A lack of inhouse skills is the most common challenge facing construction businesses when it comes to promoting their businesses online, reveals a new poll.
Conducted by construction digital marketing agency Koozai, the new survey found that 44% of construction industry professionals believe that their businesses lack the skills needed to properly implement an effective digital marketing strategy.
Carried out during a digital marketing webinar for construction websites with 101 registrants, the poll quizzed construction marketing and business professionals about the biggest challenges they face in digital marketing.
It also found that a third (33%) of construction industry professionals believe that their businesses lack time to oversee digital marketing activity. 17% said that a lack of budget was the biggest obstacle to digital marketing success. Just 6% said that there was a lack of buy-in in digital marketing from senior decision makers.
Just 5.5% of construction businesses ready to make sales online
The new poll comes as Google searches for construction goods and online sales of construction products and services continue to rise. According to the latest Office of National Statistics (ONS) figures, online sales in construction have grown by £1.6 billion in the last ten years.
However, the ONS figures also suggest that most construction businesses are yet to fully embrace online marketplaces. Just 5.5% of construction businesses are making ecommerce sales compared to 22.8% of manufacturing businesses, 24.3% of information and communication services businesses, 28.6% of UK businesses overall, 44.1% of wholesale businesses, and 48.3% of retail businesses.
Koozai Owner & Director Sophie Roberts said: “For decades many UK construction businesses have relied on traditional marketing practices and face-to-face relationships between contractors. This obviously still matters, however online demand has grown significantly.
The data shows that construction lags behind other industries when it comes to capitalising on ecommerce opportunities. Without a remedy for this, construction businesses risk being left behind as the buying behaviours of industry buyers and consumers continue to change.”
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