There was a time when marketing for manufacturers consisted of in-person sales calls, trade show exhibits, and radio and TV ads. However, with the constant advancement of technology and changing consumer demand, those traditional methods have been replaced with digital marketing for manufacturers.
Today’s consumers are master multi-taskers who are constantly on the go. The ease of online shopping means they can accomplish more in a shorter amount of time with less effort. With nearly 5 billion people using the internet, digital marketing is the most effective way to reach today’s consumers. It enables manufacturing companies to deliver the right message to the right people at the right time.
Keep reading to learn how to master digital marketing for manufacturers to attract prospects, drive traffic to your website, and generate more revenue.
Key Takeaways:
- Digital marketing requires an omnichannel approach that helps you deliver the right message to the right people at the right time.
- While there are numerous avenues one can take to achieve a successful digital marketing campaign, the key is to deliver relevant content that resonates with your audience.
- You can develop an effective strategy for digital marketing for manufacturers in just a few easy steps.
What Exactly is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing uses online methods to promote a company’s products and services. You can track its data, which gives you a deep understanding of your audience so you can capitalize on their needs, frustrations, and buying behaviors. This makes it a highly effective way to deliver relevant, meaningful content to a highly targeted audience, resulting in a higher likelihood of conversions.
You can develop a stronger, lasting relationship when you understand your customers more clearly. You can grow customer loyalty through audience engagement and tailored messaging that addresses their unique needs. This is important because these customers will become advocates for your manufacturing company and because existing customers are responsible for 65% of a company’s purchases.
Digital marketing spans all online communications methods, so manufacturing companies can reach their audience in more ways with an omnichannel approach. By broadening reach and maximizing touchpoint opportunities, you have more chances to develop brand recognition and boost sales. The following video further explains the impact of digital marketing on a company’s overall success:
4 Types of Digital Marketing for Manufacturers
The main goal of digital marketing is to deliver valuable content that resonates with audience members and drives traffic to your website. Content marketing for manufacturing companies goes hand-in-hand with digital marketing, as customized messages can be delivered across a broad spectrum of channels for the most reach and impact. Manufacturing companies can make contact through these four types of digital marketing.
1. Email Marketing
More than 4 billion people across the world use email regularly. It’s an affordable way to reach many people with minimal effort. Email is extremely targetable, so you can send tailored messages to particular groups of people to increase the likelihood of conversions. It enables you to engage your customers at every stage of the customer journey, from first contact to post-purchase follow-up. It’s even a great way to reconnect with shoppers who may have left the purchase process prematurely.
2. Search Engine Marketing
Search engine optimization is one of the most influential digital marketing methods for driving website traffic for manufacturing companies. Search engines like Google and Bing aim to deliver the most useful results to their searchers. Websites that deliver a positive customer experience optimized with high-performing keywords are rewarded with high rankings. This helps increase visibility and sends more qualified leads to your site.
Some website must-haves for manufacturing companies include:
- Clean, organized layout: users want to find relevant information quickly and easily.
- Corporate colors and consistent messaging: This helps solidify brand identity and recognition.
- Contact information: consumers want to be able to reach a representative if they have questions.
- Clear CTA: a large, colorful button on the home page should direct shoppers to their next steps.
- Current, accurate links: a site with broken links and inaccurate information damages trust and builds user frustration.
Search engine marketing plays a significant role in a company’s digital marketing strategy.
3. Social Media Marketing
There are currently 4.2 billion people active on social media. You can reach and engage a large pool of prospective customers through social media marketing. Social networks are highly targetable, so you can pinpoint your ideal audience with great accuracy to deliver the most impactful messaging possible. Content is also highly shareable, so your single message can reach even more people as your contacts forward, tag, and link to your posts.
Social media allows you to gain invaluable insight into your customers and competitors. You can see how people feel about your brand by monitoring forums and chat threads. You can also identify your competitors’ failing areas and discover ways to solve problems and alleviate frustrations. All of this can set you apart in your industry and help attract more customers for greater success.
4. Mobile Marketing
More than 90% of online shoppers connect to the internet with their mobile devices. For this reason, it’s essential that you include mobile marketing as part of your digital marketing strategy. From ads to promotional texts, mobile marketing is a powerful way to reach people on the go. Mobile shoppers are typically ready to buy since they’re on their devices while shopping in (or on their way to) area stores. You can connect with shoppers in real-time and reach them at any customer journey stage through targeted messaging based on location, interest, and behavior.
Create an Effective Digital Marketing Strategy
To create a compelling and successful digital marketing strategy, your manufacturing company must:
- Know your online audience: You need to understand what channels your consumers use, how often they’re on those platforms, and how they want to receive information from you. This will help you decide which channels to use and who to target with each one.
- Set goals: Whether your objective is to increase engagement or drive more traffic to your site, determining your goals will help shape the content you create and its distribution.
- Develop your plan: Audience research will help you know what kind of content to create for the best results. Decide which channels to use and what message would be most effective on each, then write quality, meaningful content.
- Measure progress: Once your plan is in action, it’s imperative that you track its progress. Keep an eye on open and bounce rates. Learn what messages are resonating and what approaches are falling flat. Make adjustments based on the data and continue to adjust for maximum results.
By developing a well-researched and thoughtfully executed digital marketing strategy, you can stand out from the competition, attract a quality following, and increase sales and conversions for continued growth and success.
Enlist an Industrial Marketing Partner
Shanahan Strategies is a top-tier strategic marketing agency helping industrial and manufacturing companies grow sales and market share. We can help you develop and implement an effective digital marketing strategy to meet your unique needs.
Contact Shanahan Strategies today to see whether we’re a good fit for your marketing goals.
