Blueprint, a new kind of publication, breaks ground

As you read the inaugural editions of Blueprint, we ask you to consider our reason for our being.

For a long time, there were essentially two options for companies looking to get the word out. They could grovel at the front door of newspapers and magazines, hoping they’d be tossed a bone. Or, they could hire a marketing or public relations firm, which had to be caught up to speed and then entrusted with an important message. And paid.

There was a third option: many businesses chose to avoid press altogether, particularly in the construction industry, where word of mouth is foundational.

Written for and about general contractors and specialty contractors, architectural and engineering firms, developers and manufacturers, Blueprint enables these groups to connect and share their stories online, on our blog and through social media.

Yet in 2017, that’s hardly an option. A Google search of any company yields some information—if nothing else, there are reviews on Glassdoor, Google, or similar venues.  And in the free market internet, anyone can have a say, and the louder and more madly they yell, the more they may be heard … no matter the integrity of the message.

So you might consider an option that’s none of the above: Blueprint.

Neither strictly a publication nor a marketing firm, Blueprint provides salient, entertaining stories that serve the dual purposes of disseminating new ideas and promoting the brands that are most often the focus of its stories.

Written for and about general contractors and specialty contractors, architectural and engineering firms, developers and manufacturers, Blueprint enables these groups to connect and share their stories online, on our blog and though social media. And it advises companies on how new forms of word-of-mouth can be used.

Think of Blueprint as an online and social media publication, custom to the input of people who are written about.

Candid discussion of green building, wellness, safety practices, diversity, recruitment and retention, and more, is front and center here.

As with all media companies, advertising pays the bills, but with Blueprint, the advertisers are one step closer to the companies written about, and depending on their views, they may be quoted in a story to add context.

Which is not to say we’re pushovers.

Staff are knowledgeable about all facets of construction, and they are principled.

As you peruse the first stories, you will encounter a writing style and tone that is hard to pin down. Neither the dense language of trade magazines nor the “mom & pop” approach of newspapers and magazines, Blueprint is engaging, personal and grounded.

Humor is not unheard of. Yet just as our subjects sweat and work long hours to bring their companies to fruition, we tirelessly interview, consult, edit and peer review our stories.

All so you have another option, a new form of media to broadcast with our guiding hand. Thank you for reading us; help spread the word by subscribing here.