The Built Environment Marketing Show: marketing strategies and tactics for architects and engineers

Welcome back to The Built Environment Marketing Show hosted by me Ayo Abbas.

In this solo episode, I share real data from my own LinkedIn performance (impressions down 17%, engagement up 19%), unpacs how the new 360Brew algorithm is changing the rules, and explain why passive scrolling is quietly killing your reach. If you've been wondering why fewer people seem to be seeing your content, or whose content you've stopped seeing, this episode gives you the answers and a clear action plan.

Key takeaways

1. LinkedIn organic reach is declining across the board
2. Engagement now matters more than reach
3. Being connected no longer guarantees visibility
4. Hashtags are losing their role as content signals
5. Comments can outperform standalone posts.

Resources and links

BEMS roundup episode from end of 2025

Reports on the 360Brew algorithm

LinkedIn Post Performance Tracker and/or training [email protected]

About the show

The Built Environment Marketing Show is a show that is unashamedly about marketing for architects and engineers, as well as bringing forward voices that we don't always get to hear.

Ways you can support this show

Donate to help cover the costs for making this show

📲 Share about the show on socials

🔗 Follow us on Apple or Spotify

📝 Leave us a review on Apple or Spotify

💬 Tell a friend about the show who you think will benefit.

Welcome back to The Built Environment Marketing Show hosted by me Ayo Abbas.

To mark me working for 25 years in the construction industry, this epsiode is an interview with my very first boss, Anna Hern from Ridgemount. Together we chart the evolution of construction marketing: from the old PR vs advertising divide, through the explosion of digital channels, to the AI era we're now navigating.

Anna brings sharp, no-nonsense realness on what great clients look like, why strategy is still misunderstood, how digital measurement changed everything, and the counter-intuitive case for investing in your brand hardest when the market is at its toughest.
Key takeaways

1. What great clients do differently (and strategy vs tactics)
2. Trust, AI, and the role of media / gatekeepers
3. Expectations, complexity, and measurement in modern marketing
4. Future-facing skills: brand building, critical thinking, and using AI well

Resources and links

1. Ayo Abbas on LinkedIn
2. Abbas Marketing website
3. Ridgemount agency website
4. Anna Hern on LinkedIn
5. Contact Ayo: [email protected]

About the show

The Built Environment Marketing Show is hosted by marketing consultant and content creator Ayo Abbas from Abbas Marketing. It is a show that is unashamedly about marketing for architects and engineers, as well as bringing forward voices that we don't always get to hear.

Ways you can support this show

Donate to help cover the costs for making this show

📲 Share about the show on socials

🔗 Follow us on Apple or Spotify

📝 Leave us a review on Apple or Spotify

💬 Tell a friend about the show who you think will benefit.

Welcome back to The Built Environment Marketing Show hosted by me Ayo Abbas.

Most built environment firms know networking matters but are they actually in the right rooms? In this solo episode, I share a real decision I had to make between two events on the same day, and why choosing the less familiar option led to two potential project conversations by the time I got home.

This episode looks at why strategic networking has to match your positioning and what happens when it doesn't.

If you're an architect, engineer, or consultant spending time going to events that aren't converting, this one's for you.

Key takeaways

1. Your networking strategy should directly reflect your positioning
2. Being 'out there' isn't enough. Visibility only counts when you're visible to the right people
3. Most firms are spending the majority of their networking time with competitors
4. Strategic networking comes down to three things happening at once: the right decision makers, at the right time, in the right context
5. The firms winning better work at better fees go to fewer events — but they make each one count. Focus beats volume every time.

About the show

The Built Environment Marketing Show is hosted by marketing consultant and content creator Ayo Abbas from Abbas Marketing. It is a show that is unashamedly about marketing for architects and engineers, as well as bringing forward voices that we don't always get to hear.

Ways you can support this show

Donate to help cover the costs for making this show

📲 Share about the show on socials

🔗 Follow us on Apple or Spotify

📝 Leave us a review on Apple or Spotify

💬 Tell a friend about the show who you think will benefit.

Welcome back to The Built Environment Marketing Show hosted by me Ayo Abbas.

In this special crossover episode with Keelin Cox from The AEC Marketer podcast. In this episode we're talking about what's really happening with AI in marketing (spoiler: quantity is up, quality is questionable), why AEC marketers still aren't getting the strategic recognition they deserve, and what UK firms need to know before attempting to crack the US market.

