Effective digital marketing, planning, and strategy depends on a comprehensive understanding of who your audience is. The people to whom you are selling are not simply numbers on a screen when you carry out your marketing analysis: every customer has different views and opinions, so keeping them on-side will benefit your business in the long-term.
At JDR Group, we are specialists in digital marketing for engineering & manufacturing companies. We can help you to avoid the common digital and content marketing mistakes that could persuade your customers to look elsewhere. Our experts have extensive experience of working with manufacturing companies of all types and sizes, to devise successful marketing strategies that keep the needs of each customer at heart, improving engagement and uptake of their products. So, what steps should you take to ensure that content marketing mistakes don’t alienate the people you’re attempting to get on-board?
Effective marketing establishes a positive relationship between the seller and the consumer, so that the customer can relate to the products that they are being encouraged to buy. Unfortunately, much of the traditional language used in the manufacturing sector, while not intentionally discriminatory, is male gender specific, which may cause a disconnect between you and your customers in an age where an increasing number of women are involved in the sector at an executive level.
This doesn’t mean you have to be politically correct in your content but try to avoid gender-specific terms where possible. The meaning of foreman, for example, can be accurately expressed as supervisor, salesman, as salesperson, tradesman as tradesperson, and man hours simply as hours or working hours.
Photographs of people are invaluable in marketing campaigns and your website for adding a human element; however, these should be representative of the cultural composition of the country if all groups are to feel engaged. Wherever possible, you should use actual photos of your workplace and workforce on your website and blog. However, if you use stock images, aim to include a variety of images featuring people from different ethnic backgrounds – not forced or artificial, but rather in a way that reflects your commitment to diversity and the vision you have for the sector.
While it can be difficult to avoid reinforcing negative stereotypes, businesses should be aware of how unconscious bias could influence the way that different groups are portrayed in advertising. This is one of the most important digital marketing mistakes to avoid, as an unintentional misrepresentation could damage your business’s reputation and standing. Making sure that your content is inclusive can provide everyone with the opportunity to express concern should the wrong message be accidentally conveyed.
When posting marketing content, it is worth considering whether anyone is likely to be offended before posting it. While it can be difficult to anticipate what people will find offence with, maintaining an open mind (and checking the content with colleagues) is important to prevent a message from being misconstrued. Remember that messages in text are notoriously difficult to interpret without the natural intonation and facial expressions that accompany the spoken word.
Working with an experienced marketing expert can help you ensure your online content accurately reflects your messages, and is accessible to people of all background. To learn more about marketing for manufacturing, download our FREE guide 'How To Get More Customers In The Manufacturing Industry.'
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