Architecture & Engineering Business Strategies

PR can seem complicated. But Tiffany Rafii knows that the right marketing strategy is a game-changer for every industry. The CEO and co-founder of UpSpring PR, Tiffany has been running her full-service communications agency for the architecture, design, and real estate markets since 2009. Today, her 25+ person team leverages digital and strategic PR to increase brand awareness and market share for dozens of companies.

Interview Takeaways

• Leverage growth with PR
• Time your PR efforts right
• Grow business step-by-step
• Position for initial growth
• Use the talent you have
• Choose how to grow
• Double your focus group benefits
• Balance focus and flexibility
• Define your goals
• Get out there with SEO
• Open the door with PR
• Let go of the paid-ad dream

Show Links

• Check out UpSpring PR
• Connect with Tiffany Rafii on LinkedIn
• Connect with George Valdes on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Check out Monograph
• Follow Monograph on LinkedIn or Instagram
• Listen and read more about Monograph

Few architecture firms can be seen as true trailblazers. But SHoP Architects is defying convention on everything from design to fabrication to installation. Luisa Mendez is a Senior Associate at SHoP Architects in New York City, where she has worked on projects like the Design Miami Pavilion, the Barclay Center, and the Porterhouse building. So how can you use technology and unique construction design to disrupt an industry? By leveraging digital delivery and tracking specific goals.

Interview Takeaways

• SHoP’s 3 pillars
• The roles at SHoP
• Why you should mix experience levels and specialties
• Give designers the choice to specialize...or not
• Set up systems for employee success
• Three-fold project goals: value, data-driven, and time-driven
• Meet goals thanks to an invested team
• How a 3D project delivery system improves communication
• Leverage digital delivery tools
• The lagging tech at city agencies
• Luisa’s dream firm setup
• How digital tools can catch problems before they happen

Show Links

• Check out SHoP Architects
• Follow SHoP Architects on LinkedIn and Twitter
• Connect with Luisa Mendez on LinkedIn
• Connect with George Valdes on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Check out Monograph
• Follow Monograph on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Listen and read more about Monograph

How can you turn your architecture business into a PR machine? By telling incredible stories about the services you provide and the projects you’ve completed. Matthew Keeshin has a rich background in both architecture and writing. Currently the digital media manager at ZGF, he explained why telling great stories goes beyond the buildings themselves.

Interview Takeaways

• Stay connected with analytics
• Treat social media like blackjack
• Take stories beyond the building
• Act like an advisor
• Define the communication strategy
• Seek inspiration from other industries
• Craft a signature look and feel
• Create bite-sized information
• Keep imagination alive
• Position yourself as a leader
• Your online presence is your calling card
• Build relationships to reach your goals

Show Links

• Check out ZGF
• Connect with Matthew Keeshin on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Connect with George Valdes on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Check out Monograph
• Follow Monograph on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Listen and read more about Monograph

When architecture firms collapsed during the ‘08 recession, Hope Trory realized that the traditional architecture industry desperately needed better online marketing. Hope is on a mission to help architecture firms grow - in any market. As founder of HOPEWORKSDESIGN, she helps small to midsize firms implement modern marketing strategies in traditional industries. Hope combines industry expertise, online marketing strategy, and her architecture background to help firms connect with their online audience.

Interview Takeaways

• Recession-proof your architecture firm
• Go deeper with your website
• Define your messaging
• Attract your dream clients
• Learn your customers’ language
• Build your online reputation
• Filter for better leads 
• Tap into more budgets + markets
• Crunch the marketing numbers
• Look back to move forward
• Automate the filtering process
• Find the right marketing firm

Show Links

• Check out HOPEWORKSDESIGN
• Connect with Hope Trory on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Connect with George Valdes on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Check out Monograph
• Follow Monograph on LinkedIn or Instagram
• Listen and read more about Monograph

How does technology influence architecture? How does architecture influence people? Those are the questions that consume Dr. Daniel Davis, senior researcher at Hassell and former Director of Research at WeWork. Daniel joined Monograph’s George Valdes to discuss the various ways that firms can approach, apply, and measure data.

