While traditionally architects could rely on networking and referrals to find projects, the growth of digital marketing has made their sector a hypercompetitive one. Regardless of your firm’s size or reputation, you need a comprehensive digital marketing plan to build an online presence, promote your services, build trust, and attract new clients.
How to make the most of your architecture firm’s website
For architecture firms, a website acts as your online business card and portfolio. If you employ these strategies, your site will help attract new clients and position you as a local expert:
- Outline your services in clear, concise language that highlights your specialties.
- Feature a portfolio of your work with high-quality photos and videos that show off your skills, expertise, and aesthetic.
- Feature client testimonials which specifically call out your firm’s strengths and why others should want to work with you.
- Offer easy options for reaching out (e.g., phone number, email form or address), and make them easy to find on your website.
- Optimize each page of your site for SEO.
What does digital marketing for architecture firms include?
To maximize the number of paths your clients have to reach your architecture firm, use the following strategies:
- Search engine marketing (SEM)
- Search engine optimization (SEO)
- Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising
- Social media
- Email campaigns
To ensure visitors feel your firm is professional and trustworthy, regularly assess and update your website to make sure its loading speed, user experience, aesthetic, and content are optimal.
1. What architects need to know about search engine marketing (SEM)
One of the main ways clients will find your website should be when they search for architecture firms using a search engine. Your strategy for boosting your visibility in the results is broadly called search engine marketing (SEM), and there are two main types depending on the type of leads you want to court: SEO for organic and PPC for paid.
I. Use search engine optimization (SEO) to increase organic traffic
Search engine optimization (SEO) determines how easily people can find your website in the organic search engine results. The goal of SEO strategy is to improve your ranking to increase your number of quality leads—for example, exponentially more clients will visit your site if you can rise from thirtieth to tenth, fifth, second, or first in search rankings.
To begin, use digital SEO tools to identify keywords that are relevant to your company, services, and the architecture industry. Then, use those keywords in your website description, headlines, and any content to improve your search ranking. Keyword popularity fluctuates over time, so it’s important to analyze your SEO data (using your digital SEO tools) and re-evaluate keywords continuously.
II. Tips for effective content marketing
With solid SEO at its core, your content (articles, videos, podcasts, social media posts, infographics, and more) can be a powerful driver of web traffic. High-quality content can also establish your firm as high value, professional, and human to clients, and as an authority to your industry peers.
To create a content marketing strategy, consider what your visitors want to know. Research trending topics, common questions, or client pain points, then create high-quality, relevant content with strong SEO. Use diverse media to your advantage and reach different audiences through different channels. Consider what your team likes and dislikes about other companies’ content, and analyze why those choices were made.
III. Use pay-per-click (PPC) advertising to increase paid traffic
You can purchase PPC (pay-per-click) ad space from search engines to place your link above organic results. When submitting paid ads, you’ll write a variety of them to target users based on the keywords they’re searching for.
Many clients are wary of PPC ads, so be sure to stay up-to-date on relevant keywords and write concise ad copy that suggests to target clients that you’re a professional and trustworthy firm. Also, ensure the ads link to relevant landing pages on your website.
2. How architecture firms can use social media to increase engagement
Social media is a powerful tool because it’s more visually appealing and versatile than search engines. A strong social media strategy will require you to exploit the strengths of each platform. Use Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, or TikTok to showcase projects, engage followers, and run targeted ad campaigns. Use LinkedIn to establish yourself in your industry by connecting with other professionals and sharing your website content.
3. How to launch successful email campaigns
While SEM and social media are ways to get your firm in front of clients’ eyes, email marketing is a more active way to reach out directly.
Consolidate all your contacts into one list (including leads, past clients, and current clients) and segment them based on factors like location, interests, and project types. Then, tailor your emails to what those clients want to read.
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