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As demand grows for low-carbon, cost-effective construction solutions, positioning wood as the preferred material is more important than ever. Across Canada, we’re working to shift perceptions and increase adoption by showcasing wood’s environmental and performance advantages, addressing market barriers, and aligning our efforts with government priorities. Through education, communications, and technical outreach, we continue to highlight the role of wood in delivering resilient, affordable buildings—particularly in midrise, low-rise commercial, and tall wood applications.
Top of Section
In 2024–2025, the Canadian Wood Council launched Phase 1 of its Digital Resource Hub, consolidating content from over 20 separate websites into a unified platform for its two main brands: the Canadian Wood Council and WoodWorks. The Hub enhances access to technical resources, design tools, and education for industry professionals.
Since launch, the platform has attracted 40,000 new users—a 37.4% increase—with 301,000+ interactions and 101,000 page views. Navigation and search upgrades led to a 265.5% increase in direct traffic, while the rollout of a fully bilingual experience improved accessibility nationwide.
Regional engagement grew, especially in Ottawa and Quebec City, driven by improved local search performance. Looking ahead, development is underway on a fully integrated e-learning platform to support credentialed, modular learning and expand professional development opportunities.
Top of Section
The WoodWorks Innovation Network (WIN) Canada continued to serve as a key business-to-business outreach platform, highlighting excellence in wood design while expanding visibility for Canadian projects within the broader North American industry. Maintained in partnership with the U.S. WoodWorks program, WIN Canada now features 56 completed Canadian project profiles.
Strategic posting has been central to our approach, with new projects added weekly to capitalize on the platform’s “recently added” homepage feature, maximizing visibility. Since Canadian participation began, our profiles have garnered over 63,000 views, demonstrating the strong interest and engagement from industry stakeholders.
Throughout the year, CWC also collaborated with national partners to build and publish detailed project profiles showcasing marquee developments. These efforts were complemented by the integration of video capability into the platform—an enhancement made possible through joint development with U.S. WoodWorks. This allows for the inclusion of highlight videos across award-winning projects, further amplifying reach and storytelling impact.
WIN Canada remains a foundational element of CWC’s digital engagement strategy, helping foster stronger connections between designers, builders, manufacturers, and project teams across the wood construction ecosystem.
Top of Section
In 2024–2025, the Canadian Wood Council’s website saw significant year-over-year growth, driven by focused SEO improvements, enhanced content strategy, and outreach to new audiences. Over the course of the year, the site welcomed an estimated 128,000 total users, including 120,000 new users, indicating strong visibility and increased brand recognition.
Organic search traffic and direct visits both saw substantial gains, reflecting improved discoverability and sustained engagement from a growing professional audience. Interaction with key pages surged, with the homepage and the Wood Design & Building Awards page receiving sharp increases in views, and overall user interactions rising notably.
File downloads reached an estimated 15,200, while clicks totaled approximately 10,000, demonstrating high demand for CWC’s digital content and technical resources. The platform also saw an encouraging shift in demographics, with a rise in younger visitors and increased engagement among women—signs that targeted outreach and inclusive messaging are resonating with a more diverse audience.
This growth underscores the success of CWC’s digital strategy and provides a strong foundation for the upcoming launch of the Digital Resource Hub, which will further expand access to curated resources and technical guidance for Canada’s wood construction community.
Top of Section
In 2024, the Canadian Wood Council’s public relations efforts resulted in an estimated total media reach of over 50.4 million and an Advertising Value Equivalency (AVE) of $257,000 CAD, reflecting the combined value of earned media across digital, print, and broadcast platforms.
Media sentiment remained strongly positive or neutral throughout the year, reinforcing CWC’s standing as a credible, non-profit leader in wood construction and sustainability. Key campaigns around mass timber, building innovation, and green construction practices contributed to high-value mentions and widespread exposure.
The organization’s ability to maintain a strong reputation, secure prominent media placements, and engage new audiences underscores the effectiveness of its PR strategy. These results provide a solid foundation for expanding influence and reach in 2025, particularly as the sector continues to evolve and grow.
