Aycliffe Today Business Issue 27 (March-April 2017) | Page 6

6 | Aycliffe Today Business
Finley Structures commercial director Diane Ruston says the firm has been buoyed by two major contract wins .
WHY SHOULD YOU IMPLEMENT A CONTENT MARKETING STRATEGY ?
Content marketing is the term given to companies that actively use content to market and holistically promote their organisation .
In recent years , thanks to the growth of inbound marketing , HubSpot and online technologies and activities – blogging and social media – content marketing has been a focus for most .
If you haven ’ t yet structured your content strategy , now it is an absolute ‘ must do ’.
Here are 10 statistics on the importance of content marketing :
• It is anticipated that 29 % of the average total marketing budget will be spent on content marketing , says GroupM .
• Over the next 12 months , it is expected that 39 % are planning to increase their content marketing spending , according to GroupM .
• GroupM predicts that the total marketing services expenditure worldwide will pass the $ 1 trillion threshold .
• Of the 11 % that don ’ t currently implement content marketing , more than half ( 52 %) say they plan to in the next 12 months .
• 62 % of B2B content marketers said that their organisation ’ s content marketing success has become much more or somewhat more successful compared to a year ago .
• Just 37 % of all B2B content marketers have a documented content marketing strategy .
• 80 % state that lead generation is the most important content marketing goal for their organisation this year – followed by brand awareness ( 79 %) and engagement ( 71 %).
• Social media content ( 83 %), blogs ( 80 %) and email newsletters ( 77 %) are the top three activities used by B2B marketers in the last year .
• B2B marketers say that blogs ( 52 %) are the most critical element of their content marketing success in 2017 .
• Despite this , 93 % of those asked say that email is the most-used activity by B2B marketers , followed by LinkedIn ( 89 %), Twitter ( 77 %) and Facebook ( 76 %).
Give our team a call to discuss your content marketing needs – we love to help !
Rachel Townsend Green
Thrive Marketing thriveability . co . uk

Steel firm to construct 1,000 tonnes of steel after double deal boost

Newton Aycliffe construction company Finley Structures will fabricate and erect 1,000 tonnes of steel after sealing a double deal .
The family-run firm , based on Aycliffe Business Park , is working for the first time with Leeds-based main contractor GMI Construction on a new distribution centre in Lancashire , involving 465 tonnes of steel .
Finley Structures has also won another contract in the education sector as it works on a 640-tonne project for BAM Construction at Doncaster Sixth Form College .
Road haulage giant Fagan and Whalley ( F & W ) is expanding with a multi-million pound development on Burnley Bridge Business Park – a development which is creating at least 25 new jobs .
The transport firm won planning permission to build a 92,000 square foot distribution hub on a 10-acre site at the complex near the M65 ’ s junction nine .
Finley Structures won the contract from GMI Construction to design and build its steel frame on a site which lies next to power lines .
And the complex nature of the project is proving no obstacle for Finley Structures . The firm ’ s commercial director Diane Ruston said : “ We ’ ve had to erect the steel in close proximity to major power lines , and as the building is taller than the lines this is particularly challenging .
“ But through the design process , we developed effective solutions to enable the project to be delivered safely and successfully .
“ Furthermore , this is the first time we ’ ve worked with GMI and it ’ s great to foster another new relationship with a major contractor .”
F & W ’ s new hub will provide parking for up to 80 trailers , with 10 loading bays and 25,000 pallet locations .
The development will complement the family-run firm ’ s existing headquarters at
Shuttleworth Mead Business Park and satellite centre in Coventry which together employ 300 staff .
Burnley Bridge Business Park is a £ 50m development near Burnley , providing modern industrial and warehousing accommodation creating 1,400 jobs .
Meanwhile , Finley Structures has strengthened its ongoing relationship with major contractor BAM Construction after successfully securing a contract at Doncaster Sixth Form College .
BAM is constructing the £ 11.1m building and awarded Finley ’ s a 640-tonne project to fabricate and erect steel as part of the overall scheme , while also installing approximately 9,000 sqm of pre-cast concrete floor units along with pre-cast concrete lift shafts , precast concrete ground beams and pre-cast concrete stairs .
The sixth form project follows several recent contracts in the education sector for Finley Structures , after working on a 260-tonne contract at Roundhay School in Leeds for Interserve and a 560-tonne project at Ryde Academy on the Isle of Wight for Sir Robert McAlpine .
Finley Structures are also working on a 224-tonne project George Mitchell School in London for Bowmer and Kirkland , SEMH School in Seacroft , East Leeds , for Interserve , as well as Krishna Avanti School , which is Britain ’ s first state-funded Hindu school , in Edgware , London – a 337-tonne contract , also for Bowmer and Kirkland .
“ The education sector has been crucial to us over the last couple of years and continues to do so ,” added Finley Structures managing director Julie Raistrick .
“ We enjoyed a really busy finish to 2016 , with an equally busy start to 2017 , which is very encouraging .”