James Hardie

Neil Hipwell

I’ve loved construction and building ever since I discovered carpentry when I was 14, which is when I took on an apprenticeship that led to me starting my luxury residential home building company, Futureflip when I was 18 in 2008. Since then, I’ve seen the industry evolve and have worked hard to make the most of the changing opportunities out there. Most recently, this has led to working on a solid social media presence for the company. I find that it’s important to be where my customers are and with three quarters of us on social media 71%, on platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, having your own profile is a bit of a no brainer. What’s more, recent data shows that 33% of users have increased the amount of time they spend on social media during COVID-19, making it more powerful than ever as a marketing tool for building businesses.

A lot of our client leads have come in from someone seeing our work on Instagram, which is a great platform to showcase your work. With users saying that they increased the amount of time they spend on social media last year, the opportunity to secure more work via these platforms is only growing. Being so passionate about the potential of social media to help businesses, I was thrilled when James Hardie asked me to help them offer advice on the subject to help other builders as part of their Design Ideas site.

It can be easy to set up a social media channel, but creating one that engages and inspires potential clients is an art that requires time and planning. While it can seem daunting, there are a few basics that will get you on the way to social media success. The first step it to recognise that social media is a part of your marketing strategy. It’s there to help you make sales, so while it can be enticing to create content that gets the most likes or attracts the most followers, you need to make sure you focus on engaging potential clients. Think about what your audience wants to see. This could be inspirational homes that you can help them achieve, through to advice on how to pick the right building materials for their needs. It’s all about adding value to their lives so that your brand becomes a trusted go-to for advice. Once, you know the who (your audience) and the what (your great content) the next step is the where (platform). There are a lot of social media platforms out there, with Instagram being a goto for Futureflip and James Hardie, as it’s used by 52%3 of people in Metro areas and accessed by users 28 times a week on average. Instagram is great as it’s image based, creating a perfect opportunity to visually share high quality photos and videos of your projects in posts, while the Stories function lets you take a more informal approach with short form content that’s only live for a day. Creating the right tone for your social media channel can be hard as you need to balance professionalism with personality. Swearing or crude language are clear no-go’s, as is technical jargon.

Take inspiration from brands in the industry you admire. Look at how they talk about homes, the length of posts, words and language they use. This can also be a good way to generate a list of hashtags that will help your content get seen.

Tone also includes images. I keep my in-feed posts professional and aspirational with a consistent look and feel. It’s important to think about why you’re posting the picture. For example, if you’re showcasing the shadow lines created by Linea Weatherboard, don’t turn the brightness up so high that the façade looks flat. I also use my stories to give a ‘behind the scenes’ look to add a bit more personality.

Like most things, consistency is key with social media, so it’s good to have a solid plan in place. Start by considering what is important for your audience to know, as well as what they will find valuable. See if there are any consistent themes, such as inspiration, trends advice and examples of your work. Each month create content that hits each of these topics to keep your channel fresh and varied. I will have our projects shot by professionals, but using a smartphone with a bit of editing on the social media platform you’re using is a great option when you’re starting out. Getting the images and videos right will not only help you grow your channel, but can turn it into a great catalogue of your work for prospective and current clients.

Now that you know that you’re creating content it’s time to get it seen. A quick way to increase the number of people who view your posts and stories is to get them reposted by an account that’s got a large following. Big brands, like James Hardie are often looking for content that shows off their product or service. When you tag them in your posts, they get an automated alert directing them to your content, which creates a quick way for them to share it with your channel’s details.

Hopefully these tips have been useful. If you’re keen to learn more check out our guide to social media video on the Design Ideas section of jameshardie.com.au, which also offers inspiration and info on residential and commercial builds, compliance issues and trends from Hamptons to modern looks. You can also register at myhardies.jameshardie.com.au to get access to tools, tips, new leads and expert advice to help you build your business.

About James Hardie™

Founded in Melbourne, Australia in 1888, James Hardie™ has become a global leader in the production of interior and exterior building products, with operations in North America, New Zealand, the Philippines, and Europe.

With research and development and manufacturing in Australia, the innovative company created Cellulose Fibre Cement in the early 1980’s. This durable and versatile building material is used to this day to create board and sheet products such as HardiePlank™ weatherboards, HardieFlex™ cladding, HardiePanel™ Compressed flooring and Villaboard™ wall lining.

Further modernising the category, James Hardie developed Premium Fibre Cement, which it uses in a number of ranges, including its Scyon™ range of lowdensity, thicker and lighter weight products, that have been designed to help consumers, builders and architects create homes that offer the best of style and liveability.

When installed and maintained correctly, James Hardie™ warrants its products to be resistant to damage from cracking, moisture, rotting, fire and termites. Its products are also designed to resist shrinking, swelling and cracking resulting in the ability to hold paint longer and minimise ongoing maintenance.