Top of Section
+ 20.43% year over year
In 2024, the Canadian Wood Council’s social media channels experienced steady and targeted growth across key platforms, reinforcing CWC’s role as an industry connector and thought leader. Total followers across all accounts reached 17,201, representing a 20.43% increase year over year.
CWC’s LinkedIn channel remains the strongest performer, growing to 10,803 followers, supported by a successful content strategy focused on industry updates and technical resources. The newly launched WoodWorks LinkedIn page achieved rapid growth, reaching 2,744 followers—a 43% increase—highlighting demand for program-specific content. Instagram followed with a 4.23% increase, ending the year at 944 followers, while X (formerly Twitter) maintained a stable audience of 2,786 followers with a slight increase of 1.42%.
Engagement trends revealed strong resonance with audiences: reactions and comments rose, particularly on LinkedIn, even as overall page visits and reposts dipped during seasonal lulls. Demographic insights point to continued traction among professionals in architecture, engineering, and project management. Notably, a shift toward younger, more diverse audiences—especially women aged 18–24—signals promising potential for future growth and impact.
Overall, these results validate CWC’s platform-specific strategies and content direction. Moving forward, increased focus will be placed on content sharing, demographic-specific messaging, and fostering deeper engagement across all channels.
Top of Section
4% click rate
30% open rate
In 2024, the Canadian Wood Council significantly expanded and optimized its email marketing program, sending a total of 344,672 emails over the year. These campaigns consistently outperformed industry benchmarks, with an average open rate of 30% and a click rate of 4%, highlighting strong interest and engagement with CWC content. The unsubscribe rate remained low at 0.14%, indicating excellent audience retention despite increased outreach volume.
This success is attributed to improvements in content quality, visual consistency, and clearer calls to action, along with the adoption of new templates and segmentation strategies. The high click-through rate suggests that recipients are not only opening emails but also actively engaging with the material.
Demographic insights revealed that nearly half of the current audience is male and over the age of 55, prompting a strategic focus on diversifying outreach to better connect with younger professionals. Future campaigns will aim to incorporate new channels and messaging formats that resonate with this evolving audience.
Overall, the email marketing program has become a high-performing communications channel for CWC, supporting visibility, resource access, and event participation across the wood construction sector.
Top of Section
In 2024, the Wood Design & Building Awards program marked its 40th anniversary with strong global engagement and strategic integration of regional initiatives. The program received 140 project submissions from architects and designers worldwide, resulting in the recognition of 33 award-winning projects across both national and regional categories. For the first time, the national and regional WoodWorks Awards were harmonized under a unified submission platform—streamlining administration and enhancing reach across British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and beyond.
The jury panels featured esteemed professionals from across architecture, engineering, and development, lending credibility and industry relevance to the selection process. To celebrate the winners, a high-profile awards reception was held at the 2024 WoodWorks Summit in partnership with the Brookfield Sustainability Institute at George Brown College. In lieu of the traditional hardcover publication, this year’s awards were supported by a digital-first campaign—including video profiles of each winning project, tailored for social media and online platforms.
The program continues to be a key pillar in CWC’s communications strategy, supplying valuable imagery and project content for year-round promotion, including contributions to the WoodWorks Innovation Network and magazine features. Managing the program in-house also delivered meaningful cost efficiencies while expanding audience impact.
Top of Section
In October 2024, the Canadian Wood Council launched Issue 94 of Wood Design & Building magazine—the inaugural edition of its new digital-only format. This transition marks a major milestone, introducing a more sustainable, bilingual, and interactive platform for showcasing wood architecture and innovation.
The digital format enables increased publication frequency, with six issues per year compared to three in previous print editions. This shift allows for more timely storytelling, expanded reach, and enriched multimedia content. The move aligns with CWC’s broader digital strategy and enhances accessibility for both English and French-speaking audiences.
Top of Section
In 2024–2025, CWC and its WoodWorks program led an ambitious suite of technical and educational tours designed to advance understanding, foster partnerships, and accelerate the adoption of innovative wood construction practices across Canada and internationally.
