by tradesmeninsights | Feb 25, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing, Traditional Marketing
We all get caught up with having to do more and more, especially when it comes to developing content and deploying it through various media channels. We get pressure from our bosses (clients) to be on every new thing that comes down the road. I recently read an article by Joe Pulizzi, the founder of The Content Marketing Institute, that addresses this actual issue – Do less, not more.
So here’s a novel thought, Don’t worry about quantity and start focusing more on quality. Let’s be realistic, we don’t have the time, resources or possibly content to do all things. Joe cites examples of great brands that started out by dominating one channel consistently over time. What a novel idea. Doesn’t it make sense to focus on and own the primary space you’re in? It doesn’t mean you can’t branch out into other means of getting your message out, but just take it slow.
So what does this mean for the manufacturers? It means do some homework to find out where your customers get their information. If it’s blogs, forums or LinkedIn groups, then start there. Create a blog, for example, that addresses your niche. Make sure you regularly contribute to it so you attract followers. Make sure topics are about solving customers’ questions/issues, not trying to sell them something. Engage them in a dialog of ways you can help them do your job better. Make whatever you do so good people can’t wait to read what’s coming next. In other words, over time, become the go-to resource for whatever specialty you offer.
I think you will find that by focusing on few things and doing them well will not only make you feel better, but will actually accomplish some of those marketing goals of becoming the industry expert.
What are your thoughts?
by tradesmeninsights | Feb 18, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing, Traditional Marketing
I just saw a stat this week that over 90 percent of B-to-B companies are now using content marketing. I wonder if you asked them why, what the answer would be. Hopefully it’s not because everyone else is using it! If you’re using content, you know how much time it takes you and your team to develop and place good content.
Whether it’s content marketing or any other tactic, there should be good reasons for using it and a detailed plan of action – what to say, where to use it and how to measure it. I recently read an article by Heidi Cohen, Why Use Content Marketing – 7 Reasons that I thought would help us all in not only reviewing what we’re doing, but more importantly, evaluate and possibly refocus our efforts on those activities that are working.
We all have different reasons and priorities, and from a manufacturer’s point of view, here are three things you may want to consider when using content marketing:
- Build your brand – this should be true in any type of promotion, but building good content helps set you apart and builds your reputation.
- Attract new customers – Give customers what they want pre- and post-information that will help them through the sales cycle. Good content will sell itself.
- Support existing customers – with updated product/installation information, handy apps or other tools that will make doing their job easier. Remember, existing clients are your best repeat customers, so continue to engage them.
Why are you using Content Marketing and what tactics are working best for you?
If you like this post, you may want to read:
Manufacturers: What Are You Trying to Accomplish with Your Content Marketing?
Smaller Companies are Doing a Better Job with Content Marketing
What are you Doing to Improve your Content Marketing Performance?
Content Marketing: Have a Strategy and Be Relevant.
by tradesmeninsights | Feb 12, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Marketing Trends
As marketers in the industrial B-to-B space, I think we all recognize that our potential customers have several options beyond the traditional ones we’ve used for years. The challenge for us is to identify where they are getting their info and to make sure we’re there when they start looking. That means we need to embrace the digital world, and a recent study by IHS GlobalSpec shows that only about 35% of industrial marketers are satisfied with their online efforts.
IEEE GlobalSpec offers a white paper, Taking a Strategic Approach to Digital Media that gives you some guidelines and recommendations on developing a plan and monitoring results.
Some highlights that I found interesting were:
- Almost half of the industrial professionals visit 10 or more work-related websites each week.
- Top four resources for these professionals are search engines, online catalogs, supplier websites and GlobalSpec.
- 56% of buyers don’t contact a vendor until the research phase is done, and 19% wait until they are ready to buy.
What does that mean to us who don’t want to miss these opportunities?
- It means that we need to identify the channels that our customers use to gather info. The best way to do that is ask them.
- Once you identify the channels, you need to develop content for the different stages in the buying process for your product.
- Implement and monitor a program. The beauty of digital is we can immediately get feedback on what’s working and what’s not.
Don’t let digital scare you. It’s just another way to communicate with customers. Don’t worry about reinventing the wheel on content. Chances are you already have great stuff, you just need to identify it and maybe change the approach of features/benefits on how your products can help customers with their issues.
by tradesmeninsights | Feb 11, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing, Traditional Marketing
When was the last time you reviewed your blog’s progress? What, you don’t have anything to review it against you say? If you’re going to take the time to blog, then let’s make sure your time and talents are being put to the best use. Well, let’s put a list of things together for you to evaluate:
- Goals – what were yours… thought leadership, lead generation, social media support?
- What content drew the most attention – look at your top posts for the year and write more around those topics.
- Are you maximizing your reach – is the content being utilized in all your marketing efforts including social media? Are you participating in forums and doing guest posts?
- Metrics – have you compared this year’s results to last year’s? Is one time of the year better or a day of the week pulling more hits?
by tradesmeninsights | Feb 5, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing, Traditional Marketing
Although sales and marketing are getting better at working together, there is always room for improvement. Together they can make sure they deliver the right content to the right people at the right time.
But in order to accomplish this, they need to work together. Here are some tips to help maximize the results of the collaborative efforts:
- Know your audience – different people buy for different reasons. By sales and marketing working together, they can define the different personas and identify the prospects’ perspectives and content needs.
- Have a sales retention plan – We’re all so focused on getting a lead and making a sale that once that’s completed, we forget about them until the next sale. Now that they are a customer, it’s easier to help them. Start a nurturing program and engage them, and with appropriate content, that will help with the next sale.
- Have a plan – By working together with sales, set objectives to get the right content into the hands of your customers. Realize the one-size-fits-all approach isn’t going to work.
By working together, sales and marketing can determine the right content, whether it’s for leads, brand awareness or thought leadership.
by tradesmeninsights | Feb 4, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing, Traditional Marketing
Everyone is so focused on how to tell a story or where it needs to be instead of backing up and asking some real important questions. So, let’s slow down a bit and get back to some basics. Let’s focus on:
- Why – The first question you should ask yourself is why are you doing what you’re doing? Hopefully you have a written plan with strategy and tactics that are woven into your overall marketing plan.
- Who – What are your targeted audiences by industry or product line?
- What – What do we want to communicate to these targeted audiences?
- How – Based on your audiences, how are you going to tell your story? What tactics will you use?
- Where – Where’s the best place to reach that targeted audience – offline, online or both?
You can’t put the cart before the horse.
Sometimes we need to go back to basics.
