Branding

New target group-
New brand promise

Market Development

Over the past ten to fifteen years, the construction sector has undergone significant change. The number of self-employed craftsmen has grown explosively, partly due to the influx of international labour.

This shift has created an entirely new decision-making landscape: alongside the specialised installer, typically highly skilled within a single discipline, a large group of all-round self-employed professionals has emerged, combining multiple trades within their service offering.

This all-round professional works differently, purchases differently, and thinks differently. Instead of buying segment-specific products from specialised distributors, this target group seeks a one-stop concept that offers both roofing materials and general construction products.

As a result, the purchasing dynamic is shifting from specialised roofing distributors to broader, general building material suppliers. This development has created a new and strategically important channel within the construction value chain.

Brand needs

Across the market segments of new construction, renovation and maintenance, the fundamental need is clear: the all-round professional is not looking for a fragmented assortment, but for a complete sealing system in which all components work seamlessly together. Such a system must be:

• easy to apply,

• safe and reliable to install,

• readily available through general building material distributors,

• and composed of complementary components that reinforce one another.
  

While specialists tend to focus on advanced detailing and highly specialised systems, the all-round professional expects clarity, simplicity and practical applicability. In this segment, a system only adds value when it is straightforward, predictable and efficient to work with.

Strategic actions

To effectively respond to these market shifts, it becomes essential to develop an entirely new proposition, including the introduction of a completely new brand concept. A common pitfall for many organisations is that the brand promise is not immediately aligned with the needs of the target audience, especially when audiences differ significantly in their expectations and behaviour.

This is precisely why choosing a new identity, including visual style, positioning, and brand architecture, is often a logical step. Within traditional marketing models, this is nothing more than positioning an existing product in a new market. It is a clear example of Business Development through Strategic Marketing.

Such a strategy can therefore be all-encompassing: a new digital ecosystem, new point-of-sale materials, a new documentation flow, alternative communication formats, and more.

It is also advisable to re-examine the theoretical framework of ‘Why, How & What’. Is it still accurate? Is it still sufficiently distinctive? And most importantly: how does this insight translate into your future communication towards the market?

Brand Promise

The proposition must be built on the three core values most appreciated by this target group: quality, continuity and support.
This is translated into a brand promise consisting of:

• Clear communication, including practical manuals and step-by-step instructions

• A comprehensive ecosystem of online and offline support, such as tutorials, product sheets and installation guidelines

• Accessible installation training, directly aligned with the day-to-day activities of the all-round professional

• The ability to add a wide range of sealing applications (roof, gutter, air- and joint-sealing) to their existing service offering without high entry barriers
  

This approach enables the development of a concept that aligns seamlessly with the behaviour and expectations of the modern all-round professional.

Integration Premium Brands -
Building Autority for the Company Brand

External analysis

In many market segments, we see increasing consolidation of independent companies, often larger SMEs or family-owned businesses, through acquisitions by corporate organisations. This marks the beginning of a process focused on integration, capturing synergies and building a unified brand presence. Within marketing, such consolidation often makes a harmonised brand strategy essential to prevent fragmentation and to establish a single, recognisable identity across both online and offline channels. For stakeholders, newly introduced company names can be difficult to interpret or position, which frequently leads to an internal gap between the organisation’s corporate identity and its desired corporate image.

Personal professional contribution
For me as a senior marketeer, managing and positioning multiple brands within a broader strategic framework creates significant added value. Not every brand has the same strategic value drivers, but through an integrated approach, product lines can be positioned to reinforce one another—particularly on overarching themes such as sustainability, product longevity and circularity. This makes it far easier to develop market propositions that genuinely align with the design and development phases of construction projects.

These early phases are precisely where critical technical questions arise, such as airtight building or system integration within the building envelope and it is at that moment that you must be present to meaningfully participate. Such strategic involvement is not possible with a narrow focus on a single application area; an integrated brand and portfolio approach does make this possible. Leveraging multiple brands within one portfolio, and allowing them to strengthen each other, is what inspires me and drives my professional motivation.

Thought Leadership perspective
In B2B production environments, it becomes increasingly evident that sustainable growth is not achieved through product marketing alone, but through building authority at the company level. The corporate brand serves as the strategic anchor, conveying trust, technical expertise and long-term reliability. Product brands, in turn, deliver functional differentiation and application-specific relevance.

When these elements reinforce each other—a strong company brand claiming the market context, and product brands translating that context into tangible technical value—a scalable brand ecosystem emerges that is:

• recognisable in every phase of the buyer journey,

• aligned with Category Entry Points,

• and capable of building enduring mental availability.

This interplay between corporate authority and product-driven expertise determines whether an organisation becomes top-of-mind at the moment a selection process begins—often years before the actual purchase is made.

The company that succeeds in claiming both the context (why, when, for what purpose) and the solution (how and with what) naturally positions itself as the most future-ready partner.

Benno is a down-to-earth and creative professional who gives his full commitment to everything he does — a rare combination of qualities. We worked together fantastically, and the company — then still Hertalan — flourished during a challenging period.

Gé Morssink - Managing Director
Hertalan Rubber Products

If you’re looking for an experienced marketer, you simply can’t overlook Benno. Driven and passionate about his profession — that’s what best describes his way of working.
He always approaches things with a broad strategic perspective while maintaining a keen eye for detail.

Bart van Beek - Managing Director
Van Beek EPDM