BuilderBinder
BuilderBinder was a startup connecting builders with General Contractors, Subcontractors, and more with an intelligent discovery platform built for the construction industry.
Summary
BuilderBinder was a billionaire-backed startup in construction-focused data, built by data scientists with backgrounds in sales and marketing intelligence. They were focused on growing the largest U.S. database of construction businesses and providing insights that empower sales and marketing professionals to drive better results in their outreach, served up in an intelligent platform.
User needs & pain points
Industry data is publicly available, but the raw data lacks filtering attributes, which makes it hard for builders to find the proper General Contractors and Subcontractors to work with.
The data that is included publicly and by competing platforms often is inaccurate or incomplete, and missing key information like people data; names, contact information, social media presence, and org charts, preventing them from finding the right prospects quickly.
The platform lists web sites and social media information for construction businesses, which is a differentiator, and empowers builders to vet them for reputation.
Goals
BuilderBinder had two main goals:
Surface intelligent insights so construction industry clients can make better informed decisions and achieve their business goals.
Build the largest U.S. database of construction businesses and provide the most robust data so that clients can vet prospects for quality with speed.
My role
I worked directly with the CEO as the web designer to build the site, and set up according to their needs.
Key site features:
Blogging capabilities
HubSpot CRM integration
Form capture for newsletter and lead generation
Document and video hosting capabilities
Solution competitive analysis chart
Contribution
Website design
As a designer by trade, I take a more graphical approach to web design. I first established a custom color palette which was derived from the blue in the logo.
The art needed to allude back to the concept of construction, so I included dotted lines, grid lines, and black and white architectural line art to emulate blueprints. I also included some textures that seem similar to granite or graphite, giving the designs a more tactile feeling. The 3D isometric design style also reinforces the building concept.
For the main splash image, I generated architectural art using one of the first versions of DALL-E to aid in the brainstorming process. I was informed by some of the styles it created, then ended up drawing the splash image myself. Some of the other elements are sourced from commercially-licensed libraries and tweaked to fit the style of the site.
Website setup
I lead the setup of the hosting software and CMS so that the site would be easy for non-technical members of the company to easily make updates and post blogs. A CMS also enables the site to scale and include plugins as the company grows. I also helped setup the HubSpot account and forms to collect information to generate leads.
Solution summary
I wrote and designed a solution summary document, which served as an educational asset for sales and marketing leaders to learn about BuilderBinder solutions. It outlined the value and differentiation of the product before product demos were available.
Social graphics
I made additional social media graphics the team could use for LinkedIn.
Impact
Eventually, BuilderBinder left the market just a few years post-launch. Larger and more established companies like Zonda Home were able to remain competitive with highly marketable software offerings, even though they are working with a smaller data set. When the product that BuilderBinder made finally launched, it was unfortunately looked over due to competitors with more matured marketing and higher-quality products already in market. And with the advent of AI tools, publicly available data sets are easier to parse through without need for robust filtering software.