Interview Takeaways

• Which firms should embrace data
• Applying technology to business, not just design
• Rationalizing research
• Justifying design decisions with evidence
• Where firms don’t step in, other companies will
• Why certain firms don’t care about data
• Post-occupancy data is the holy grail
• Finding inspiration in the tech world
• Experimenting with new lines of revenue
• The dream of shared data
• Seeking new ways to analyze performance

Show Links

• Connect with Dr. Daniel Davis on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Connect with George Valdes on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Check out Monograph
• Follow Monograph on LinkedIn or Instagram
• Listen and read more about Monograph

Evelyn Lee is a pillar of the architecture industry. Currently a senior internal experience designer for Slack, over the last two decades she has also played a role in AIA National and founded a podcast called Practice of Architecture. Evelyn’s eyes are set on the future of architecture: how both individual practitioners and leadership need to approach work in a way that is more innovative and inclusive than in years past.

Interview Takeaways

• Growing your career as an individual contributor or manager
• Exploring better & faster task management
• Promoting transparent communication at every level
• Approaching work with an entrepreneurial mindset
• Taking the architecture role beyond building
• Fostering fledgling ideas
• Fighting back to regain lost work
• Navigating implementation risk
• Capturing data for business development
• Pushing the boundaries of the architecture business model
• Rethinking the time-based service model
• Cultivating a great customer experience

Show Links

• Connect with Evelyn Lee on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Check out Practice of Architecture
• Connect with George Valdes on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Check out Monograph
• Follow Monograph on LinkedIn or Instagram
• Listen and read more about Monograph

Architects don’t learn about marketing in design school - and few learn about it after. When Bryon McCartney and his wife discovered just how many architects were missing out on opportunities by avoiding digital marketing, they founded Archmark, a marketing agency focused on architectural firms and their success. Bryon joined host George Valdes on a Monograph webinar to talk about how architects should start building their brand, the best social media platforms for firms looking to connect with new clients, and how developing a career and marketing niche is the best way to find your ideal clients.

Interview Takeaways

• Many firms are not taking advantage of digital marketing
• Advertising, marketing, and public relations all play a unique role in branding
• Branding stems from an alignment of messaging
• There are three principles that should guide your branding
• To find clients, map out a client journey and identify pain points
• Stick to your purpose and keep your expertise focused
• Use your story to guide the content on your website & client outreach
• Communicate targeted messages on the right channels
• Create a specific ideal client and niche so you can target messages appropriately
• Use LinkedIn for client outreach
• Use Instagram for building brand awareness
• A good reputation will open many doors - even when you pick a niche

Show Links

• Check out Archmark
• Follow Archmark on LinkedIn and Twitter
• Connect with Bryon McCartney on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Connect with George Valdes on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Check out Monograph
• Follow Monograph on LinkedIn or Instagram
• Listen and read more about Monograph

Are you a small firm architect? Then you’re also a businessperson. The problem is that architecture school is all about design, with very little training on the day-to-day practicalities of running a company. When Mark LePage and his wife started their architecture firm in 1999, they succeeded by dividing and conquering. Mark headed up the business side, while his wife focused on design. In a quest to create a community to help other small firms, they started EntreArchitect: a thriving online platform to help architects build better businesses. In an interview with Monograph’s Best Practice host George Valdes, LePage shared the importance of honing basic business skills, weeding out bad clients, and valuing a culture of transparency over secrecy.

Interview Takeaways

• Architecture requires business education
• Financial management is a critical skill
• Filling in gaps with the right players
• First things first: create a roadmap
• Layering in marketing and sales strategies
• Architecture community helps spur growth
• Don’t be embarrassed about business
• Profit is not a dirty word
• Knowing who your ideal client is
• Embracing an “all for one” mentality
• Building a community to spark a career

Show Links

• Check out EntreArchitect
• Follow EntreArchitect on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Listen to the EntreArchitect podcast
• Connect with Mark LePage on LinkedIn
• Connect with George Valdes on LinkedIn or Twitter
• Check out Monograph
• Follow Monograph on LinkedIn or Instagram
• Listen and read more about Monograph