Many of the account planning meetings I have participated in recently have been peppered with a statement similar to this - “we have to take our message to the “C” suite.” Those “elusive and exclusive” executives with chief-something or other in their title that we seem to believe influence all brand decisions.

I’ve been spending more time lately thinking about reaching another “C” suite. This one is the thousands of contractors – plumbers, electricians, carpenters, painters, etc. that make brand decisions for the products that they use and influence those decisions for the products that they install. They are a powerful force in the buying and selling of products, making them an exclusive audience.

And they are also elusive. How do you deliver a product message to them? With the changing landscape of media, I am very interested in how this “C” suite is getting its information about the products they influence. I am not convinced that trade magazines still do the trick. Distributors traditionally have played a major role – but I’ve been informed that visits to distributors are not as regular as they once were. Attending a trade show means taking time away from work. I have noticed that some marketers have started to use radio to reach them. I get mixed information about their use of the web for business purposes.

Perhaps the answer lies in observation of their daily routine. Here are some behaviors I have observed. Their “office suite” is the front seat of a van or pick-up. They often start their day at a c-store and might visit it several times a day. They communicate throughout the day on their walkie-talkie and cell phone. I don’t know much about their lives beyond that but would like to know so I can make them less elusive.