The European Construction Ecosystem Tour, supported by NRC-IRAP, enabled small- and medium-sized Canadian wood construction and manufacturing firms to explore advanced timber design, fabrication, and prefabrication practices across Europe.
The Sustainable Forestry and Wood Product Manufacturing Tour linked structural engineers with Northern Ontario’s forest sector through visits to facilities such as Norbord/West Fraser (Barwick), Manitou Products (Emo), Interfor (Ear Falls), and Weyerhaeuser (Kenora), emphasizing the connection between sustainable forestry and urban development.
Domestic tours included Alberta’s educator tour of Western Archrib, a UBC Gateway construction tour for insurance professionals in BC, and regular visits to Toronto’s Limberlost Place—now exceeding 39 tours and 300 participants in 2024–2025. These small-group, targeted events strengthened practitioner knowledge and regulatory familiarity.
The United Kingdom Construction Ecosystem Tour supported 12-day training for builders and contractors focused on prefabrication systems, design optimization, and potential UK–Canada joint ventures.
Five WoodWorks Summit Tours offered immersive experiences, from mass timber and CLT manufacturing to affordable housing and FSC-certified sawmill operations, further supported by the College of Carpenters and H+ME Technologies.
Ontario launched a new University of Toronto Goldring Tower Tour Series, echoing the success of Limberlost Place in showcasing tall wood innovation.
In British Columbia, a series of Forest and Carbon Leaders' Partnership Tours welcomed 14 international delegates through forests, mills, and mass timber sites in partnership with NRCan, COFI, FII, and BC First Nations Forestry Council.
Finally, in preparation for WoodRise 2025, CWC established a national working group to guide technical tour planning. With participation from FPInnovations, OMPTI, FII, BC Wood, and COFI, the model reflects CWC’s leadership in aligning cross-sector expertise to deliver high-impact learning experiences.
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The inaugural WoodWorks BC Network meeting in November gathered 90 attendees and over 40 partner companies. With partnership revenue exceeding expectations by 100%, the network is emerging as a high-potential platform to foster collaboration across the AEC+D and wood products sectors while supporting long-term program sustainability.
Top of Section
As demand grows for low-carbon, cost-effective construction solutions, positioning wood as the preferred material is more important than ever. Across Canada, we’re working to shift perceptions and increase adoption by showcasing wood’s environmental and performance advantages, addressing market barriers, and aligning our efforts with government priorities. Through education, communications, and technical outreach, we continue to highlight the role of wood in delivering resilient, affordable buildings—particularly in midrise, low-rise commercial, and tall wood applications.
Top of Section
In 2024–2025, the Canadian Wood Council launched Phase 1 of its Digital Resource Hub, consolidating content from over 20 separate websites into a unified platform for its two main brands: the Canadian Wood Council and WoodWorks. The Hub enhances access to technical resources, design tools, and education for industry professionals.
Since launch, the platform has attracted 40,000 new users—a 37.4% increase—with 301,000+ interactions and 101,000 page views. Navigation and search upgrades led to a 265.5% increase in direct traffic, while the rollout of a fully bilingual experience improved accessibility nationwide.
Regional engagement grew, especially in Ottawa and Quebec City, driven by improved local search performance. Looking ahead, development is underway on a fully integrated e-learning platform to support credentialed, modular learning and expand professional development opportunities.
The WoodWorks Innovation Network (WIN) Canada continued to serve as a key business-to-business outreach platform, highlighting excellence in wood design while expanding visibility for Canadian projects within the broader North American industry. Maintained in partnership with the U.S. WoodWorks program, WIN Canada now features 56 completed Canadian project profiles.
Strategic posting has been central to our approach, with new projects added weekly to capitalize on the platform’s “recently added” homepage feature, maximizing visibility. Since Canadian participation began, our profiles have garnered over 63,000 views, demonstrating the strong interest and engagement from industry stakeholders.
Throughout the year, CWC also collaborated with national partners to build and publish detailed project profiles showcasing marquee developments. These efforts were complemented by the integration of video capability into the platform—an enhancement made possible through joint development with U.S. WoodWorks. This allows for the inclusion of highlight videos across award-winning projects, further amplifying reach and storytelling impact.
