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OPINION
Marketing for the win
Marketing professionals are the unsung heroes of the AEC industry, driving synchronization, strategy, and success in securing projects.
I celebrated 25 years in marketing for an AEC-industry firm this year. This is a significant achievement and certainly brings some positive feelings along with it.
However, as I was fielding congratulations, I was also hit with current industry news that diminished the moment. The overall sentiment was reflected in recent articles from The Zweig Letter and can be summed up by these snippets: ■ “Skeptics still view marketing professionals as just overhead expenses. It’s time to view our marketing team not as a line item cost but as a pivotal resource driving substantial ROI.” (From “ Building Value ” by Kraig Kern.) ■ “We tend to restrict our marketing leader’s role to promotion, and not get their involvement in any of these other areas that greatly impact their success and/or that of the company.” (From “ More Marketing Involvement ” by Mark Zweig.) What is going on in the AEC industry where we are still questioning the value that our marketing professionals bring to our firms and industry?
One of the very first articles I wrote for The Zweig Letter (“ What’s New? ”) recognized the restrictions that were placed on architectural firms regarding promotion and specifically, advertising. I said it then and I’ll say it now – that was in 1909! These restrictions are long gone but the shadow they cast still looms over many firms. As an architect, engineer, landscape architect, or planner, there are myriad skills required to take a project from concept to completion. That is the core work of the AEC industry – creating technical plans to enable projects to be built. And that is a massive undertaking! However, there is a whole other set of skills required to secure those projects in the first place. That’s where your marketing professionals thrive. Consider another passage from a recent article: “Work consistently to reinforce the idea that those who
Jane Lawler Smith
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THE ZWEIG LETTER JANUARY 27, 2025, ISSUE 1570
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