by tradesmeninsights | Jun 5, 2012 | Marketing Tips, Marketing Tools, Social Marketing
Manufacturers should get on the bandwagon and start using social media. You can be afraid of it and then you’re missing lots of opportunities to tell your story and generate interest in your company and what you do.
This guest post was provided by Dean Vella who writes about social media training and Internet marketing for University Alliance, a division of Bisk Education Inc. and talks about ways you can get started. Enjoy.
Social media campaigns have grown in staggering numbers over the past few years, with business-to-business (B2B) manufacturers among the companies now using this relatively new method of marketing to develop their businesses.
A recent survey by Forrester Research found that B2B marketing budgets are expected to increase an average of 6.8% in 2012. Manufacturing firms projected a 7% increase, up from 4% in 2011.
Social media offers companies the opportunity to distribute their brand message far and wide at faster-than-ever speed. There are pitfalls, however. The viral nature of social media means that companies can quickly lose control of their message. Once that control is relinquished, it can be extremely difficult to regain.
B2B Manufacturers and Social Media
Whether it’s through Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter, B2B manufacturers are using social media networks to notify recipients about developments in the industry, offer advice on how best to use their products and answer customer questions. As a result, manufacturers are discovering that they now can connect directly with end users in addition to their business partners.
This can create a myriad of benefits. B2B manufacturing companies can acquire information first-hand from their users and business contacts. That provides them with tangible information from a variety of sources that can be leveraged into product development and innovations.
Social media campaigns also can help B2B manufacturers give a “face” to their organization. For example, with an estimated 800 million users, Facebook offers access to a massive, and potentially untapped, consumer base.
An Effective Strategy
Among the first steps in developing a social media campaign is to understand how the platform is different from traditional marketing methods. As previously mentioned, the spontaneous nature of social media makes it tricky – if not impossible – to control the message, the recipients or the timing of the dissemination of information.
Manufacturing companies can consider these factors before implementing a social media initiative:
- Where are the customers?
Knowing which social network your users or customers prefer – whether it’s Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter or Google+ – is the first step in entering the social media fray.
- Monitor carefully
As much as it is critical to spread information about your organization, it’s just as imperative to carefully and consistently monitor the feedback from users and customers. As such, social media is more about the conversation than it is about the message. It’s important to identify those employees who have the social media training, knowledge and savvy to monitor feedback and post answers to questions and comments.
- Use tools
One of the major benefits of social media is the array of technology and tools it puts at a company’s disposal. Videos, links, blogs, podcasts and photo sharing – firms can use each of these components to share more information about their company with their customers. The interactive nature of the technology makes this a two-way relationship.There certainly are challenges with social media campaigns in terms of controlling the message. Despite those potential stumbling blocks, there is immense potential for B2B manufacturers and other companies to build new partnerships and attract new clients and customers through social media.
by tradesmeninsights | Feb 15, 2012 | Marketing Tips, Marketing Tools, Social Marketing
It’s good to see that others share my thoughts on social media as an asset to a manufacturer’s marketing plan.
Today we have a guest post from Derek Singleton from Software Advice. Software Advice is a free online resource that helps businesses with their software research and selection. In addition to providing reviews of enterprise software, they also cover relevant technology and trends in the markets that we work in.
The manufacturing industry has been somewhat slow to accept social media as a marketing tool. This is largely because it can be difficult to see how social media plays into the larger business-to-business (B2B) marketing strategy. That, however, appears to be changing. According to a Forrester Report released in March of 2011, 30 percent of global manufacturers intended to increase social media investments in 2012.
As global manufacturers increase their social media spending, the case for small- to mid-sized manufacturers to invest in social media grows stronger. The opportunities are particularly attractive in the contract and job shop manufacturing segments, which have traditionally relied on word-of-mouth marketing to win new business. I’d like to share three ways that manufacturers can start using social media today to improve their brand visibility and win more business.
1. Create a Blog to Tell Your Story
Blogs give manufacturers an opportunity to do more than just promote their brand. Blogs allow manufacturers to communicate with their customers and prospects using a richer form of media with longer-form stories. They’re also a great avenue for sharing company information and providing industry knowledge. Manufacturers can use blogs to announce major company milestones, such as getting ISO 9001 certification, as well as share general industry trends and news. By striking a balance between promoting a brand and sharing useful information, manufacturers can gain a thought leadership position that will help win customers later down the road.
2. Start a YouTube Channel to Enrich Content
YouTube can be a great tool that educates buyers while subtly marketing through video. With the dramatically decreased cost of video production, creating a decent quality video is affordable and relatively easy today. Manufacturers should consider creating a YouTube video that provides a demonstration of products and processes, a tour of the factory, or showcases customer testimonials. Of course, the challenge is sticking to a video format that customers find relevant and engaging. As an example, one of my favorite YouTube videos produced by a manufacturer is this Carr Machine and Tool video. The video provides customers a walk-through of how their orders are handled while showing the company’s dedication to service.
3. Use LinkedIn to Help Fill the Sales Funnel
A final tool that I’d like to highlight here is LinkedIn. For manufacturers, getting the most out of LinkedIn requires more than just becoming a member of the social network. Manufacturers can use LinkedIn to prime to sales funnel by using their networks to gain access to sales prospects. Once you get a few hundred contacts, your typical network usually reaches in the millions. This network can be used to get an introduction to a potential sales contact – or at the very least to connect with someone who can help strategize on how to contact the prospect. LinkedIn can also be a great place to demonstrate industry expertise by participating in relevant community discussions. Answering a difficult question in a Q&A forum, for instance, could very well lead to an unexpected contract.
This article is adapted from an original piece by Software Advice, an online resource MRP systems and other manufacturing applications. You can access the original article at: HowManufacturersCanUseSocialMediatoWinBusiness.
So what are you doing to utilize Social media?