This is a rare behind-the-scenes conversation between two marketers who've spent their careers proving that marketing in the built environment is far more than just proposals and pretty pictures.

This is part II of the episode where I'm interviewing Keelin and if you want to check out part 1 where Keelin interviews me on her show head here http://aecmarketeer.fireside.fm/141Key takeaways

1. How to use AI as a strategic tool rather than a content crutch - and why the difference matters for quality
2. Why marketers need to speak the language of business: KPIs, win rates, and bottom-line impact
3. The critical mistake most firms make when they think "marketing" means "proposals person"
4. What UK AEC firms must understand about US state licensing, office requirements, and regional differences before expanding
5. How to translate your strategic value into terms that leadership actually understands and respects
6. The game-changing mindset shift: clients aren't buying your time, they're buying your 20+ years of expertise

About the show

The Built Environment Marketing Show is hosted by marketing consultant and content creator Ayo Abbas from Abbas Marketing. It is a show that is unashamedly about marketing for architects and engineers, as well as bringing forward voices that we don't always get to hear.

Ways you can support this show

Donate to help cover the costs for making this show

📲 Share about the show on socials

🔗 Follow us on Apple or Spotify

📝 Leave us a review on Apple or Spotify

💬 Tell a friend about the show who you think will benefit.

This month is the 25th anniversary of podcast host Ayo Abbas starting work in the construction sector so she shares some lessons she's learned about the importance of articulating value that will help you whether you work in-house or elsewhere.

Key takeaways

1. Why you must understand that clients aren't buying your time
2. Identify your unique value proposition and share it via real-world examples
3. Apply the 3-step Value Framework:
4. The importance of articulating your value clearly to avoid the "race to the bottom"
5. Why you need to own who you are and stop apologising

Resources and links

Abbas Marketing

About the show

The Built Environment Marketing Show is hosted by marketing consultant and content creator Ayo Abbas from Abbas Marketing. It is a show that is unashamedly about marketing for architects and engineers, as well as bringing forward voices that we don't always get to hear.

Ways you can support this show

📲 Share about the show on socials

🔗 Follow us on Apple or Spotify

📝 Leave us a review on Apple or Spotify

💬 Tell a friend about the show who you think will benefit.

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Today's episode is a veritable ride around The Built Environment Marketing Show podcast in 2025 in our End of year reflections and predictions.

It's one where I round up and share the main facts and figures for how this show has performed, who has been on, the topics we've covered and where I'm planning to take the show in 2026.

Thanks so much for listening to the show and to everyone who has taken time out this year to contribute to the podcast. It's really appreciated.

Resources and links

Abbas Marketing

About the show

The Built Environment Marketing Show is hosted by marketing consultant and content creator Ayo Abbas from Abbas Marketing. It is a show that is unashamedly about marketing for architects and engineers, as well as bringing forward voices that we don't always get to hear.

BOOK A CALL TO TALK ABOUT WORKING WITH ME IN 2026

Ways you can support this show

📲 Share about the show on socials

🔗 Follow us on Apple or Spotify

📝 Leave us a review on Apple or Spotify

💬 Tell a friend about the show who you think will benefit.

Episodes in 2025

Ep 92: AI in marketing: The good, the bad, and the reality

Ep 91: Why marketing funnels don't work for B2B and what to do instead

Ep 90: Lessons learned from 5 years of podcasting

Ep 89: Using spoken communication to build confidence and authority with Tom Coupe

Ep 88: Architecture and construction industry awards from three perspectives

Ep 87: How to bring 'boring' industries to life with Michelle Garrett and Ayo Abbas

Ep 86: Making the most out of your time at UKREiiF, part II, with Nathan Spencer, Jeremy Brim and Ayo Abbas

Ep 85: Making the most out of your time at UKREiiF, part I, with Nathan Spencer, Jeremy Brim and Ayo Abbas

Ep 84: Reframing sustainability and climate communications - Part 2, with Rosie Cade and Brigitte Clements

Ep 83: Reframing sustainability and climate communications with Rosie Cade and Brigitte Clements

Ep 82: We’re back for 2025

In this episode, Ayo Abbas kicks off a mini-series exploring how marketers are using AI across industries. She interviews Stuart Wilks and Kristian Downer about the practical realities of AI adoption, sharing real-world examples, concerns, and the future of marketing with artificial intelligence.

