CAM Buyers Guide

Objective: Make the members’ buyers guide easy to use online

The Construction Association of Michigan (CAM), based in Bloomfield Hills, is a trade association for construction firms. Since 1936 it has published the Construction Buyers Guide each year, a directory of member companies that contractors, owners, architects, and engineers use to find trades and suppliers.

CAM wanted that guide online, searchable, and tied to its member database.

What Web Ascender Did

We began in October 2022.

• A custom Ruby on Rails application - a Buyers Guide at its own address
• Member database import - from CAM’s internal Microsoft Access data
• Listings and filters - search by company, keyword, city, ZIP, member type, and category, with LEED and special business designation filters
• Company pages - logos, key contacts, photo galleries, areas of expertise, certification badges, and a map of each location
• Location search - geocoding with proximity search and Google Maps
• Sponsor advertising - ad placements with click tracking
• Favorites - so users can save companies
• Background processing and cloud storage - for reliable imports and files
• Training and a mini-manual - for CAM staff

It launched in February 2023.

The Outcome

More than 1,600 CAM member companies are now listed in a modern, searchable guide that buyers can use from anywhere, and sponsors have a new place to reach them. The app has been maintained since launch with more flexible search, updated ad tracking, and analytics improvements.