News I published 27 August 2023
Architects’ Usage Of Social Media Is Booming, Making Some Channels Ever More Lucrative For Manufacturers
The vast majority of architects now use social media for professional purposes
For years, social media were only used by a relatively small share of architects that only grew marginally. But then the pandemic hit, and as certain direct ways of exchanging information were hampered by restrictions, social media usage was boosted. Within a year of pandemic, the share of architects using both personal and business social media networks professionally rose from a third to more than half.
That growth has continued in the post-pandemic world. The latest measurements of USP Marketing Consultancy’s European Architectural Barometer show that a whopping 77% of architects report to use social media for professional purposes. Per week, architects from all eight measured countries together spend an average of two and a half hours on social media.
Professional purposes differ though
The above shows that social media channels are increasingly attractive for manufacturers of construction materials to reach out to architects. To use them effectively, however, more insight is needed, as the social media platforms architects use are as various as the professional purposes they use them for.
Starting with the latter, a majority of 42% of social media using architects report that they use social media to promote their own business. About a third says to be using social media for networking and communication with customers, colleagues as well as with manufacturers. Third in the list of purposes architects use social media for is informing themselves on the latest news, trends and developments in their market.
Finer details determine effectiveness of marketing through social media
Looking at the vast share of architects now using social media and the purposes they are using those channels for, it is clear that social media are increasingly useful and lucrative for manufacturers to reach out and get in touch with architects who specify the materials they produce. The trick is to know which social media channels or platforms to use.
Of all social media, business networks like LinkedIn or Xing are the most popular among architects, with 46% of all architects using them often or sometimes. When looking only at architects that say to use it often, LinkedIn (16%) is beaten by Instagram, which 17% of architects say to use often for professional purposes.
These figures are averages of architects from all eight countries together, however. Looking at specific countries, both total usage of social media and the popularity of platforms among architects differs vastly. To give an example, nearly three quarters of Dutch architects use LinkedIn, whereas only a quarter of German architects says to do the same.
This example shows that to effectively target architects through social media in your area of operation, a more detailed overview of their media usage and orientation behaviour per country is needed. For that we refer you to USP Marketing Consultancy’s European Architectural Barometer.
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