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GAI
The Leader Marketing Partnership provides a comprehensive integrated marketing function for the Guild of Architectural Ironmongers.
This relationship, which replaced what was previously a single in-house role plus PR support, is led by Leader marketing director Marc Sanderson. Reporting directly to the chief executive, Marc has transformed the GAI’s marketing effectiveness by integrating a five-strong Leader team with both in-house GAI colleagues (in education, membership and technical roles) and an existing network of marketing service suppliers.
Strategy and review
The relationship began with a marketing review and strategy development. From here, Leader stepped in to complete a mid-stage website project, delivering far above what had been planned, and implement a series of quick-win recommendations. Based on these early successes, the company was appointed to deliver an ongoing marketing service.
An immediate priority was to reposition GAI’s brand, shifting focus from internal/existing audiences to new segments such as specifiers, potential members, and legislative bodies. At the heart of this was a new key messaging and tone of voice, explaining exactly why the GAI and its work matters: “Through its mission of ‘advancing architectural ironmongery’, the GAI works to ensure and improve the safety, security and accessibility of the worldwide built environment.”
Member communication
With member communications relying on too many ‘bits and pieces’ emails, these were streamlined into a smaller number of regular messages – easier to understand and digest. With social media also a significant source of member information, the priority was to deliver more and better, increasing not only the volume of activity but the quality, leading to a massive rise in social engagement from 0.58% to 4.02% and an increase of nearly 50% in social audiences within 12 months. Work on the website also prioritised member engagement, with content restructured for greater clarity of the membership proposition and more emphasis on core pillars of Membership, Education (rebranded ‘Learning’) and Technical (presented in a new ‘Knowledge Base’ resource). This contributed to a 20% increase in website sessions and a 12% increase in engagement time.
The Guild’s Architectural Ironmongery Journal (AIJ) was identified as having great potential but also substantial challenges – caught as it was between an historic ‘member newsletter’ role and its potential as an influential go-to voice for the wider industry. Working with publishing partners Atom, Marc led a complete relaunch in Spring 2023. Alongside a fresh design was a new editorial policy to better appeal to specifier audiences; a shift in focus towards core strategic priorities around competence, community, and membership; and increased digital content and activity to help grow both audience and advertising revenue.
Deliberately confrontational
In education, the Leader team used the introduction of new qualifications as a springboard for completely revised education value propositions and messaging. A new course progression model was created to move messaging from education ‘jargon’ towards a more accessible framework. This was rolled out across the website and new collateral, and backed by a powerful new advertising campaign message: ‘Serious about architectural ironmongery? Prove it.’ This deliberately confrontational messaging was also rolled into a recruitment campaign via paid social media advertising.
Further supporting the GAI’s critical competence objectives, Leader leveraged the publication of a Specifier Resource Book to raise awareness of GAI Registered Professionals among architects, designers, and the wider industry. Through direct and email marketing, paid social media, PR and direct engagement with representative bodies in specifier sectors it reached a 1,600% increased total audience compared with previous comparable campaigns, resulting in a 400% increase in visits to our online specifier resources, plus GAI training content accepted into the CPD programmes of several key sector professional bodies for the first time. All of these were key strategic goals for GAI. To build on this success, the team led an even more targeted publication in 2023, an innovative Architect + Designer’s Guide to Architectural Ironmongery.
As well as seamlessly integrating into our small team and delivering the essential day-to-day communications we require as a membership organisation, Marc and his team have been proactive in generating and then delivering ambitious and creative marketing and communication projects that have made a significant impact in a relatively short space of time.
Simon Forrester – GAI, Chief Executive
An award-winning solution
This outsourced marketing partnership costs the Guild less than the cost of the previous in-house role plus PR agency support. By creating a unifying sense of teamwork and shared purpose with GAI colleagues and other marketing services suppliers; by increasing the GAI’s overall marketing orientation and focus; and by introducing project planning tools and processes to co-ordinate activity and increase efficiency, the Leader team created a fully-integrated, multi-agency marketing function for the Guild which widened the pool of specialist marketing skills, experience and expertise, all under the leadership of a senior Chartered Marketer, at no additional cost to the Guild.
These achievements were recognised at the Trade Association Forum Awards, with AIJ securing Magazine of the Year, and commendations awarded for Publication of the Year (for the Architect + Designer’s Guide) and Association/Supplier Partnership of the Year (the Guild’s work with Leader Marketing Partnership).
GAI Chief Executive Simon Forrester said: “As well as seamlessly integrating into our small team and delivering the essential day-to-day communications we require as a membership organisation, Marc and his team have been proactive in generating and then delivering ambitious and creative marketing and communication projects that have made a significant impact in a relatively short space of time.
“Now all our marketing is planned, and we have time to breathe and reflect on what we have achieved, and what can be improved for next time. The renewed focus on quality and continuous improvement has delivered significant benefits in its own right.
“It’s great to have a team of professionals on board while not having the overheads, on-costs or HR time to manage an in-house team. For those associations considering a new model of marketing, I would recommend a director-led approach such as the one we have with Leader. I’m getting a full-service agency plus an in-house director-level marketeer for less than the cost of two full time equivalents.”
