The manufacturing sector has faced serious challenges since 2020. Adaptation is key to survival and that applies to business across all manufacturing niches. Today, digital marketing is the tool of choice to attract and retain customers despite many businesses facing difficult budgetary choices. In this article, I'll introduce you to 7 digital marketing strategies that can help companies in the manufacturing industry.
Digital marketing for manufacturers: 7 STRATEGIES that work
1) User Friendly Website
Web design for manufacturing is all about creating a user-friendly website that doesn’t frustrate visitors and allows them to find the information they are looking for easily and quickly including on mobile devices from the site or factory floor. Trust is another important aspect of digital marketing. Website visitors partly attribute credibility to good design, testimonials, and good online security protocols, so add these to your user-friendliness checklist.
2) Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
The motto 'build a website and they will come' has long been discredited. To rank high on search engines and be discoverable to customers, you must ensure your site is optimised. Search Engine Optimisation is a science of its own, but some useful tips include:
- Write content based on popular keywords, making sure they flow naturally.
- When it comes to content length, more is better. Don’t be afraid to go in depth into topics that matter to your customers. Short-form articles always rank lower than longer ones, although make sure to break your longer articles into bite sized chunks that are easy to skim not many people have time to read complete blog articles and avoid long-winded writing!
- Always reference and link back to authoritative (non-competitor) sites. Work towards clean website design and clean code.
3) Paid Marketing Strategies
You should complement SEO with paid search campaigns (pay-per-click advertising in Google and/or Bing) in order to reach two types of audience: those who are already aware of your products and those who aren’t. You can cover all your bases with paid targeted advertising like Google Display Ads, which creates ads in different formats and in different platforms, on a network that covers 90% of all Internet users. And if you are a manufacturer with a small or niche audience, paid strategies can generate awareness without spending huge amounts.
4) Social Media
While 90% of C-level executives ignore cold calls, 84% of them use social media as part of the decision-making process. This signals the huge potential of these platforms for manufacturers to build brand awareness and boost visibility.
5) Focus On Value
As it happens in other industries, digital marketing for manufacturers must revolve around value to be effective. Here are some suggestions to get you started:
- Show you understand customer pain points and address them in your content.
- Provide detailed information about products instead of waiting for customers to request it.
- Offer information in different formats, including video.
- Use content to help customers decide instead of pushing sales.
6) Use Email Marketing
Don’t assume your customers are too busy to read your emails a lot of senior managers spend most of their day in front of an open inbox, even in practical industries such as manufacturing. If your emails are packed with value, they won’t remain unread in their inbox for long. Email marketing campaigns can help sustain interest throughout the entire product lifecycle and forge a closer relationship with customers based on valuable and timely information.
As a manufacturer, you can include data-rich content in your email marketing, such as new research, links to whitepapers, the latest industry data, case studies, etc. If well done, email marketing has an average ROI of 120%.
7) Work On Multiple Fronts
Effective digital marketing relies on various inter-related strategies that complement each other. Omni-channel marketing is an integrated and unified approach that focusses on delivering a consistent image and message. This strategy targets your website, social media, ads, apps, and other channels to reinforce brand identity so your name is top of mind.
What next?
Implementing effective digital marketing for your manufacturing company can help you weather the storm and stay ahead of your competitors. If you need expert support to create a marketing plan for your manufacturing company, let's talk!
Image source: Unsplash
