Business 2.0?

As some of you may have noticed there's an election looming next week, the sharp increase in junk mail and personal visits from your MP (who you haven't seen for the past five years) might have given you some clues, and yet life for us mere mortals continues to plod along regardless and whoever gets elected change for us will be slow in coming.... or will it?

Since I last posted anything on this site we have seen more business drop through our letter box (metaphorically speaking) and yet the sources seem to have subtly changed.

Yes, we have still picked up work from old Clients who we have relationships with that go back years (a Hospice in Ealing through a partnership with a contractor), but we are also seeing a sharp increase in enquiries through our website (three in as many days - and all great quality) and referrals through Twitter!

These are all (except the long standing Client) leads being generated by an area of marketing that, up until a year or so ago, was under-resourced and consisted simply if a website which acted as an electronic shop window....no longer!

This afternoon I went along to Be2campEast, a half-day event aiming to help people understand more about Web 2.0 applications for professionals working in the built environment, from architects to property people, from facilities managers to construction marketeers, and it has made me realise that not only is the way we market ourselves changing but the way we work with other project partners may also have to change...Business 2.0!

As an Architectural practice, we have always prided ourselves on the way that we aim to work in a non-confrontational way with Clients, Contractors and Statutory Authorities but I think that we may have missed a trick.

Today, one of the things that really stuck in my head, apart from the fact that I need to sort out my Linkedin profile (thanks Su Butcher) and my Website content (thanks Lee Smallwood), is that Web 1.0 was about lecturing or offering a product whilst Web 2.0 is about dialogue and solving peoples problems.

Although I hate to say this out loud, as Architects we quite often offer up solutions that are "take it or leave it" options, rarely do we do dialogue....which is madness because, when we do, we are great at it!

Our practice has been built on developing relationships with our Clients and Contractors and Local Authorities where we submit the most applications...that has paid off handsomely, now the game is building those relationships (using ALL the tools at hand) and allowing them to develop not just through technical professionalism and quality of service but also through dialogue and involving everyone in the debate (although please Remember I'm the Blooming Architect!)

Change is happening, in fact it's already happened and the change from web 1.0 to web 2.0 can only have a similar (positive) impact on our business!