The construction industry is undergoing rapid transformation due to technology, environmental sustainability, and evolving customer preferences. To keep up, you need a contractor lead generation strategy that aligns with your clients' buying cycle. This means developing meaningful relationships with customers, increasing brand awareness, and boosting conversion rates. After generating high-quality leads, you need to nurture those leads until they're ready to make a purchase. The process of lead nurturing generates 50% more sales ready leads at a significantly lower cost. 

Construction products and services are unique from many other industries. Whether you specialize in home renovations, painting, or electrical work, your products and services will have a different buying cycle from other businesses. Your clients are likely to take more time exploring options before finalizing a purchase. Furthermore, they will rely on your market expertise to provide customized solutions to their problems. And therefore, developing a lead nurturing strategy is critical. 

What is lead nurturing? 

Lead nurturing is the process of developing and maintaining relationships with potential customers throughout the buying cycle. The buying cycle refers to specific steps that buyers go through before they finalize a purchase. A typical buying cycle has the following steps:

• Unawareness
• Awareness
• Interest 
• Consideration 
• Justification 
• Purchase 
• Post-purchase 

For your lead nurturing strategy to be successful, you need to engage prospective buyers during every stage of the buying cycle. This can be done using various techniques that make the buyer gain trust in your products and services. And in the construction/contractor space, these leads turn into loyal customers for extended periods. The ultimate goal of any lead nurturing strategy is to position yourself as a valuable resource for your clients. In other words, they should turn to you when in need of the products and services that you provide. 

A contractor lead generation company can help you obtain and nurture high quality leads until they're prepared to make a purchase.

How to nurture construction leads 

There are many ways of developing lead nurturing campaigns. However, contractors need a customized plan that's tailored to the specific needs of their clients. A generic framework will only yield limited results while consuming valuable resources.On the other hand, a contractor lead nurturing campaign will boost conversion rates, increase sales, and elevate your brand. Here are specific steps you should follow when developing such a campaign. 

1. Generate content that fits your client's buying cycle 

The first step towards nurturing leads is creating content that aligns with the buying cycle. Market analysis can help you identify your ideal buyer profile as well as their pain points. In this way, you'll be able to generate and deliver content that your prospective buyers will find useful. 

A common mistake contractors make is trying to close a sale when the buyer isn't ready. If a client is still in the awareness/interest stage, they'll be seeking more information about your products/services. This means that the prospect is looking to learn more about your business before making a purchase. Content such as informational brochures will nurture the customer further down the buying cycle. This process also results in a meaningful relationship between you and the buyer. And when you deliver the right type of content at the right time, you'll be more likely to generate and convert leads. This explains why nurtured leads typically make 47% larger purchases.

2. Develop a lead scoring system for your contractor lead generation campaign

While generating leads for your construction business, you should develop a mechanism of ranking prospects according to the value they bring. The process of ranking prospects by value proposition is called lead scoring. This strategy is critical because it allows you to allocate resources towards the most promising leads. By focusing on your most valuable prospects, you can better coordinate sales and marketing activities. For example, your marketing team will generate promising leads that the sales personnel can pursue to finalize a purchase. 

Lead scoring is relevant even when you're operating a small construction business. It allows you to boost your marketing campaign's efficiency by pursuing prospects who will make large and timely purchases.

3. Use SEO and email marketing

Email marketing is one of the most effective channels for nurturing leads. Emails are personalized pathways that contractors can use to communicate directly with their clients.Regardless of the stage a buyer is in (along the buying cycle), you can generate and deliver customized content that moves the client closer towards finalizing a purchase. You can also monitor how each prospect is responding to your content. If engagement is low, you can adjust the type of content or delivery method accordingly. 

Furthermore, building your email list is a long-term lead generation and nurturing tool. Because much of the construction industry is relationship-based, email lists help you cultivate and maintain meaningful customer relationships.

4. Take advantage of social media outreach

Social media is a critical component of any contractor lead generation strategy. By connecting with prospects on social media, you will establish yourself as a valuable resource within the industry. Furthermore, redirecting traffic to your website(from various social media sites) is the first step towards nurturing leads down the buying cycle. An effective social media campaign involves market research, using social keywords, and developing a content calendar.

Lead nurturing is a useful strategy that contractors can use to convert high-quality leads. To develop a successful contractor lead generation campaign, consider working closely with a nationally recognized marketing team. Nitro Plug Digital Marketing has all the resources that contractors need to connect with prospective buyers. We will work with you to optimize SEO, rank higher on search engines, and boost conversion rates. Are you ready to get started on your contractor lead generation journey? Contact us today.

‍