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Building and Construction INDUSTRY FACTSHEETIndustry OverviewMajor services in the construction industry include heavy and civil engineering projects as well as non-residentialbuildings, such as those for industrial, commercial and institutional use. The demand for construction depends heavilyupon the health of the economy, which includes corporate profits and local government budgets. This industry is highlycompetitive with companies that range from small private firms to multi-billion dollar companies. Profitability ofcompanies depends on project bids and efficiency of operations. As such, the larger companies have an advantage intheir ability to become involved in multiple projects simultaneously and in different types of construction. Likewise,smaller construction companies can compete through specializing, or subcontracting on larger projects.Typical customers of the industry are comprised of property developers, corporations, institutions and governmentbodies. Additionally, contracts with business leaders, architects, engineers, developers and other construction firms arevery important sources for leads and projects. On the promotional front, major marketing initiatives include customervisits, magazine advertising, trade publications and participation at industry tradeshows.Business Challenges High Insurance Costs: For the most part, construction contractors pay high premiums for various types of insurance. This includes worker compensation, general liability and surety. Major insurance issues involve a variety of concerns, such as construction delays or defects, accidents by inexperience or overworked employees, and even poor bookkeeping. Safety Liability: Unfortunately, the construction industry has a considerably large share of fatalities. In effect, contractors carry liability insurance to protect against lawsuits brought forth by injuries to employees or to job site visitors. Uneven Revenue and Expenses: While contractors incur a steady stream of expenses, customer payments are periodic including payments retained even after a project is complete. Poor weather can significantly delay construction schedules and create an uneven cash flow. Additionally, prices or availability of major raw material like lumber, steel or concrete can change quickly. On larger scale projects, prime contractors may even handle more complicated cash flows, like progress payments to subcontractors.Industry Opportunities Computer, Construction Technology: Advancements in computer technology and building techniques allow companies to enhance on project implementation. Computer technology, for instance, has reduced costs and mistakes, which is vital to an industry that relies heavily on scheduling, coordination and technical specifications. New, innovative building methods can also drastically simplify commercial projects and reduce costs and time- to-completion. Copyright © 2011 by Research and Management. All rights reserved.

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Building and Construction INDUSTRY FACTSHEET Green Construction: The demand is rising for environmentally-friendly construction, materials, practices and certifications. An increased use of steel has helped qualify structures as “green,” by way of its recycled content. Steel products (as opposed to wood) last longer and command a more uniformed quality in addition to significantly reducing waste. Additionally, new “cool” metal roofing is much more energy efficient than traditional building materials. Buildings for High-Growth Population Segments: Growth in population segments presents great opportunities for the commercial construction industry. For example, as the baby-boomer population segment rises in the next decade, there will be a higher need for retirement, assisted living and hospital facilities.Digital Marketing TrendsSocial Media Uses for Business InformationThe majority of real estate and construction companies inNorth America use social media in their businesses to readuser ratings and reviews for products and services (accordingto 69% of respondents). Sixty-three percent of respondentssaid they visit company or product profile pages on socialmedia sites. On the other hand, 61% of companies in the realestate and construction industry attend webinars or listen topodcasts online. Reaching and downloading business-relatedcontent on third-party content-sharing sites was ranked as the4th most common social media activity among those in the realestate and construction industry (59% of respondents).Another popular social media activity among real estate andconstruction companies is visiting company blogs (54%), while48% of respondents said they use social media to askquestions on Q&A sites like Yahoo! Answers and LinkedInforums. Other reasons that companies in the real estate andconstruction industry use social media for businessinformation include: participating in online businesscommunities, conducting searches for information, subscribingto RSS feeds of business-related news or information sites,participate in discussions on third-party sites, save business-related links on social bookmarking sites and use Twitter tofind or request business-related information. Copyright © 2011 by Research and Management. All rights reserved.

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Building and Construction INDUSTRY FACTSHEET Construction Companies Using LinkedIn The construction industry is among the top 10 industries worldwide using LinkedIn as of March 2011. According to eMarketer, construction companies are ranked in 9th place among the top 10 industries. With 3.2 million LinkedIn users around the world, construction companies have more of a presence on LinkedIn than those within the government industry. Other sectors that have a strong presence on LinkedIn include: recreational companies, consumer goods, educational companies, medical professionals, manufacturers, financial institutions and high tech companies.Digital Marketing OpportunitiesImmediate Areas of Focus for Social and MobileWhen we look at the latest digital marketing opportunities of social media and mobile for businesses in the building andconstruction industry, their main considerations and focus should be on how they can use these technologies to developstronger relationships with their consumers, industry peers and suppliers, as well as raise awareness around theircompany as an industry leader. On the social front, building and construction companies are leveraging socialtechnologies like blogs and forums to showcase their expertise, prove their industry leadership and voice their opinionson upcoming legislation and regulations. They utilize social alerts and review sites to monitor their brand mentions andfacilitate online recommendations. They are also using Twitter and LinkedIn to network and build connections, sharecompany news and content, and listen to what consumers are saying about their brand.On the mobile front, companies in the building and construction industry are still learning how to effectively use thisrelatively untapped tool. As a result, those that do move forward with a mobile strategy could have a profitablecompetitive advantage. To start, these companies are ensuring their websites are mobile-friendly and then looking toimprove their service offerings through simple, yet effective, applications such as mobile calculators for specifiers anddesign tools for architects. When it comes to social technologies and mobile marketing, below is where we see themajority of building and construction companies making considerations from a strategy standpoint. Social Technologies Blog Facebook Twitter LinkedIn YouTube News Feeds/ Social Forums Review Social Alerts Bookmarking Sites Copyright © 2011 by Research and Management. All rights reserved.

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Building and Construction INDUSTRY FACTSHEET Mobile Marketing Mobile Mobile Local Mobile Mobile Site Search Ads/ Text AppsPopular Pay-Per-Click Keywords Keyword Advertiser Global Monthly Estimated Cost Competition Searches per Click construction 0.22 135000 $2.25 maison 0.33 110000 $1.23 civil engineering 0.35 90500 $1.17 construction jobs 0.87 49500 $0.94 contractor 0.29 33100 $3.34 builders 0.79 27100 $2.27 construction news 0.49 22200 $0.95 carpentry 0.41 22200 $2.07 builder 0.29 22200 $2.47 construction companies 0.6 18100 $2.11 home builders 0.87 18100 $3.05 construction maison 0.92 18100 $1.20 construct 0.03 14800 $0.44 excavation 0.24 14800 $2.40 contractors 0.59 14800 $3.64 construction company 0.39 12100 $1.96 general contractor 0.63 9900 $5.01 building construction 0.44 9900 $0.79 construction equipment 0.74 9900 $1.89 health and safety 0.56 60500 $1.65 Check for more Copyright © 2011 by Research and Management. All rights reserved.