3 Years - Where does the time go!
When I woke up this morning (Wednesday), it suddenly struck me that I have now been with the Association for 3 years. I suppose my first thoughts were “where does the time go?!?” For many of us, the last 2 years have been a bit of a ‘topsy turvy’ ride with lots of changing and adapting. But let’s face it, can many of us remember much from the year before that? With it now being 3 years in the job, and selfishly from a marketing perspective (well…it is my blog), I thought it was time for a bit of reflection from where we have come from, to where we are at right now…and to say a little thanks to everyone who has helped us along the way...
Brand and stock value
If I start with the PCA brand first…from a marketing perspective, your Associations brand and ‘stock value’ has never been higher! This is evident through the volumes of traffic directly searching for the PCA online, the audiences within the webinars and the continued growth in the number of individuals reading our news and associated blogs. But we also see the evidence in the number of people/organisations now wanting to engage with us - from individuals requesting the PCA presence at events, to those seeking our participation within podcasts/webinars/blogs (and on the note…those requesting to participate in PCA webinars and blogs too). I appreciate I might have a slightly ‘rosey view’ here, but personally… feel proud of the current PCA badge & status…and I hope all of our PCA members can take pride in that too. The fact more and more organisations/individuals are gradually coming to listen to the valuable insights & knowledge that our PCA members have, is evidence enough to how far we have come within a short period of time.
Your PCA website
As I was mentioning the website above, let me go into a little more detail. When I joined 3 years ago, the PCA website was, and continues to be, one of the core elements that helps us promote the Association and our members. This asset has ‘grown significantly’ and has been working hard to help get the message out about you! But what are the benefits to members? Well, aside from it continuing to be a place for free online learning, constant up to date industry news and a source of continued and improved guidance; I suppose the main ‘kick back’ has been the large rise in the number of local searches taking place…and the actions taken by individuals off the back of these searches. To put it into context, we have seen a 62% rise in 3 years on the number of member searches taking place (32,500 in 2019 vs 53,000 in 2021), with a current average of 5000 local searches each month looking for you…our PCA members. In terms of actions from these searches, collectively we have seen a 109% rise in the number of ‘click to calls’, ‘click to emails’ and visits to our members’ websites (19,475 actions in 2019 vs 40,631 actions in 2021). To help fuel this growth even further, many of our members will be aware we are currently in the build process of a new website. Sadly, due to technical development difficulties, we are running behind in its development. We hoped to have it launched in 2021, but we are working hard to try and deliver this new asset as soon as possible.
Webinars have become a ‘shining star’
Another core element of the marketing mix is our webinar programme. When we first started these broadcasts in February 2020, our initial idea was to try and support PCA members with a live online resource. 31 webinars and 2 years later, it has developed into an online CPD tool that now has a ‘wide church’ of construction, surveying and property professionals joining, along with you, our members. Audiences have continued to grow with us now having 6000+ LIVE individuals joining us over the 2 years. With a support library of previous CPD webinars/videos that have had 50,000 visits and video replays being watched an additional 10,000 times, the webinars seem to be going from strength to strength. As much as these numbers are lovely, it has been the ripple effects of the webinars that have surprised us. Aside from the obvious ‘drip benefits’ of increases in training enquiries, membership stimulation, and a gradual increase in PCA badge stock value as more people learn about the Association and its members, it is the awareness of your Association which has grown beyond what was expected. This has led to opportunities and meetings which previously, we may not have been invited to. The recent webinar regarding Sprayed Foam Insulation in Domestic Roofs and the was a prime example of that! As much as our intention was to support members, it seems the live webinar programme is now helping to provide a source of learning and support to the wider surveying, property and construction industry as a whole. Bottomline…it’s good for membership!
PR, News and Blogs
In terms of the news and content we push out to gain more awareness of your Association over the last 3 years, PR continues to be a strong backbone for our branding and awareness activities. Through our continued relationship with ‘Shepherd PR’, over the last 3 years we managed to achieve 758 articles published that represented all sectors of the membership, with many featuring in high profile, notable publications. In one of my previous blogs, we shared that your Association had pushed out more domestic and professional-based content in 1 year, than it had over the last 4 years combined. In total, this amounted to 334 articles/blogs published to keep our members up to date about what your Association is doing, the sector relevant news you need to know about and your Associations’ opinion towards it. There have been other noticeable benefits too such as:
- Increased interest & enquiries towards our training & qualifications, to
- Wider organisations getting in-touch requesting documents, CPDs & presentations
- And, noticeable patterns that our content also leads to members searches
Some of the other stuff over the last 3 years
Appreciating this blog is now getting a bit long, as I mentioned at the start, it has been a 'topsy turvy’ ride for the last couple of years. To be frank, a blur of activity from time to time, BUT I suspect many of our members will be feeling the same! I have only touched on some aspects of what your marketing team tries to do to support our members and the Association. We still continue to venture down avenues of video marketing. We still maintain a strong presence within multiple Social Media channels. We continue to strive to support and market our members’ events and conferences…and we have been and still continue to tinker and play with potential new avenues of marketing that can help showcase our members and your Association.
Looking forward to 2022 - what’s happening?
So what’s the plan moving forward into 2022? Well, you know about the new website coming, which should see the first live phase being rolled out in 10 weeks. There will be ‘drip upgrades’ after the initial launch such as the new CPD recording tool, but we are confident PCA members will see a significant improvement within your own ‘members area’ once we go live. Video is going to take an important role this year, ‘revamping’ previous communication videos about the Association, as well as creating new ones based around online training offerings, upcoming events and the new ‘Condensation & Mould Diagnostic System’. We will be strengthening the PCA marketing team too - if you have had any experience recently trying to recruit, you will know it’s not as easy as it once was. I am hopeful however, that this is an opportunity that someone will take in the near future. As towards other activities, well…similar to previous blogs, you have to let me keep some things secret for now! But rest assured…we do have plans in the pipeline and as always, your Association will be working hard for you!
Before I go…
Before I sign off on this blog, I just want to say THANK YOU to both the internal PCA Team and to everyone else within the membership who has contributed to the success over the last 3 years. Without your support and added contributions, we would not be in the strong position marketing wise we are in now. Until then, ahw the best and I will catch you on the next blog…