WIN Canada remains a foundational element of CWC’s digital engagement strategy, helping foster stronger connections between designers, builders, manufacturers, and project teams across the wood construction ecosystem.
Top of Section
In 2024–2025, the Canadian Wood Council’s website saw significant year-over-year growth, driven by focused SEO improvements, enhanced content strategy, and outreach to new audiences. Over the course of the year, the site welcomed an estimated 128,000 total users, including 120,000 new users, indicating strong visibility and increased brand recognition.
Organic search traffic and direct visits both saw substantial gains, reflecting improved discoverability and sustained engagement from a growing professional audience. Interaction with key pages surged, with the homepage and the Wood Design & Building Awards page receiving sharp increases in views, and overall user interactions rising notably.
File downloads reached an estimated 15,200, while clicks totaled approximately 10,000, demonstrating high demand for CWC’s digital content and technical resources. The platform also saw an encouraging shift in demographics, with a rise in younger visitors and increased engagement among women—signs that targeted outreach and inclusive messaging are resonating with a more diverse audience.
This growth underscores the success of CWC’s digital strategy and provides a strong foundation for the upcoming launch of the Digital Resource Hub, which will further expand access to curated resources and technical guidance for Canada’s wood construction community.
Top of Section
In 2024, the Canadian Wood Council’s public relations efforts resulted in an estimated total media reach of over 50.4 million and an Advertising Value Equivalency (AVE) of $257,000 CAD, reflecting the combined value of earned media across digital, print, and broadcast platforms.
Media sentiment remained strongly positive or neutral throughout the year, reinforcing CWC’s standing as a credible, non-profit leader in wood construction and sustainability. Key campaigns around mass timber, building innovation, and green construction practices contributed to high-value mentions and widespread exposure.
The organization’s ability to maintain a strong reputation, secure prominent media placements, and engage new audiences underscores the effectiveness of its PR strategy. These results provide a solid foundation for expanding influence and reach in 2025, particularly as the sector continues to evolve and grow.
Top of Section
+ 20.43% year over year
In 2024, the Canadian Wood Council’s social media channels experienced steady and targeted growth across key platforms, reinforcing CWC’s role as an industry connector and thought leader. Total followers across all accounts reached 17,201, representing a 20.43% increase year over year.
CWC’s LinkedIn channel remains the strongest performer, growing to 10,803 followers, supported by a successful content strategy focused on industry updates and technical resources. The newly launched WoodWorks LinkedIn page achieved rapid growth, reaching 2,744 followers—a 43% increase—highlighting demand for program-specific content. Instagram followed with a 4.23% increase, ending the year at 944 followers, while X (formerly Twitter) maintained a stable audience of 2,786 followers with a slight increase of 1.42%.
Engagement trends revealed strong resonance with audiences: reactions and comments rose, particularly on LinkedIn, even as overall page visits and reposts dipped during seasonal lulls. Demographic insights point to continued traction among professionals in architecture, engineering, and project management. Notably, a shift toward younger, more diverse audiences—especially women aged 18–24—signals promising potential for future growth and impact.
Overall, these results validate CWC’s platform-specific strategies and content direction. Moving forward, increased focus will be placed on content sharing, demographic-specific messaging, and fostering deeper engagement across all channels.
Top of Section
30% open rate
4% click rate
Top of Section
In 2024, the Canadian Wood Council significantly expanded and optimized its email marketing program, sending a total of 344,672 emails over the year. These campaigns consistently outperformed industry benchmarks, with an average open rate of 30% and a click rate of 4%, highlighting strong interest and engagement with CWC content. The unsubscribe rate remained low at 0.14%, indicating excellent audience retention despite increased outreach volume.
This success is attributed to improvements in content quality, visual consistency, and clearer calls to action, along with the adoption of new templates and segmentation strategies. The high click-through rate suggests that recipients are not only opening emails but also actively engaging with the material.
Demographic insights revealed that nearly half of the current audience is male and over the age of 55, prompting a strategic focus on diversifying outreach to better connect with younger professionals. Future campaigns will aim to incorporate new channels and messaging formats that resonate with this evolving audience.
