Marketing
is leadership
By Tim Klabunde, special contribution to the
Canadian Design and Construction Report
Diamonds were not valuable until a 1938 marketing
campaign invented the engagement ring and eventually
coined the phrase “diamonds are forever.” Santa’s suit was
green until it became red during a 1931 Coca Cola
marketing campaign. Sliced bread was a terrible idea until
a 1920’s marketing campaign promoted it as a time saving
necessity. As a marketer, our role as a leader is telling and
shaping a story; a story that, in the design and construction
industry, will shape the face of the earth for the next
hundred years or more.

It is not a surprise that I am a marketer in the design and
construction industry. Marketing is leadership; it is about
changing mindsets and setting a direction for others to
follow. That is why I fell in love with marketing for an
industry whose product literally changes the face of the
earth. As marketers for the built environment we do something
exceptional and permanent; two qualities that marketers
8 – Summer 2017 — The Canadian Design and Construction Report
of widgets, software, and just about anything else you can
think of can only dream about. From our roles as marketers
in each of our firms we also have a mutual responsibility
that goes far beyond the industry we serve. Our collective
voice as marketers will shape what the future will look like
for the built environment, and it is a future that we need to
work together to create. It is our choice, we can promote
what has always been, or we can focus on leveraging our
positions of leadership to promote projects and project
approaches that truly make a difference.

I propose that together we can shape three key ideas
that will have a long-lasting and positive impact around the
world: First, we can promote a more sustainable built
environment. This goes far beyond reducing, reusing, and
recycling because of the enormity of the end product our
industry designs and builds. Buildings and infrastructure
are arguably the manmade creations with the largest and
longest lasting impact on earth. Together we can move the
needle if we continually reinforce the benefits of
sustainability in our brochures, proposals, websites, etc.




This goes beyond just using buzz words and instead
identifies the benefits of sustainability and promotes a
culture of sustainability.

Second, we need to promote connectedness and
community instead of elitism and isolation. Anyone who
has ever lived near train tracks can tell you about what the
phrase “the other side of the tracks” means. This idea is
equally important when designing roads as it is when
designing mixed-use developments; in both cases
connectivity can be used to spur a sense of community that
brings us together. This is also important when
opportunities exist to promote open community spaces
such as parks. As marketers, we can promote the benefits
of these ideas to facility owners and clients by appealing
to their goals for a specific project. An example would be
showing how increased pedestrian flow to a local park
would increase revenues to businesses along the route.

Finally, we can promote projects that possess flexibility
for the future. Just as during the industrial revolution, the
built environment continues to struggle with meeting the
needs of our changing world. Collectively we need to focus
on creating buildings, infrastructure, and spaces that can
adapt to the future. The key to accomplishing this is to
ensure that teams of various design professionals are
included as early as possible in the process. This
collaboration is a key to developing the most effective
solutions for creating spaces that meet the needs of both
this generation and the next.

These are just a handful of ways that we can to provide
true marketing leadership, but they are each important.

Collectively we have a great opportunity, as professional
services marketers, to help shape the face of the earth for
the next hundred years. It is true that we will most probably
not replace the diamond engagement ring, change the
colour of Santa’s suit, or invent the next sliced bread; but I
am confident that what we will accomplish will be much
more important.

Tim Klabunde is
principal and director of
marketing for Timmons
Group, an ENR Top 500
design firm. In his role at
Timmons Group the firm
has seen unprecedented
growth, landing the firm
on the INC. 5000 list of
America’s Fastest-Growing
Companies. He is a fellow
from Johns Hopkins
University and an Amazon
best selling author.

The Canadian Design and Construction Report — Summer 2017 – 9