Launching a Building Materials Brand, with Ralph Bruno [Pt. II]

What You Will Learn:

• How Ralph identified the market sweet spot for his new building product
• Why Ralph and his team chose to focus their marketing efforts on consumers instead of channel partners
• Ralph’s strategy behind the launch of Beach House Shake
• How Derby is building awareness for their Beach House Shake product
• How new trends are influencing the future of Derby Building Products

If you didn’t get a chance to check out Pt. I of this two-part series, listen to the episode here. Ralph Bruno is the CEO of Derby Building Products, where he has helped grow the market with brands that have completely changed the face of the exterior building materials industry. In Part I, Ralph shares advice for building materials companies that are trying to build a presence in the marketplace and strengthen their brands. Now, Ralph joins us again to explore the tiny moving parts and the big picture strategy behind launching a brand in the building materials industry. He walks us through the successful launch of Derby’s Beach House Shake and shares insights about the marketing tactics they used.

Initiate the Right Conversation With Your Buyer

Ralph Bruno says, “If we just had one product to build the whole company around as a consumer-based brand, it would be Beach House Shake.” But Ralph and his team did not always see it that way. After only three years, Beach House Shake has become an iconic consumer-driven brand in the building materials industry. However, Derby initially struggled to move Beach House Shake because the targeting was slightly miscalculated. The product was dished out to channel partners without a clear vision of its consumer appeal in the competitive market of exterior building materials. But three years later, Beach House Shake sales are on the up and up and Derby has shifted the conversation toward consumers. Beach House Shake is for consumers who want something identical to a cedar shingle that maintains its aesthetic with low maintenance. And once Ralph and his team positioned it that way, their sales went through the roof.

Taking Beach House Shake to Market

Derby Building Products has locked-in on a sweet spot in the consumer market. So, Beach House Shake will continue to build momentum with a new tag line, an aspirational consumer experience campaign, new digital collateral, visualizers, and a strong tradeshow presence. It enables them to make a direct consumer play with all of their experts and channel partners lined up. And now that the product has been out for three years, Ralph and his team can show consumers the long-term value and durability of Beach House Shake. In the building materials industry, talk is cheap, so a little bit of show and tell goes a long way. If you are interested in learning more about Ralph’s strategy behind the launch of Beach House Shake, listen to the latest episode of Constructing Brands.