The way building products are discovered has fundamentally changed.
Not long ago, architects and designers relied on showroom visits, printed catalogues, sales representatives and personal relationships to learn about products. Today, the specification journey almost always begins online. Professionals research digitally, compare completed projects, build specification shortlists, download technical documentation and expect product information to be available instantly.
For suppliers, this has changed the rules of product marketing.
Visibility during research has become as important as product quality itself. Architects cannot specify products they never discover, and homeowners cannot request brands they have never encountered. Before any conversation takes place, products must first earn a place in the research process.
Artificial intelligence is accelerating this shift even further. Rather than simply returning a list of webpages, modern AI systems increasingly seek to understand context, including relationships between products, professionals, projects and technical information. As a result, the context surrounding a product is becoming just as valuable as the product information itself.
This report examines how building products were researched across New Zealand and Australia during the second quarter of 2026 using data from the ArchiPro platform. It explores who is researching, how they make decisions, which behaviours are changing, where enquiries really occur, how AI is reshaping online discovery, and what these trends mean for suppliers competing for future specification.
The findings reinforce one clear conclusion. Specification no longer begins when someone requests a quote. It begins when someone starts researching.
Research:
Between April and June, ArchiPro recorded 2,373,958 pageviews from 1.2m unique users across New Zealand and Australia.
Visitors spent 37,976 hours researching products, projects and professionals, equivalent to more than four years of continuous attention concentrated into a single quarter, and clicked through to suppliers' own websites 80,446 times and 247,000 pageviews.
New Zealand accounted for 53% of the audience, while Australia represented 46%, with Australia continuing to be the faster-growing market.
These numbers represent far more than website traffic. Every page viewed, project explored, technical document downloaded, and supplier website visited reflects someone actively progressing through a building or renovation journey. Collectively, they provide a unique view into how products are discovered and how specification decisions are increasingly made.
Who is researching building products?
During the quarter, 44,176 industry professionals from 12,426 organisations researched products on ArchiPro.
This included 11,395 architects and designers from 3,180 practices, 16,128 construction professionals representing 5,128 companies, and 16,653 professionals from government, councils, universities and other industry organisations.
Architects and designers remained among the platform's most engaged users, with the average practice returning 8.7 times throughout the quarter. Rather than visiting once, they came back repeatedly as projects progressed, products were evaluated, and specification decisions evolved.
Alongside professionals, hundreds of thousands of homeowners continued researching products, projects and professionals as they planned new homes and renovations. Together, these audiences represent the complete specification ecosystem, from the professionals influencing product selection to the clients making the final investment decisions.
For suppliers, this is an important distinction. Products are no longer discovered through a single audience. They are researched by architects, builders, consultants and homeowners at different stages of the same project, often months before a purchase or specification is formally recorded.
The homeowners behind the projects
While industry professionals play a critical role in specification, homeowners remain the driving force behind every project.
During the quarter, a large number of homeowners and developers researched products, professionals and completed projects as they planned new homes or major renovations. Of these, 72% were actively undertaking a build or significant renovation, making them far more than casual browsers.
The audience also reflects a highly affluent segment of the market. Around 20% live in homes within the top 10% by value, while approximately one in three of the wealthiest households across New Zealand and Australia visit ArchiPro each year. They are also significantly more likely than the general population to be planning landscaping, new builds, home improvement and renovation projects.
This is reflected in how homeowners use the platform. During the quarter, 32.8% viewed completed projects to understand design outcomes and material selections, while 28.7% researched architects and designers before deciding who to engage.
For suppliers, this highlights an important shift in buying behaviour. Homeowners are increasingly influencing product decisions long before construction begins. They arrive informed, inspired and often with preferred brands already in mind, making early digital visibility an increasingly important part of the specification journey.
Research comes before enquiries
For many suppliers, enquiries are still viewed as the primary measure of marketing performance. While enquiries remain important, they represent only a small part of the overall specification journey.
During the quarter, ArchiPro generated 2,512 enquiries directly through the platform. However, visitors also clicked through to suppliers' own websites, generating 11,014 enquiries; that's 238% more than those recorded on ArchiPro alone. This demonstrates that measuring only platform enquiries significantly understates the true commercial impact of digital product discovery
The same pattern can be seen in product research. Technical documentation, brochures and specification files were downloaded 30,126 times during the quarter, reflecting the importance of independent research before any supplier is contacted.
Specification rarely begins with an enquiry. It begins with research, comparison and evaluation. By the time someone reaches out to a supplier, much of the decision-making has already taken place.
