10 things you should know when marketing to Professional Electricians…

1. 79% Professional Electricians are aged between 41-60+ years, with only 5% aged between 18-30 years.

2. 67.5% are small businesses (1-3 employees).

3. 47% visit a wholesaler at least once a week. 19.6% visit daily.

4. 43% belong to the NICEIC, 24% to NAPIT, but 24.5% do not belong to any trade association.

5. Type of work undertaken: 74.5% Rewiring, 80% Test & Inspection, 76.5% Circuit Protection and 66% Cable Management.

6. 36.4% said they undertake Smart Home Installation and 51.25% say that they are interested in reading about Smart Home Technology.

7. Where they find information about products: 90% Trade Magazines, 42.0% Manufacturers websites/internet, 40.5% say Wholesale Counter Staff

8. Where they look for technical advice: 56% Internet, 77% Trade Magazines, 70% Trade Bodies and 21% Wholesale Counter Staff. NEW Electrical Forum Groups/Social Media 50%

9. Use of Internet for business: 55% Industry News, 75.7% Purchasing Products, 86.3% Product Information, and 89.2% Technical Information.

10. 57% regularly use YouTube, 53% Facebook, , 30% LinkedIn and 24% Twitter. 30% Instagram, 14.5% don’t use social media

Source: Readership survey 2022 (759) conducted by Hamerville Publishing Ltd:

How does this help with the development of future product launch campaigns for manufacturers of electrical products?

The sector’s demographic profile is still relatively mature – think OLD DOGS! This can be advantageous for older well-established brands needing to retain a loyal customer base – keep existing customer sold!

As a result, younger brands must work harder and create a more persuasive offer to encourage them to switch brands.

The case for youth marketing. Trainees/apprentice electricians (fresh blood) entering the profession are in short supply – this is a common concern across all trades. Nevertheless, this group offers significant opportunities for early brand adoption. Once qualified, apprentices often use the same brands they used while training – the devil you know! This has a direct impact on marketing tone-of-voice.

In general, older customers have a harder time adopting new technologies – although some are trying! With the growth in smart technologies, ‘product training’ is a key element of any product launch.

The case for in-branch marketing: Digitalisation buzz is unavoidable. The pandemic encouraged a surge in online product purchases – initially by necessity rather than desire and now for convenience – nearly half of the electricians surveyed said they visit wholesalers weekly, and almost twenty percent once daily!

Wholesaler counter staff are often trustworthy industry influencers, using in-store merchandising and access to product information to influence their own decisions – justifying Sell-In campaigns.

The case for print media: For product information, trade magazines remain the most popular channel. However, when under pressure to save money, the default position is often ‘digital-only’ – probably because it is easier to measure. Brands that continue with both print and digital gain a competitive advantage, and it is a demonstration that they understand customer behaviour.

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