Examination of the communication strategy based on company straplines: A case study of German construction companies

Schnell, P (2022) Examination of the communication strategy based on company straplines: A case study of German construction companies. Construction Economics and Building, 22(4), pp. 81-97. ISSN 2204-9029

Abstract

A target group-oriented communication strategy is decisively responsible for a company's success. Consequently, addressing the potential target group in all communication sectors could enable a valuable competitive advantage. To verify if companies within the German construction industry follow this theory, a study was conducted. In this study, the communication strategy of the 50 largest German construction companies was examined, based on their company straplines. The following article presents the results. As a research method, both a content analysis was conducted and the basic principles of the "Zurich Model of Social Motivation" of psychologist Norbert Bischof and the archetype theory based on Carl Gustav Jung were applied. The current challenges in the construction industry require a high focus on customer-centricity and collaboration. The study revealed that most of the analysed company straplines are addressed rather to the competitors than to the customers and partners. As a result, the straplines should be rethought and adapted to the customers' needs and current market requirements.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: competitive advantage; market; motivation; collaboration; communication; content analysis; case study
Index terms: strategy, content analysis, construction company, motivation, competitive advantage, case study, construction industry, collaboration, archetype
Subjects: industry analysis, market analysis, management, data analysis and analytics, modelling and simulation, psychology, organization, data collection methods
Topics: Organizational Design, Human Resources, Research Practice, Business Strategy
Descriptive scope: 5 PCTEA

N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here