Print versus online – communicating with architects

More research, this time into the reading habits of architects, shows that despite their obvious enthusiasm for new technologies it hasn't been at the expense of ink on paper communications. Chris Ashworth of Competitive Advantage and CIMCIG reports.

Competitive Advantage's newly published findings into the communication channels most favoured by architects was an update on similar research conducted by the agency in 2008.

Although there has been a lot of talk about digital media taking over from traditional hard copy, reinforced to an extent by architects' overwhelmingly positive attitude towards new technologies (see Architects become more mobile: attitudes to new technologies), there's not much evidence of it yet when it comes to communication channels. Our research found that 81 per cent of architects still read printed journals. When comparing readership of leading publications, a much higher proportion of architects read every edition of the hard copy publication than the online edition although this trend was admittedly less pronounced when measuring casual readership of some of the less popular titles.

Product directories are used by 83 per cent of architects, and here the online version is almost twice as popular as the hard copy. Nevertheless, a significant proportion of architects use both. The most popular product directory is RIBA Product Selector.

Interestingly, although half of all architects still use hard copy literature, 76 per cent (i.e. more) see it as still having a role, perhaps because it provides an audit trail and is also more convenient to use on site. Evidence of a trend away from traditional formats is also that the PDF (portable document format) is now three times more popular than hard copy. By comparison, when asked in 2008 whether there was a role for hard copy literature all respondents answered “yes”.

Google is by far the most popular search engine, with architecture.com and ribaproductselector.com among the top websites visited (see ribaproductselector.com set for major improvements in 2011). Architects tend to stay with websites they know, with 93 per cent having used their favourite websites for more than 12 months.

eNewsletters are widely perceived as a cost effective means of communicating, yet we found that 38 per cent of architects don't read them. Those that do read between two and five eNewsletters on a regular basis, most having subscribed to them for more than 12 months. Among the most popular eNewsletters are the RIBA Bulletin and RIBA Practice.

Blogs still have some way to go before they become a significant communication channel. Only 12 per cent of architects use them for work. Social networks are more established, with 90 per cent of architects being a member of at least one, and 24 per cent using them for work. Eleven per cent of architects said they used Twitter to help them with their work.

It's clear that, as far as channels of communication are concerned, architects are creatures of habit. They tend to stick to what they know, be it a journal, website or newsletter. Breaking down those barriers remains a challenge. And while there's no doubt that digital media continues to gain popularity, traditional hard copy journals and literature still play an important role. Which isn't necessarily good news for those with tight budgets and overworked marketing departments.

 

Find out more about how RIBA Product Selector and ribaproductselector.com can be used to communicate effectively with architects.

 

Chris Ashworth is a member of the organising committee of CIMCIG and the founder of Competitive Advantage Consultancy which specialises in market research and training for the construction industry.

 

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Find out more

To learn more about the research findings and to get some ideas for your 2011 communications strategy why not attend CIMCIG's half-day seminar, Communicating with Architects, being held at the Building Centre in London on 10 February 2011. In addition to an overview from our communications research there will be five of the leading construction communications agencies presenting case studies and ideas on the best ways to communicate with architects. For more information visit the CIMCIG website.