For suppliers, the implication is clear. Success should not be measured solely by the number of enquiries received, but by visibility and engagement throughout the entire research journey, from the first product viewed to the final specification.
How products are being discovered
Research activity during the quarter spanned every stage of the building process, from structural systems and exterior materials through to interior finishes and final fixtures. Rather than concentrating on a handful of categories, professionals consistently researched products across the entire specification journey.
Among the most researched categories were windows and doors, where 3,988 professionals generated 1,461 visits to supplier websites, demonstrating strong intent to continue evaluating products beyond the platform.
Cladding and façades also remained one of the industry's most active categories, attracting 3,873 professionals, 11,008 pageviews and 1,789 technical document downloads. The high level of engagement reflects the importance of performance, compliance and design considerations during the evaluation process.
Several categories also experienced significant growth compared with the previous quarter. Research into uplighting increased by 90%, followed by hot water systems (66%), paint (56%) and underfloor heating (34%). At the same time, interest in completed residential projects grew by 39%, reinforcing the growing role that real-world projects play in influencing product selection.
The data suggests that professionals are no longer researching products in isolation. They increasingly move between products, completed projects, technical documentation and supplier websites to build confidence before making specification decisions. For suppliers, providing comprehensive information across each of these touchpoints is becoming just as important as the product itself.
The next generation of product discovery
The way products are discovered continues to evolve. For the past decade, search engines have transformed how architects, designers and homeowners research products. Rather than relying on catalogues or sales representatives, they increasingly expect to find inspiration, technical information and product comparisons online.
Artificial intelligence is now accelerating this shift.
Instead of simply returning a list of webpages, AI is increasingly designed to understand relationships between products, projects, professionals and supporting information to provide more complete and contextual answers. As a result, the quality and connectedness of information is becoming just as important as the information itself.
This quarter, referrals from AI platforms to ArchiPro increased to 69,192 sessions, generating 174,729 pageviews - an increase of 662% and 745% respectively compared with the same period last year. While AI traffic remains relatively small today, its rate of growth suggests it will become an increasingly important source of product discovery over the coming years.
No platform can guarantee that an AI assistant will reference a particular product or brand. However, businesses that publish structured, comprehensive and well-connected information are likely to be better understood by both search engines and AI systems than businesses relying on isolated product pages alone.
For suppliers, the opportunity extends beyond optimising their own website. Products that are connected to completed projects, architects, editorial content and technical documentation create richer context, helping explain not only what a product is, but how, where and why it is used.
As the way products are discovered continues to evolve, visibility will increasingly depend on more than search rankings alone. It will depend on the depth, quality and connectedness of the information available across the digital building ecosystem.
Key takeaways for suppliers
The data from this quarter reinforces several clear shifts that are reshaping how building products are discovered and specified.
Research is now the first stage of specification. Architects, designers and homeowners invest significant time researching products, comparing completed projects and evaluating technical information before contacting a supplier. Brands that are visible early in this journey are more likely to be considered when specification decisions are made.
Specification is influenced by multiple audiences. Product decisions are no longer driven solely by architects or builders. Homeowners, designers, consultants and contractors all contribute to the decision-making process, often researching independently before converging on the same project.
Traditional measures of success tell only part of the story. Enquiries remain important, but they are the outcome of a much longer research process. Product views, project engagement, technical downloads and visits to supplier websites provide valuable insight into buying intent long before an enquiry is submitted.
Content has become a competitive advantage. Completed projects, technical documentation, editorial content and detailed product information all play a role in helping professionals and homeowners evaluate products. The brands that provide the most useful information throughout the research journey are increasingly the brands that are shortlisted for specification.
AI will reward context, not just content. As artificial intelligence becomes another way people discover products, businesses that connect products to projects, professionals and technical information will be better positioned than those relying on standalone product pages alone.
Conclusion
The building industry has entered a new era of product discovery.
Research now begins long before a specification is written or an enquiry is submitted. Architects, designers, builders and homeowners increasingly make decisions through an interconnected digital journey, moving between projects, products, technical documentation, editorial content and supplier websites as they build confidence in the choices they make.
Artificial intelligence is accelerating this evolution, placing greater value on structured, connected and contextual information than ever before. As discovery continues to evolve, the brands that succeed will be those that are present throughout the research journey, not simply at the point of enquiry.
This report provides a snapshot of that journey during the second quarter of 2026. While individual categories and behaviours will continue to change, one trend is becoming increasingly clear: specification no longer begins with a conversation; it begins with discovery.
For suppliers, the opportunity is no longer just to generate enquiries. It is to earn visibility, build trust and influence decisions from the very first moment a project begins.