Construction Informer

If you want to get a glimpse of what web site professionals consider to be cutting edge in web site design look no further than the Web Marketing Association’s WebAward. Now in its 11^th year it names the best web sites in 96 industries to, “provide a benchmark by which all website development can be judged.” As you might guess the construction industry is well represented in these awards and looking over the winners can give you some ideas about not only new purposes for your site but also new presentation.

The judging is a very thorough process and among other things it looks at design, innovation, content, technology, interactivity, copy writing and ease of use.

I looked at a few of the winners. The MGA Roofing site took top honors in the construction category. I liked the little hammer hammering away in the upper right corner but because I was studying the page for a while I kind of wished it would have stopped after a few blows. That page totally encapsulated the entire business and made it very easy to quickly understand what the company does, how it does it and how to do business with it.

The second site I looked at was Inarco, a Canadian design/build firm (my description) that took one of the Construction Standard of Excellence awards. This was a very slick site with quick graphics and short text blocks. Again, it was very easy to quickly understand what the company was about, how it operated and how to do business with it.

The Homebuilding Standard of Excellence award went to EverGrain a composite decking company. This site really managed to convey the “feeling” the company wanted you to get about composite decking. And again, it was easy to understand and easy to figure out how to get linked up with a dealer. I had a little trouble with this one since I expected a homebuilder’s site, so seeing a vendor caught me off-guard. Maybe these categories need to be considered a bit more.

All-in-all it looked to me like the days of the long page that you scroll down through are passing and more and more focus is going into pictures/video and high quality text. I suspect there are many people in the business of construction who can’t afford a web designer or web design firm. I’m thinking of low volume contractors, cabinetmakers and specialty trades-people to name a few. They are serving a small, local clientèle and they use a simple approach to their web presences. Who is showcasing their efforts? After all, if what they are doing works for them, then it works. If you’d like to share the link to your small construction business website leave it in the comments section and maybe we can also encourage some recognition for the “It’s pretty darn good, even if I do say so myself,” websites.

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ATTENTION: There are no home improvement or do-it-yourself blogs in this directory. This list is for those who are in construction businesses, or who offer products and services to construction businesses.

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