Smarter Building Materials Marketing
Zach and Beth tackle your most burning questions about digital marketing for building materials and talk to other industry experts about what’s working in the building product space.
We host some of the
smartest minds in business
POPULAR EPISODES
How To Solve Labor Shortage in Building Materials
The harsh reality of the labor shortage is that professionals are overwhelmed and overworked. Product manufacturers have a growing opportunity to help builders and installers, many of whom are learning to install products on the fly. It’s a challenge that all of us in the industry, especially manufacturers, have to overcome.
TikTok Star Tony Piloseno on Being Fired To Building a Brand
He went from being fired for making TikTok videos to being the paint industry’s most viral story to date. This week, we welcome Tony Piloseno to the show to get the inside scoop on how he used social media to share his passion for paint — and find brand success.
Shark Tank Winner Joe Altieri On Building Brands That Disrupt
This week’s episode is an exciting ride in product innovation with Joe Altieri, a window industry professional who went from struggling with sales to winning Shark Tank.
How To Get More User-Generated Photos of Your Building Products
Creating an easy purchasing experience for your customers is a part of guaranteeing building product sales, but for eCommerce sites, that requires imagery. For manufacturers, getting images for your online presence is a challenge, so this week’s guest gave us a surprising strategy you might want to steal.
About
THE SHOW
WHO
Zach Williams is the founder of Venveo. Beth PopNikolov is the CEO of Venveo.
WHAT
We tackle your most burning questions about digital marketing for building material manufacturers, share proven strategies to grow leads and sales, and bring in other industry experts to share what’s working in the building product space.
All Episodes
How to Add Value & Win Customers in Today’s Economy
In this episode of Smarter Building Materials Marketing, Beth and Zach explore some key insights into giving customers and clients the kind of experience that will not only bring them to the table, but will build loyalty that will keep them there. Director of B2B Marketing for Techo-Bloc, Alex Cadieux, talks about how they moved from just building great products, to the next level of supporting their customers through education on the way to build things properly. Entering a new phase, they have now been able to go even one step further by helping them learn how to market their business to acquire and retain clients. He talks about a new event Techo-Bloc is hosting as an example of how they are helping their dealers grow their businesses. Zach and Beth will be bringing their digital marketing expertise to the event as featured speakers.
Digital Transformation Strategies for Building Materials
In this episode Zach talks with Matt Nichols, the founder and owner of Digiwise, about digital transformation. Matt breaks the process down into how to achieve and sell the strategies to digitally transform as a manufacturer as well as how to implement those strategies and hold to the milestones. Zach asks Matt to give the listeners some ideas about how organizations go wrong in this area. They end the episode with talking about what can happen after you achieve the basic steps.
2025 Sales And Marketing Outlook
In this episode Beth and Zach are joined by Grant Farnsworth to talk about the main questions they get asked about the sales and marketing outlook for 2025. They share stats as well as some of their own thoughts to help the listener understand the trends from the past few years following the pandemic, to what they see that will drive decisions in 2025. The three are joined by Dave King and Sophia Wedeen, experts in the area of marketing research in the industry. From earning contractor loyalty, to DIY longevity forecasts, it’s a jam-packed episode. It’s also a preview of what the Building Products Customer Workshop promises in Nashville on December 3rd and 4th.
Product Launch Strategies & Finding Product Market Fit
In this episode hosts Zach Williams and Beth PopNikolov dive into the world of innovation and market disruption with Michael Rigney, the CEO and co-founder of Cala Systems. Cala Systems is introducing the first intelligent heat pump water heater for residential use. They are revolutionizing water heating with advanced sensors, software, and hardware to optimize energy efficiency, integrate with solar systems, and much more. Michael shares his 20+ years of experience in energy and climate startups to talk about the challenges of bringing hardware to market, the importance of macro timing, and the future of home electrification.
Building Materials Talent Recruitment: How to Hire Well and Be Hired by the Best
The CEO of SnapDragon, Mark Barnard, and host Beth PopNikolov sit down and talk about the labor market from multiple perspectives. As a recruiting firm, SnapDragon sees the side of both the people being recruited and the company looking for the right candidate. Mark gives some insights into the importance of candidates being introspective about what kind of position they are looking for, as well as doing good research about the company they are interviewing with. He and Beth also discuss the key task of reference checking on the company’s part
AI Applications in Building Materials Industry: Strategies to Boost Efficiency and Stay Competitive
You don’t have to “go all in” with AI in order for it to help you create a more efficient workflow that will free you up to spend more time on what really matters. In this episode of Smarter Building Materials Marketing podcast, hosts Zach Williams and Beth PopNikolov follow up their conversation with Fran Walker, the Director of Marketing at Trim-Tex. They talk about how implementing AI in your business can streamline processes, enhance productivity, and level the playing field against competitors with larger budgets.
How One Manufacturer is Integrating AI to Gain Efficiency and Stay Ahead of Competitors
AI integration in your operations could be the game-changer for your building materials business. From enhancing customer engagement to revolutionizing installation procedures, the future of AI offers untapped potential to streamline processes and outperform competition. In this episode of the Smarter Building Materials Marketing podcast, hosts Zach Williams and Beth PopNikolov discuss some exciting applications of AI with Fran Walker, the Director of Marketing at Trim-Tex.
The Biggest Missing Piece in B2B Sales Training: Thoughts From Beth and Zach
Beth and Zach reflect on their conversation with Tim Rethlake, recapping the evolving role of the salesperson and why adapting to the changes is crucial for staying competitive in today's market.
