I am often amazed at some of the things I see and hear when talking to customers and prospective customers regarding their use of the Internet. Depending on the industry there can even be the discussion of the NEED of the Internet outside of a company web site.
Some companies that take this stance that their industry doesn’t use the Internet are in manufacturing and more industrial settings. While this space is shrinking here in the US you may be surprised how many companies there are that fall in the $20 mil to $50 mil in revenue range that are still plugging along.
Some of the things I often see are websites that have been given literally zero SEO attention. No unique title tags and design flaws (mainly overuse of Flash) that hinder search engine friendliness. While we think about these things as being the basics in any website set up and execution there is an odd ignorance and then denial about the importance of good sound Internet marketing.
In these cases, don’t mention social media either. This will often get a stern look down the nose because of my apparent audacity to imply that social media would have any effect in a B to B industrial / manufacturing environment.
Actually, I think this is where social media could really give these companies a much needed marketing and customer relations kick in the pants. With worldwide competition in any manufacturing environment increasing, one area that this sector needs to consider is what they are doing to retain their current customers. How are they keeping them from jumping to a competitor’s lower cost option? It used to be the “relationship” between sales guy and buyer. That still works to some degree but there needs to be more.
In today’s business climate money talks more than ever. If someone can save a buck they will no matter what relationships are in place. So how can social media help this?
- Educate – Relationships can sometimes be devoid of good business information. Social media outlets like Facebook, Twitter and corporate blogs can be used to help educate existing and future customers
- Expand – Some customers only know their sales contact as the company. They need to see more of the company and that can oftentimes be enough to help them make the decision to stay on board and even do more business.
- Entertain – Heck, even manufacturing folks like to be entertained now and then. Social media allows companies to show a different side of their persona which could be something a customer or prospect needs to make a decision for their business.
- Elevate – If you are not the lowest priced option and you customer is getting wandering eyes for other suppliers one thing that could help them stay on board is to see your company in a different light through highlighting of value adds. Let them know that they are buying more than a product. They are buying service, delivery, support and more.
So can social media help an industry that has many who feel that they just don’t need it? Yes it can. More than many people can even imagine.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
You are right, every industry could benefit from seo, especially industries that could gain or lose annual contracts in the hundreds of thousands of dollars because they fail to make a presence.
I hear this every day. I work almost exclusively with industrial service and manufacturing companies selling to the process industries. To those companies, I ask, “did you think you needed a website 15-18 years ago?” As usual, the industrial sector is acting more slowly in embracing a new marketing technology. It is not just a flash in the pan – it is here to stay. A recent survey I read showed social media marketing use at 57% with B to B companies, up from just 17% in 2007. Manufacturing marketers need to get social NOW!
.-= Kerry O’Malley´s last blog ..Manufacturers – How to Get Social NOW on Your Website =-.
Consider an example “steel bar manufacturing company” or “LED manufacturing company”.
How this company take the advantage of Facebook, Twitter? Is users on Facebook & Twitter interested read the messages and paid ads?
I think social media marketing is good for fans like Coca-cola, Starbucks.
I agree with this post. If a company doesn’t have the resources to overhaul their website for SEO, social media could be a quick & inexpensive way to overcome that since Google and Bing are paying attention to twitter and FB in their results now. I’d argue that doing social could provide a bigger SEO bang for their buck. As for Mr. Patel, I’d point him to Cree’s LED Revolution site: http://creeledrevolution.com/ . They have invested heavily in social media and are highly touted for making a boring product interesting, which could be a model for many an industrial client.
I am the Marketing Coordinator for our company and right now I am researching on how to “tell our story”. I’ve taken many classes, webinars, and read plenty of articles. One stump I can’t over come is how to make manufacturing companies fun and fancy like coach, sports teams, and mc donalds! Any suggestions-
We are on facebook, twitter, and linkedin-just not getting the response. I guess I am looking for that one key idea that will help us get the ball rolling without hire an outside company and paying them 12k to get the message across! Thanks!
This is a great article. Social media can be a hard sell to big industry. I’ve tried to explain the benefits to them before, but it’s hard to get through to them. I love your 4 Es rationalizing big industry jumping on the social media bandwagon. I’m definitely going to use these in future presentations. Great post, Frank!