These 6 Better Building Accounts Are Doing Social Media Differently—and It’s Working
Here at Energy Circle, we're big home performance nerds. We love to discuss the science behind heat pumps, could debate the best attic insulation materials for hours, and have strong opinions about electrification.
If you own or manage a better building business, you probably feel the same way we do. The industry is full of passionate people who care about making buildings work better and aren't afraid to shout it from the rooftops—or from their Instagram accounts.
There are a surprising number of industry experts who are using various social media channels to talk about their work, and they're getting an astounding amount of engagement (we're talking millions of views).
Energy Circle Founder and CEO Peter Troast and Senior Media Producer Jake Van Paepegham talked about their favorite better building accounts from across the social media landscape in a recent webinar, and we've rounded them up here, too.
TikTok: @raydawg91
Going by the name raydawg91, this spray foam insulation installer has amassed 177,000 TikTok followers and his videos regularly rack up tens and even hundreds of thousands of views.
So what is he filming that's so interesting to thousands of TikTok users? Spray foam. More specifically, spray foam expanding. Watching insulation go from flat to foamy is kind of mesmerizing, and this isn't the only account making spray foam expansion videos—they're all over TikTok.
But for all the views this account is getting, they don't seem to be capitalizing on the attention. Their account bio doesn't link to their website or offer any sort of contact information, which feels like a big missed opportunity.
@raydawg91 ##northfloridasprayfoam ##fyp ##killingit ##opencellfoam ##insulation ##stairs ##markingmyterritory ##keepingup
♬ Life Goes On - Oliver Tree
YouTube: Fox Family Heating & Air Conditioning
Run by Fox Family Heating & Air Conditioning, this YouTube account has 34.5 thousand subscribers and 4.6 million views. The channel is mainly geared towards industry peers, though they do create some customer-focused content.
Fox Family Heating & Air Conditioning's YouTube success may also contribute to their success in search engine result pages (SERPs). Creating YouTube videos gives Google more robust data to pull from and vet you with, which can help your website rank higher in the SERPs.
Facebook: #whatsstuckinchuckscrawltoday from Worley's Home Services
Chuck Worley, the owner of Worley's Home Services, posts daily on Facebook, using the hashtag #whatsstuckinchuckscrawltoday to share the interesting things he finds hidden in crawl spaces as well as general home performance tricks and tips.
His posts put crawl spaces (something most homeowners aren't thinking about too regularly) in front of people every day, bringing their crawl spaces to their attention. The daily posts have also attracted a lot of industry attention and helped Worley's build a recognizable brand.
Instagram: @atticqueen
Jessica Azarelo (aka the Attic Queen) recently started her business and is using Instagram as a main approach to building her brand. A great name combined with content that's both entertaining and informative has helped her build up an audience and get her name out there.
The Attic Queen records video on her phone while she's up in an attic on a job, and then posts the videos to Instagram. She seems to have mastered the art of integrating content creation with her processes and is creating a very memorable brand without a ton of production.
TikTok: @rrbuildings
Rural Renovators (@rrbuildings on TikTok and Instagram) is a custom builder with a huge following across many social media platforms, including TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. His videos cover a wide range of building techniques and go much more in-depth than the popular spray foam expansion videos we talked about earlier.
When you search for Rural Renovators on Google, you see all the video content that he has on YouTube. This has helped him take over and dominate the brand search page. If you're prolific about video, you can take up a lot of space in the SERPs.
@rrbuildings Closed cell spray foam is awesome ##ceoofconstruction ##StyleSnap ##satisfying ##smoothaf ##sprayfoam
♬ original sound - RR Buildings
Instagram: @buildingsciencefightclub
Christine Williamson is an architectural designer and the creator behind @buildingsciencefightclub. With 85 thousand followers and a huge amount of engagement, she's built up a massive audience and has been featured on The Energy Gang Podcast.
Rather than promoting a company, however, Christine is using her account to train architects in building science and is now selling a course.
So, should your better building business be on TikTok?
It's clear that better building-related content is gaining traction across many different social media platforms. This begs the question—should your business be doing this too?
We say go for it. But only if it's something that you really want to do. Success on social media doesn't necessarily translate into business success, and most of the interesting accounts we've seen are labors of love, not strategic marketing moves with a target ROI. Creating content at this volume is also a major time and effort commitment that may not lead to more business.
That said, content creation for social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram doesn't need a high production value. Filming and sharing clips while on the job can become a part of your standard operating procedure and is an interesting way to build your brand. If you (or your employees) are comfortable in front of the camera, try it out and see where it leads you!