Overall, the email marketing program has become a high-performing communications channel for CWC, supporting visibility, resource access, and event participation across the wood construction sector.
Top of Section
In 2024, the Wood Design & Building Awards program marked its 40th anniversary with strong global engagement and strategic integration of regional initiatives. The program received 140 project submissions from architects and designers worldwide, resulting in the recognition of 33 award-winning projects across both national and regional categories. For the first time, the national and regional WoodWorks Awards were harmonized under a unified submission platform—streamlining administration and enhancing reach across British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and beyond.
The jury panels featured esteemed professionals from across architecture, engineering, and development, lending credibility and industry relevance to the selection process. To celebrate the winners, a high-profile awards reception was held at the 2024 WoodWorks Summit in partnership with the Brookfield Sustainability Institute at George Brown College. In lieu of the traditional hardcover publication, this year’s awards were supported by a digital-first campaign—including video profiles of each winning project, tailored for social media and online platforms.
The program continues to be a key pillar in CWC’s communications strategy, supplying valuable imagery and project content for year-round promotion, including contributions to the WoodWorks Innovation Network and magazine features. Managing the program in-house also delivered meaningful cost efficiencies while expanding audience impact.
Top of Section
In October 2024, the Canadian Wood Council launched Issue 94 of Wood Design & Building magazine—the inaugural edition of its new digital-only format. This transition marks a major milestone, introducing a more sustainable, bilingual, and interactive platform for showcasing wood architecture and innovation.
The digital format enables increased publication frequency, with six issues per year compared to three in previous print editions. This shift allows for more timely storytelling, expanded reach, and enriched multimedia content. The move aligns with CWC’s broader digital strategy and enhances accessibility for both English and French-speaking audiences.
Top of Section
In 2024–2025, CWC and its WoodWorks program led an ambitious suite of technical and educational tours designed to advance understanding, foster partnerships, and accelerate the adoption of innovative wood construction practices across Canada and internationally.
The European Construction Ecosystem Tour, supported by NRC-IRAP, enabled small- and medium-sized Canadian wood construction and manufacturing firms to explore advanced timber design, fabrication, and prefabrication practices across Europe.
The Sustainable Forestry and Wood Product Manufacturing Tour linked structural engineers with Northern Ontario’s forest sector through visits to facilities such as Norbord/West Fraser (Barwick), Manitou Products (Emo), Interfor (Ear Falls), and Weyerhaeuser (Kenora), emphasizing the connection between sustainable forestry and urban development.
Domestic tours included Alberta’s educator tour of Western Archrib, a UBC Gateway construction tour for insurance professionals in BC, and regular visits to Toronto’s Limberlost Place—now exceeding 39 tours and 300 participants in 2024–2025. These small-group, targeted events strengthened practitioner knowledge and regulatory familiarity.
The United Kingdom Construction Ecosystem Tour supported 12-day training for builders and contractors focused on prefabrication systems, design optimization, and potential UK–Canada joint ventures.
Five WoodWorks Summit Tours offered immersive experiences, from mass timber and CLT manufacturing to affordable housing and FSC-certified sawmill operations, further supported by the College of Carpenters and H+ME Technologies.
Ontario launched a new University of Toronto Goldring Tower Tour Series, echoing the success of Limberlost Place in showcasing tall wood innovation.
In British Columbia, a series of Forest and Carbon Leaders' Partnership Tours welcomed 14 international delegates through forests, mills, and mass timber sites in partnership with NRCan, COFI, FII, and BC First Nations Forestry Council.
Finally, in preparation for WoodRise 2025, CWC established a national working group to guide technical tour planning. With participation from FPInnovations, OMPTI, FII, BC Wood, and COFI, the model reflects CWC’s leadership in aligning cross-sector expertise to deliver high-impact learning experiences.
Top of Section
The inaugural WoodWorks BC Network meeting in November gathered 90 attendees and over 40 partner companies. With partnership revenue exceeding expectations by 100%, the network is emerging as a high-potential platform to foster collaboration across the AEC+D and wood products sectors while supporting long-term program sustainability.
