebook - weekdays 1-4 pm and weekends 12-1 pm;
• Twitter - weekdays: 12-3 pm and 5-6 pm;
• LinkedIn - weekdays 5-6 pm; and
• YouTube - 2-4 pm.

How Much sharing?

In order to get some social media traction, there is a need to fill social media channels with a lot of content. Here is how many times one should share per day.

• Twitter - four times;
• Facebook - twice;
• LinkedIn - twice;
• Google+ - twice;
• Instagram - four times; and
• Pinterest - four times.

After more postings, likes and shares will drop significantly. But, if there is nice content - share it anyway. Great content should be shared and reshared many times.

Pay attention to Instagram, Snapchat and Vlogging

Don’t stick just to “traditional” social media. Check out Instagram and Snapchat Stories - short videos with captions - to capture some construction moments on jobsite, short case studies, office life, etc. It’s the same with vlogging. A case study, presented in form of interactive video, not a lengthy article, - is much more powerful.