Position one’s expertise and influence one’s industry with a white paper
Conceptualization, creation and distribution of Pomerleau's first white paper.
As a visionary and innovative company, Pomerleau has been at the forefront of trends in the construction, civil engineering and sustainable development industries for many years. As the industry transforms, new technologies offer unparalleled opportunities, particularly in facilities maintenance and management. Among these, Building Information Modeling (better known as BIM in the industry) is an innovative approach to optimizing infrastructure management. Pomerleau's experts are familiar with this approach and its benefits, but it is little-known in the industry, particularly among property owners, managers and operators.
Objectives
Pomerleau commissioned Exponentiel to help it create a white paper on BIM, and promote it to its target audiences.
Strategies
After careful research and analysis of the various tools that could meet Pomerleau's business objectives, the agency recommended a thought leadership strategy to share this expertise, reaffirm Pomerleau's leadership position and ultimately positively influence project owners to implement BIM in the construction and management of their assets. As the perfect tool for informing and convincing without being a marketing tool, the choice of the white paper as a means of clearly demonstrating the opportunities of BIM in infrastructure management was confirmed.
Through 44 pages of in-depth, rigorous and visual content, Pomerleau establishes its credibility and influences its industry in a movement for change. The white paper is the first comprehensive source on BIM for asset management that is not a case study or academic research paper. In itself, the white paper is an innovation, as it is the first in Pomerleau's history, and the first on the topic of BIM for asset management in the Quebec construction industry.
The release of the white paper, during Pomerleau's Innovation Week, was supported by a communications campaign targeting property owners, managers and operators. The announcement was covered in three publications specializing in the construction industry.
Impact
Just a few months after the white paper was published, Pomerleau was on its way to signing three major contracts involving the implementation of BIM in facilities management.
With the white paper as a reference, the company continues to take steps to positively influence its industry in favour of building information modeling, notably by training its employees on BIM for asset management and speaking at industry events as a specialist on the subject.
Highlights
- Winner of the Prix d'excellence 2021 from the Société québécoise des professionnels(le)s en relations publiques (SQPRP) in the Communications Tool category.
- Before Pomerleau, no company in Canada had yet positioned itself on the subject with such advanced expertise, despite the powerful promise of efficiency and performance benefits from BIM. Only 45% of senior facility managers in Quebec considered themselves well-informed about BIM prior to the white paper.
- In just a few months, the white paper was shared with over 4,000 people in key real estate positions, including property owners, managers and operators.