Key takeaways

Stuart and Kristian shared:

• How to unlock AI's creative potential while preserving brand authenticity
• Ways to build robust AI governance that enables innovation
• What effective AI leadership looks like in progressive marketing teams
• The opportunity to create sustainable competitive advantages in an AI-driven market
• How to strategically position your team for the AI-enhanced future

Resources and links

Abbas Marketing

Limeslade

Dowsocial Marketing

Fyxer.ai - Meeting management and transcription tool

NotebookLM - Document summarisation and podcast creation

Crystal Knows - LinkedIn profile analysis tool

Social Media Marketing podcast - AI marketing resources and tools

MIT study on AI making people lazy

About the show

The Built Environment Marketing Show is hosted by marketing consultant and content creator Ayo Abbas from Abbas Marketing. It is a show that is unashamedly about marketing for architects and engineers, as well as bringing forward voices that we don't always get to hear.  

Ways you can support this show

📲 Share about the show on socials

🔗 Follow us on Apple or Spotify

📝 Leave us a review on Apple or Spotify

💬 Tell a friend about the show who you think will benefit.

Marketing consultant Anna O'Riordan joins me, Ayo Abbas to challenge the B2B marketing funnel. Often heralded as the gospel of all types of marketing, we explore why traditional funnel thinking fails in B2B environments and share practical alternatives that actually work for complex buying journeys.

oh and here are the two LinkedIn posts that sparked this conversation:

Ayo's post https://www.linkedin.com/posts/ayoabbas_marketing-b2b-builtenvironment-activity-7342807335859331074-yGd4?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAFPDJgBooVBV0bdyqCqr6gjVCXIR2mUhDA

Anna's post https://www.linkedin.com/posts/annaoriordan_life-doesnt-fit-in-a-funnel-and-neither-activity-7341396652613607425-28Dd?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAFPDJgBooVBV0bdyqCqr6gjVCXIR2mUhDA

Resources and links

Abbas Marketing

Afand.co

EsTeam.Pro

April Dunford

Alice Widger - Milk It Digital

Katelyn Bourgoin

Chris Walker

Antonia Wade - Transforming the B2B Buyer Journey

About the show

The Built Environment Marketing Show is hosted by marketing consultant and content creator Ayo Abbas from Abbas Marketing. It is a show that is unashamedly about marketing for architects and engineers, as well as bringing forward voices that we don't always get to hear.  

Ways you can support this show

📲 Share about the show on socials

🔗 Follow us on Apple or Spotify

📝 Leave us a review on Apple or Spotify

💬 Tell a friend about the show who you think will benefit.

In this episode, I Ayo Abbas, founder of Abbas Marketing and host of this podcast share some of my thoughts on this very podcast turning 5 on July 3rd.

Resources and links

Abbas Marketing

About the show

The Built Environment Marketing Show is hosted by marketing consultant and content creator Ayo Abbas from Abbas Marketing. It is a show that is unashamedly about marketing for architects and engineers, as well as bringing forward voices that we don't always get to hear.  

Ways you can support this show

📲 Share about the show on socials

🔗 Follow us on Apple or Spotify

📝 Leave us a review on Apple or Spotify

💬 Tell a friend about the show who you think will benefit.

In this episode, Ayo Abbas interviews Tom Coupe, founder of Design Communication Training and former communications leader at David Chipperfield Architects, Heatherwick Studio, and Squint Opera. Tom discusses how architects can master spoken communications to build stronger client relationships, win more work, and scale their practices effectively.

He shares:

How to adapt your design language beyond technical jargon to communicate design concepts clearly to non-architects

Ways to build client trust through storytelling

What makes great architectural communicators stand out - It's not just brilliant design but being adaptable

The need for structured preparation frameworks

How to handle unknown questions confidently

Ways to scale relationship management across a firm

And much more.

Resources and links

Abbas Marketing

Design Communication Training

About the show

The Built Environment Marketing Show is hosted by marketing consultant and content creator Ayo Abbas from Abbas Marketing. It is a show that is unashamedly about marketing for architects and engineers, as well as bringing forward voices that we don't always get to hear.  

Ways you can support this show

📲 Share about the show on socials

🔗 Follow us on Apple or Spotify

📝 Leave us a review on Apple or Spotify

💬 Tell a friend about the show who you think will benefit.