by tradesmeninsights | Jun 25, 2013 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing, Traditional Marketing
Content marketing is not a new phenomena. It used to be called “information” that helped set you apart from your competitors. The name might have changed, but we all know great content can make or break you in the B-to-B world.
Unless you have a product/service that no one else has, you’re going to have to differentiate it from the hoards of competitors who are vying for the same sale. So what do you have to do to set yourself apart? According to Robert Rose in a recent post in the Content Marketing Institute, your content must be remarkable!
According to Robert, there is no “try,” you either evolve or fail. That’s a scary statement at the onset, but let’s consider how we go to market. For those of you who’ve been around for a while (no matter what business you’re in), I bet none of you would say you’re doing business the same way you did 10 years ago. I’d bet most would say the same statement holds true for five years ago.
So we are evolving both in what we sell and how we sell it and that’s why it’s so important to have a differentiating story to tell your prospects. This point of difference needs to be communicated across all channels of communication to your targets.
So what’s your point of view?
Robert states that “only the combination of advancing questions, meaningful insight and applied creativity will drive value from data both big and small.”
Here are three basic questions he says you need to ask yourself:
- Why is content important to your customers?
- What value will they derive from it?
- How will it differentiate us?
Lots for us to think about. How would you answer the questions?
by tradesmeninsights | Jun 20, 2013 | Marketing Tips
By Sandy Bucher, Media Engineer at Sonnhalter
Here’s a little-known tip on an easy way to keep up with news in your industry.
If you are interested in finding out what’s happening in your trade, there are many trade publications available at no charge to tradespeople of all kinds, if you qualify. If you want to learn about the latest industry trends, read about upcoming trade shows or industry events or see new products available, all you need to do is request a subscription from these trade publications.
As long as you qualify for those magazine’s specifications, you should be able to receive your own copy of that magazine. Depending on your market, most of the qualification questions asked when requesting a subscription are the type of organization you work for, your job title or function, types of work your company does and do you buy or specify certain products/services. Sometimes they also ask for number of employees at your location, what types of construction fields is your firm engaged in or would you like a print or digital version.
Most subscriptions these days can be requested online from a publication’s website. It’s a pretty easy process. Take a few minutes and sign up for those publications that would benefit you in your work.
by tradesmeninsights | Jun 19, 2013 | Marketing Tools
Sonnhalter is deeply involved with the professional tradesmen. We recently updated our overview of the HVAC market. The purpose of the document is to give the reader a quick snapshot of the industry and its players for 2013.
Highlights include association and buying group contacts, training firms/certification organizations, franchisee organizations and consolidators, online resources, trade shows/meetings and media publications.
A free copy for download is available. Click here to sign up.
by tradesmeninsights | Jun 18, 2013 | Marketing Tips, Marketing Tools, Social Marketing, Traditional Marketing
Over the past several years, marketers have been focusing more of their efforts (both time and money) on social media.
Especially in the manufacturing B-to-B space, social certainly has a place to help set you up as an expert in your field of expertise, but it won’t replace more traditional ways of communicating like email. If you really want a tradesman to read something from you, which would you use, social media or email? I’d be willing to bet email.
Let’s face it, the life blood of your business (both existing and potential) lies in the quality of your database. The question is, how do you increase the size and quality of that database and what’s the best way to use it? By using traditional methods like trade shows, PR and direct mail along with social tools like YouTube, SlideShare, Facebook and Twitter, you can start identifying potential customers and start gathering email addresses for your database.
Think about this – if you go to sign up for a new social site, what’s one of the first things you have to give them? Your email! Even they know the best way to communicate is using this tool.
Consider some of these facts:
- The fact of the matter is folks respond better to emails than they do to social channels
- Email also lets you personalize your message
- They are checked more often than social sites
- It’s easier to sell through email than social sites
I listened to a podcast recently on socialmediaexaminer.com where they interviewed DJ Waldow the co-author of The Rebel’s Guide to Email Marketing. He shares his thoughts on how to use social to support your email activities. I’d recommend you take the time to listen.
by tradesmeninsights | Jun 13, 2013 | Uncategorized
Each month we’ll be featuring a blog post from our friends at MAGNET (Manufacturing Advocacy & Growth Network). MAGNET’s mission is to support, educate and champion manufacturing in Ohio with the goal of transforming the region’s economy into a powerful, global player. You can visit MAGNET online at manufacturingsuccess.org.
This post originally appeared on MAGNET’s Manufacturing Success blog and is reposted with permission.
Determined Innovators Face Risk to Reap Rewards
Everyone wants an advantage.
Relative to their competitors, all businesses want to be seen by customers as the go-to provider.
My favorite race car driver, and boyhood hero, the late Mark Donohue was labeled as always having an “Unfair Advantage” by his competitors. However, if you read Donohue’s autobiography, it becomes clear that he was a member of a very innovative Penske team. They were always conceiving ways to go faster, testing them on the track and at times stretching the boundaries of the rule book. But there was also an underlying theme of hard work. They outworked most everyone else. Sweat equity, some might call it.
In industry, success through innovation is the same. Coming up with innovative ideas is hard work, getting them successfully to market is difficult and always risky.
The more innovative the product, the larger the uncertainty of success—but usually the higher the payoff. Managing this risk while fostering an atmosphere of innovation is a tricky balance to achieve.
Many companies have a formal process to achieve this balance. But sometimes these processes end up creating barriers that squelch innovation by requiring too much to be known at the early stages of development. Really innovative ideas are almost always those that we know the least about at the beginning.
Innovation Tip: Consider adapting a tried and true principle introduced by W. Edwards Deming to help overcome the early innovation jitters, the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle. Assign a point person or small team to address key concerns and report each week. This lowers anxiety and keeps innovation moving.
To learn more, contact Robert Schmidt.
Click here to read the original post.
by tradesmeninsights | Jun 12, 2013 | Uncategorized
Having a trained workforce is a major challenge in several of the industries that we work with. I wanted to share some highlights from a blog post by the NAED president (National Association of Electrical Distributors) answering the question: Why is training important?
Tom Naber, president of NAED, writes about training as:
- An opportunity to expand your employee’s knowledge base.
- An investment that provides benefits to both your company and your employee.
- An ongoing activity, not a one-time event.
Many associations, like NAED, provide resources that make having a well-trained workforce attainable and are usually the best place to start your process of training your staff.
To read Tom Naber’s post, “Why Is Training Important?” visit the NAED blog.
