Builders' merchants: how to strengthen your presence and meet the needs of the pros?
A brand repositioning, a "pro et proche" message, useful and impactful tools
A major player in the distribution of heating, ventilation and air-conditioning equipment, CLIM+ has established itself, with its 80 points of sale across France, as “the” specialist in thermal comfort.
Having rethought its brand platform, the DSC group banner (Saint-Gobain Distribution Bâtiment France) called on the expertise of an agency specialised in the construction industry to support it with its communication challenges: consolidating its positioning as an HVAC* specialist and embedding its “pro et proche” message.
While CLIM+ has positioned itself as a partner of choice for air-conditioning specialists, plumbers and heating engineers for more than 20 years, the brand has seen its ultra-specialist image erode in recent years. With an increasingly complex market context (CEE energy-saving certificates, the tertiary decree, RE2020...) and the recent mainstreaming of air conditioning for single-family homes, CLIM+ intends to reinject expertise into its communications and thereby recreate differentiation and value among its professional target audiences.
But to advise well, you first need to understand!
So the agency immersed itself in the brand's world; its history, its culture, its organisation, its methodologies, its ambitions, its (so precious) distinctive traits, its customers... in short, its entire ecosystem!
An essential step for the agency's team dedicated to the brand, and a key phase for CLIM+ to express and refine its needs.
The results?
Strong convictions and concrete actions: creation of sales support tools for the pros, numerous customer interviews, integration of pros' verbatim quotes into all the brand's communications, strengthened expert content (regulations, technical expertise, market intelligence, innovation), overhauled and newly prominent services...
A distributor's role is also to drive sales across its network, build customer loyalty and attract new customers. Our mission was therefore to overhaul the banner's promotional tools and to develop communication assets that are useful for CLIM+ branches and impactful for their customers. Annual and seasonal promotional brochures, a general priced catalogue (a genuine everyday working tool for the pros), a launch video, point-of-sale displays, web adaptations... a whole arsenal of communication tools to ensure the brand's visibility and convince the pros that they are in the right place, at the right time!
And since good things never come alone, we devised a year-long thread to celebrate the banner's 20th anniversary: an “event-style” refresh of the brand identity, and the creation of the signature “20 ans d'expertise à vos côtés” (20 years of expertise by your side) to illustrate the close, friendly relationship between CLIM+ and its customers.
To steer clear of navel-gazing celebrations, we chose to let the brand's expertise resonate through the voices of those who experience it every day: CLIM+ customers and employees. Through their authentic, distinctive testimonials, we gave them a media spotlight, both to pay tribute to them and to highlight the way they work with the banner day in, day out.
If CLIM+ is where it is today, it is thanks to the loyalty of its customers and the commitment of its employees; they are the witnesses to and the driving force behind the brand's success!
Results
A success made possible by the support of a specialised agency
Support from a specialised communications agency – one that understands both the sector's challenges and its target audiences, and has experience in animating a professional builders' merchant network – proved essential to meeting the objectives CLIM+ had set itself. By immersing itself deeply in the issues facing this specialised distribution banner, and by deploying a team dedicated to its needs, the agency enabled CLIM+ to reposition itself as an expert in HVAC*, while celebrating the unique relationship that binds it to its customers.
Our finest collaborations, told by the people who know them best
Convergence has supported us for 5 years, on one-off projects as much as on more strategic challenges. Their knowledge of the sector, of our clients and of our challenges is genuine added value, and our collaboration grows richer project after project.
Aurélie B. Client Marketing and Communications Manager
A great day-to-day collaboration: the team immediately understood the PUM universe, while bringing innovative ideas to the table. Special thanks to Véronique for the quality of our exchanges and her responsiveness, which make projects smooth and efficient.
Lea C. Commercial Communications Officer
Convergence has been able to adapt to our organisation and has become a genuine day-to-day support as a hyper-specialist in communication for the construction industry.
Maxime B. Communications, Marketing and Specification Manager
Working with Convergence means being able to put yourself in the hands of an enthusiastic, efficient team that understands our business challenges perfectly. Thank you for bringing our projects to life.
Alizée E. B2B2C Marketing Project Manager
A responsive, available and highly rigorous team, with solid expertise in the construction sector and consistently sound advice. Their creative approach gave our catalogue a real boost. A big thank you to the whole Convergence team for their commitment and the quality of this great collaboration.
Lauren C. Publishing Manager
Since I arrived in the construction sector, working with Convergence has been a real asset. Their understanding of the market and its customers, their creativity and the quality of their support bring genuine added value to our campaigns. A trusted partner who is a pleasure to work with.
Valentine G. Marketing Manager
Thanks to Convergence's expertise in the construction sector, we were able to move forward much faster, developing tools perfectly suited to the specific needs of our B2B audience.
Rami J. Marketing and Communications Director
Working with Convergence makes a real difference on the various topics that concern us as a construction manufacturer. We don't need to train them — they already know the market.
Stefen W. Communications Officer
Convergence provides us with high-quality support, delivered by a responsive and fully committed team. Their excellent understanding of our challenges and specific needs, combined with their creativity and ability to deliver, is a real asset.
Eugénie C. Communications Manager
Beyond the support we receive throughout a project, what is particularly valuable when working with Convergence is the upstream phase: they take the time to analyse the environment and the target audiences, and to take a step back. That is very important for our strategic projects!
Nicolas B. Client Marketing and Training Manager
Convergence stands out for its agile, professional support, offering excellent expertise across all of our launch projects. Strategies are tailor-made to our objectives and communication is always transparent!
Juliette T. Communications Manager
Convergence imagined and delivered the tools best suited to the launch of our Elixair range, thanks to their knowledge of our sector, the quality of their work and their ability to push our thinking ever further. A true partnership of equals where we challenge each other to keep improving!
Katerina V. Global Communication Manager Pam Building
Thank you for your support — a successful campaign on every level, with KPIs that put a big smile on our faces 🤩
Anaïs G. Digital Specialist
The Convergence teams supported us in defining and structuring our new range. They helped us design a universe, messages and tools perfectly suited to our target audience, to convey the key information clearly and powerfully.
Alexandre P. Product, Communications and Digital Manager
In CONVERGENCE we found much more than a marketing agency: a true strategic partner, able to understand our challenges, take ownership of our objectives and turn them into impactful campaigns, always delivered with professionalism, creativity and positive energy.
Nadine C. & Marion C. Marketing and Communications Officers
When the time came to unveil our new brand platform, Convergence found just the right words to create a clear, impactful identity for us. Clients and employees alike embraced it immediately.
Priscille T. Operational Marketing Manager
Attentiveness, responsiveness, expertise and creativity are the words that best sum up our collaboration with Convergence. The agency has supported JELD-WEN in developing the brand for several years and has created a genuine campaign tone that quickly became the brand's signature.
Anne R. Marketing and Communications Manager
Convergence's specialisation makes all the difference! I particularly appreciate their responsiveness, their ability to listen and the thinking they bring to our projects. Their strategic and operational support makes for a valuable, effective collaboration.
Virginie Q. Operational Marketing & Communications Manager
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