How LMA Timber increased inbound enquiries by 86 percent and drove double digit revenue growth in a declining market

LMA Timber is a nationwide supplier of reclaimed and sustainably sourced Australian hardwood, with four showrooms and a sales team supporting projects across New Zealand.

Founded by Martin Thompson, the family business has built a reputation as the country’s most credible provider of recycled and reclaimed architectural hardwood. Their timber is used across residential, commercial, and large scale developments, with a strong emphasis on performance, sustainability, and design.

Much of their material is repurposed. Old infrastructure is given a second life as high performing cladding, decking, and architectural features. It is a compelling story, backed by a product that stands up technically and visually.

This is not a simple buying decision.

Material selection is influenced by architects, designers, builders, developers, and increasingly homeowners. Decisions are often made early, well before a project reaches pricing or construction.

With strong demand and a differentiated offering already in place, the opportunity was to ensure LMA Timber was consistently visible and influencing decisions across that entire buyer’s journey.

As Martin explains:

“We’ve worked with a few different agencies over the years, and to be honest, a lot of them come in with a pretty generic approach. They’ll come up with some metric or something that might have worked for another company and then just apply that across the board. It never really felt like they properly understood what we do, how we operate, or who we’re actually trying to reach.

With Traction, it felt quite different early on. They took the time to understand the business, what we do, who our clients are, and how we actually win work. For us, it’s not just about someone jumping online and buying something. There’s a whole process behind it, and that was clearly understood from the outset.”

The starting point was not channels. It was understanding how LMA Timber wins work.

Projects move through a sequence. Concept, design, specification, pricing, and build. Different stakeholders influence each stage, and each requires different information, confidence, and proof.

Marketing needed to do more than generate enquiries. It needed to ensure LMA Timber was visible, credible, and considered early enough to influence specification.

That included architects and designers, as well as builders, developers, and homeowners who often validate or challenge decisions before they are finalised.

“You’ve got architects, designers, builders, developers, and even homeowners all influencing decisions at different stages, and those decisions are often made quite early on. So if you’re not part of that conversation early, you’re probably not getting specified later.”

Execution focused on building consistent visibility across the full buying journey.

Search was expanded to reflect how different audiences research timber products, from technical queries through to inspiration and comparison. Paid activity was restructured to prioritise intent, efficiency, and quality of enquiry.

The website was strengthened to better support decision making, improving how users engaged with product information, understood use cases, and moved through the site.

Marketing activity was also connected more closely to sales through integration with Salesforce. This provided better visibility of lead flow, enquiry quality, and how marketing activity translated into real opportunities.

The outcome was not driven by a single campaign or channel.

“For me, it’s not one particular marketing channel or message that delivered the outcome. It’s a collection of marketing activities that you’ve got to do. We’ve got a mix of digital and traditional to make sure we’re visible right across the full funnel, and importantly, to the people that actually matter.”

The impact was visible quickly, but more importantly, it was sustained.

• Inbound enquiries increased by 86 percent
• Google Ads conversion rate improved from 3.54 percent to 5.41 percent
• Page one keyword rankings increased from 35 to 93
• Domain authority increased from 15 to 22

From an operational perspective, the change was clear.

“The biggest thing for us has been the consistency of enquiries. The amount the phone rings is a lot higher, and enquiries have definitely increased. It hasn’t just been a short spike either, it’s been pretty consistent over time.”

There was also a shift in the type of work coming through, including increased demand for decking alongside a broader mix of residential and commercial projects.

These results were achieved in a challenging economic environment.

With building consents at historically low levels, many businesses in the sector were experiencing reduced demand and increased pressure.

LMA Timber saw the opposite.

“Especially considering the market, it’s not exactly booming out there at the moment. With building consents down and everything tightening up, it’s not an easy environment, but we’ve still managed to grow. That gives you a lot of confidence that what we’re doing is working.”

LMA experienced strong double digit revenue growth during this period, reinforcing that the strategy was translating into real commercial outcomes.

As results became clear, the decision to invest further followed quickly.

Within six months, Martin increased investment to scale activity and accelerate performance.

“We’ve met with quite a few agencies over the years, and you guys were probably a bit more expensive than some of the others. But once you could start to see the numbers coming through, and the increase in enquiries, it just made sense. Rather than waste money, we decided to spend a bit more and do it properly.”

Beyond performance, the shift created stronger alignment within the business.

Marketing was no longer operating in isolation. It was connected to sales, supported by clearer data, and contributing to better decision making.

“There’s a big trust element there. I don’t feel like I need to understand every detail, you guide us through it. That builds a huge amount of trust, which is important because otherwise you end up second guessing everything.”

LMA Timber is now influencing more projects earlier in the buying process, increasing the likelihood of being specified and ultimately winning the work.

“At the end of the day, if you’re in the design and build or product space in New Zealand, and you’re not visible when someone is researching your product, whether that’s on Google, ChatGPT, or across the different platforms people now use to find information, you’re just not going to get the work. It’s pretty simple.”

With a clear strategy, integrated systems, and consistent performance, LMA Timber is well positioned to continue expanding its reach and capturing a greater share of the market.

The focus now is on building on that momentum, increasing visibility, deepening engagement across key audiences, and continuing to influence decisions earlier in the process.