Smarter Building Materials Marketing

Google announced (another) update to how they’ll handle tracking website traffic, and the changes will have a significant effect on how anyone with a website gets information on their site visitors. Today’s episode covers what every manufacturer and building materials brand needs to know about the update and how to prepare for it. For the last few years, Google has offered Universal Analytics as a...

The way we are building homes has changed—and the way that today’s homeowner wants to buy is also changing. Today’s guest breaks down the changes that are happening in the marketplace, building technology and what this means for builders and manufacturers in today’s real estate environment. On this episode, we're talking with Craig Foy from ALY VR about builders and building brands, and the expect...

Our podcast guest this week has a front-row seat to the future of building product sales. Beth talked with Josh Ruff from Roomvo about how manufacturers can make the online and in-store sales experience more seamless for customers — but check out the full episode for some predictions about the future of building materials and product samples.  Josh is the VP of revenue for Roomvo, a product visual...

Influencer marketing can help brands reach more of an audience online with the help and partnership of the right person. Today’s guest brings their experience and insight to the show to talk about the intersection of influencer marketing and building materials and how brands can benefit. Jennifer Flores is a blogger and influencer in the building material space, and she’s worked with brands and co...

This week’s episode was a global affair — not just because our guest lives halfway across the world, but because of the issue of climate change and the risks we all face today. We dig deep into the topic of sustainability and how manufacturers can guarantee a future for our planet: a topic that’s heavy on everyone’s mind. Zach talks with Mahesh Ramanujam, the President and CEO at Global Network fo...

Understanding what is happening across the building materials market is crucial for standing out as a manufacturer in 2023. Join top sales and marketing leaders from some of the world’s top building product brands at the Building Products Customer Insights Workshop in Denver, CO on October 12th and 13th for two days of intense learning, insights and collaboration in the industry.  Here’s a sneak p...

Winning over the designer on a project is crucial for building products brands, especially in the early stages of their project. This week, Zach and Beth talk with a special guest about how to guarantee architects and designers will spec your product when it’s time to start shopping. Tom Conley is the president and CEO of High Point Market, one of the design industry’s premier trade show events. T...

It’s a new world of work out there, and finding skilled labor in the workforce has been a challenge for everyone in the building materials industry. This episode is a must-listen for brands, builders and anybody who wants to recruit talent in today’s gig economy. We talk often about labor (and the labor shortage), and today’s guest brings a ton of expertise and strategy to the conversation. Andrew...

It’s time to talk numbers again: about the housing economy and building materials, and what the housing recession means for manufacturers. (Note: It’s not all bad news.) We’re bringing John Burns on to the show again this week for a temperature check. With words like “recession” and “risk” on everyone’s mind, we wanted to explore what’s happening in the market with an expert who sees the opportuni...

We’ve always said your online presence should be your best salesperson, and our guest this week indulged us with a great discussion on the world of eCommerce. Building materials brands have a huge opportunity when it comes to online sales, and we think everyone will want to learn more. The CEO of DecksDirect, Blair Budlong, joined us for an in-depth look at eCommerce and how brands can sell better...

After the pandemic, homeowners across the United States have discovered different ways of living, working and playing in their communities — and developers have taken note. This week, we talked with a mixed-use developer whose innovative, EPIC projects are getting noticed. McKenzy Braaten is the Vice President of Communications for EPIC Companies. The Fargo-based firm is a commercial and multi-fam...

How can our industry be more effective in adding — and elevating — women to our organizations? This week’s show is all about how building materials companies can grow and succeed in ways that bring in more women to the industry. This week, we welcome Amy Smiley, Vice President of Marketing for 84 Lumber. She talked about how manufacturers can help grow the industry by hiring and empowering more wo...

One of the biggest questions in building materials today is how shifts in the housing market will impact building products. There's a lot of uncertainty about what's going to happen with the economy, and that can dictate the way you market and sell your product. Greg Brooks is the Moderator for the Executive Council on Construction Supply and a member of the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studie...

In building materials, one of our biggest audiences is architects. This episode is all about how to not only target one of our favorite communities but how to educate and engage the modern architect. Stephen Martin is the Managing Director of Professional Development and Resources for the American Institute of Architects. His work with AIA gives him more perspective than most on the world of archi...

What does it mean to build a brand with purpose? This week’s podcast is about creating building materials businesses for the greater good and leading people through conflict. Whether you’re managing a team of two or 200, this is an episode you’ll want to hear. Toby Bostwick is the VP of Product and Brand at Fortress Building Products. He’s helping to grow the highly successful Texas-based brand an...

We’re diving into digital marketing, supply channel conflict and industry prediction with Mark Mitchell, one of our favorite experts in the building materials industry. You’ll want to take notes when you listen to this one!   Mark, who is also known as the “The Whizard,” brings decades of experience and a ton of perspective to product marketing, the labor shortage and the future of construction. 

The future of the building industry rests on the technology we’re using today. This week’s episode looks at the growing landscape of 3D-printed homes and how building materials companies can help builders and pros to adapt to a new kind of construction. Michael Woods, CEO and COO of Black Buffalo, is committed to making the building process more efficient with their 3D printing technology by helpi...

LinkedIn has over 800 million users in more than 200 countries today. It’s a powerful community where marketing and sales professionals in the building materials space can share content and support their business growth, all on one platform. And many of us could be using it more effectively. There’s a way to reach out to potential customers on LinkedIn, and there’s a way not to. Venveo’s Ashley St...

He went from being fired for making TikTok videos to being the paint industry’s most viral story to date. This week, we welcome Tony Piloseno to the show to get the inside scoop on how he used social media to share his passion for paint — and find brand success. Tony Piloseno is a huge name in the Venveo office and on TikTok. Now the full-time owner and CEO of Tonester Paints, we brought in Tony t...

Trade shows have started up again with gusto, and we’re looking forward to the AIA Conference on Architecture coming up at the end of June. This week, we talk about what building materials brands can prepare when it comes to a solid trade show strategy and came up with five ways sales and marketing teams can plan ahead. Steve Coffey is Venveo’s Director of Growth, and he’s also our resident expert...

The content you create for your building materials brand can be leveraged in ways that might change our industry’s labor issues. This week’s episode reveals some incredible ways we might support solutions for the labor shortage — all through more compelling content. Bob Baldocchi is a sales and marketing expert who retired from the world of building materials only to become the owner and investor...

Creating an easy purchasing experience for your customers is a part of guaranteeing building product sales, but for eCommerce sites, that requires imagery. For manufacturers, getting images for your online presence is a challenge, so this week’s guest gave us a  surprising strategy you might want to steal. Paul Hostelley of Docking Drawer talked with us about launching a new product and how they m...

Blockchain and NFTs are trending topics online, but what do those concepts mean for the building materials industry? Zach and Beth talk with this week’s guest, Tim Seims, about how manufacturers, builders and everyone else in the building products space might be impacted by cryptocurrency. If you don't know what cryptocurrency is all about, don’t fret. We break down some of the basic ideas around...

This week’s episode is an exciting ride in product innovation with Joe Altieri, a window industry professional who went from struggling with sales to winning Shark Tank. Joe Altieri is the inventor and founder of FlexScreen, a product featured on Shark Tank. He’s one of the best in the business when it comes to disrupting a building product category, and we talked with him about the road to his su...

Introducing a new product to the market isn’t just about launch day and social media announcements. How can you help guarantee you’ll get traction when you reveal new product lines to customers? This week’s guest gave us a few insights and insider ideas. Amanda Sizemore is the Business Development and Marketing Director for AmeriCote, which launched a successful new product line — right before the...