There are many manufacturing businesses that get most of their businesses through word-of-mouth, loyal customers as well as partnership agreements. For this reason, it is crucial to consider expanding their reach, and have a look at online marketing.
Manufacturers that leverage content to promote their brand/business online succeed at drawing new potential buyers, retaining the current ones and – at the end of the day – obtaining more sales.
Ways for a manufacturing company to come into play:
Build thought leadership
A manufacturing company must be recognized by visitors as an authority in the industry, in order to have an effective marketing campaign. They should deliver innovative ideas and trusted expertise that will be beneficial to them.
To achieve a reputation as a an industry leader and visionary, the business needs to engage its audience by hosting/sponsoring a webinar, creating and maintaining a blog, publishing knowledge/product training and participating in various industry events.
Use SEO and Pay-per-Click Ads
A highly developed marketing strategy that includes keywords, PPC ads and SEO will make the business website easy to find online by their target market.
There is a tendency for manufacturers to benefit from targeting customers in particular regions where they have locations and distributors. They can take advantage of this opportunity through the use of landing pages specific to a region then driving traffic to them with the help of SEO keywords and paid ads. In this way, every time customers search for their type of manufacturers in their area, their company will pop-out.
Have content published constantly
Valuable content is paramount to online marketing and lead generation. When a website has a steady stream of quality content this assures them of a high rank in search engine results plus improves the company’s position as an industry leader.
In writing content for the manufacturing company, they should consider showing that the customers’ needs are completely understood, provide beneficial solutions, and deliver authoritative and well-timed information to stand out.
Humanize the brand
One of the most effective ways to get ahead of your competition is to humanize the brand. Consumers are fed of the cold, corporate marketing of manufacturers’ websites. Most of them want something else – they want more value and engagement.
That said, manufacturers should connect with their customers more by displaying their human side. This can be achieved by various ways, for example a campaign titled “Meet the Team”, where you can display photos of the company’s officers, together with stories about their passion for manufacturing.
Market products/services with virtual tours and videos
These are fresh, new ways to engage with potential customers and showcase their products/services.
They can think of adding how-to, safety and behind-the-scenes videos showing how products were manufactured.
Any manufacturing business should also include client testimonials, as well as case studies to demonstrate their value even more.
Retain existing customers
Other than getting new potential buyers, online marketing can retain existing customers. Manufacturers can create email campaigns particularly for current customers and use these to provide special discounts, year-end gifts, high quality content as well as useful resources that will help accomplish their goals.
