BWF joins the social media revolution

The British Woodworking Federation (BWF) has begun to use social media as part of its communciations and marketing strategy.

In a move to ensure that the BWF is reaching as wider audience as possible, the BWF has taken the decision to use Linked In and Twitter as two of its main communications channels.

Linked In is being used primarily to engage with joinery manufacturers who are both members and non-members and twitter will serve to enage both joinery companies and the BWF Members' end-users, such as architects and specifiers.

Although the BWF has only just launched its social media activities, the BWF-CERTIFIRE Scheme, which is part of the BWF group, has been using social media as part of its engagement strategy for some time. The BWF has used the scheme as a case study of how it can effectively engage with industry and the end-user on a wider scale.

Dave Campbell, BWF Marketing Manager said, "Use of social media is crucial as part of almost all industries communication strategy, and joinery and woodworking is no different. We've seen more and more joinery firms take to these platforms to drum up business as their customers, such as architects, have been in the social media sphere for sometime".

"At part of the BWF's role we engage the end-user to increase our members' sales, so it was important that we also took to these platforms to acheive this. Furthermore, its a great way for us to communicate with members and potentials in a new way, and reach companies that we may not have reached through other forms of communication".

Dave did stress, however, the importance of having clear strategy and adequate resource for social media activity. 

"I've seen some spectacular examples of brands failing to use social media effectively, which can cause more harm to the brand than it does to build it. It is important that all companies moving into the social media environment for the first time properly think it through and ensure that it offers them the ROI with the resource that is needed to support this activity – Twitter doesn't stop after 5pm or on weekends, so companies need to be prepared to monitor the channels both in and out of the working day. It's also important to research which platforms your target audience are using so you don't invest in the wrong social media".

The BWF will use social media as an additional channel to its other communications, underlining the importance of an integrated approach to marketing i.e. both digital and traditional channels.

"This is not a substitute or replacement for our other communications, it is an addition. We recognise that our members aren't glued to the internet all day, so social media cannot replace PR, advertising, telephone, post and email communications – we must strike a balance that serves all of our stakeholders, but it is clear that more are using social media so we would be unwise to ignore a growing group of members".

The launch of the BWF's social media activities comes just before its Members' Day/Annual Conference on 24th May in Loughborough, in which it hopes to broadcast key messages accross the web and get members' actively engaged in the social media revolution.

Further expansion of its social media is planned this year with the Woodworking Industry Training Forum (WITForum) in an effort to encourage more young people to enter the joinery industry as a career and to raise the number of apprentices within the industry.

You can find the BWF on Twitter with username @BritWoodFed and on Linked In, join its group 'Just Joinery'