THE ROLE OF MARKETING IN SINGAPORE CONSTRUCTION FIRMS: CURRENT PRACTICES AND PERCEPTIONS

Abstract

Marketing has been established in many industries, especially the consumer goods industry. However, it is still new to construction industry where customer relationship management is the only marketing tool that is popularly used. Apart from some companies in developed countries such as the United Kingdom that have been practising marketing widely, there is limited information about how marketing has been used, including in Singapore construction firms. The study therefore focuses on how marketing has been applied in the local context. The Singapore construction firms refer to all firms in the construction industry such as contractors, developers and suppliers. The study begins with overview about Singapore construction industry and the need for marketing to create competitive advantages for local firms in both local and international market. It is then followed by introduction of common marketing activities that have been used in construction industry and a case study of a small-medium enterprise in Scotland. The knowledge is useful for construction firms to learn more about how they can make use of marketing for the business. Quantitative data was collected through a questionnaire with marketing practitioners in Singapore construction firms showing that they have not been used to marketing their activities and they still have some misperceptions about marketing. Besides, it also shows that customer relationship management is the most important and widely used in the industry. Recommendations based on the findings are made to local companies to enhance their marketing activities in the business. These include enhancing knowledge about marketing through seminars, workshops and networking in the industry, adopting online digital marketing activities in the business, and having structured marketing by putting more effort in marketing audit.