by tradespeopleinsights | Sep 6, 2011 | Marketing Trends, Social Marketing
I know one of the biggest challenges for manufacturers that we represent is getting to the young entrants in the trades. They know how to get to the old guys, they’ve been doing it for years and know that traditional things like trade ads and direct mail programs are effective tools to reach them.
But when you talk to these folks on how they plan on reaching the future generations of tradesmen, they are definitely puzzled as they know the traditional methods are probably not the best way to connect with them. They think of social media as one possible avenue to connect with these young people, but often neglect the mobile devices.
While that may not be surprising that young people are active in mobile devices, what might surprise you is that the baby boomers are also active in mobile, but just a different kind. Consider this: 91 million U.S. consumers use the internet through mobile devices at least once a month and that number continues to rise (Affinity reports that more than 24 million millennials plan on purchasing smart phones in the next 6 months).
So the question is:
- Do you have a mobile strategy in place to reach your young targeted audiences?
- Do you have a mobile friendly website?
- Are you planning smart phone apps?
- What’s your plan to start collecting e-mail addresses and mobile phone numbers for future marketing programs?
Mobile will play an important part in communicating with the younger tradesmen. What’s your plan?
by tradespeopleinsights | Sep 5, 2011 | Uncategorized
Happy Labor Day! We need to take time to say thanks to all the tradesmen that we come into contact with on a regular basis. What would we do without the electricians, plumbers, HVAC professionals? How would our factories run smoothly without all the MRO professionals out there?
Sonnhalter salutes America’s professional tradesmen and laborers on this very special holiday. Our working force built this country. And it’s because of each and every American’s labors that we enjoy the freedoms we have today.
At Sonnhalter, we earn our own living by marketing to professional tradesmen in industries like yours…from construction to industrial to MRO. To show our appreciation for such hard-working individuals, we offer a tip of the hardhat and our sincere thanks.
However you celebrate your Labor Day, enjoy it. You’ve certainly earned it.
by tradespeopleinsights | Sep 1, 2011 | Marketing Tools, Social Marketing
Yeah I know you have your eyes on your major competitors. You have your salesmen and distributors feeding you information , but have you used the tools on the internet to see what the social network is saying about you and your competition?
Michael Corleone in The Godfather Part lll said, Never hate your enemies-it affects your judgement. Pretty good advice don’t you think?
You probably keep your eye on your big competitors, but what about similar manufacturers that sell similar products in several markets you’re in? How about your suppliers and distribution partners? It doesn’t take much to get something working from off shore. This is good info and should be integrated into your marketing plans.
Here are some tools that may be useful:
Social Media Monitoring Tools
– Google Analytics: http://www.google.com/analytics/
– Klout: http://www.klout.com/ (Growing service for monitoring general online influence by using Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and YouTube…will be adding more social media at a later date).
– Facebook Insights (Found on the right hand bar of your Facebook Page.)
– WordPress stats http://www.wordpress.com (Provides blog views, post views, etc.)
– Hootsuite Built-in analytics (http://hootsuite.com//)
– Ow.ly click summary (Proposal report to monitor progress.)
– Netvibes: http://www.netvibes.com/ (Tracks trends and sends alerts. New social pack allows for monitoring and analysis side by side.)
– www.Compete.com (Tracks unique views on websites; good for checking blogs with their own domains.)
– http://www.quantcast.com/ (Much like Compete.)
– Bit.ly shortens links and tracks clicks
– http://www.semrush.com (Search your URLs and find detailed keywords, competitors and recommendations for advertising.)
– http://grader.com/ (Grades different social media activity.)
What are you using to monitor your competitors?
by tradespeopleinsights | Aug 31, 2011 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing
If you’re reading this, chances are you are somewhat active with social media. At least you’re testing the waters to see what’s out there. I find it laughable the excuses I hear for not wanting to participate from our customers, i.e. they don’t use it thinking social media is for young people.
If you’re still one of those that aren’t sure, please consider this:
- Social media is here to stay. Facebook, for example, has added 100 million users in 9 months.
- Social media can be measured. Marketing folks have got to love that.
- Social media is relatively inexpensive. The biggest investment will be in time.
So here’s a challenge for those who might still be on the fence:
- Step out of your comfort zone.
- You need to try it – it won’t break!
- If you make a mistake, the audience for the most part is understanding.
- If you need help, there is plenty of it out there.
by tradespeopleinsights | Aug 30, 2011 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing
Google optimization is based on the premise that the more people like your site, the more credible it is and therefore it gets a higher ranking.
Right, wrong or indifferent…that’s how the game is played. So what are you doing to make sure other sites are linking back to you?
I recently read a guest post on http://www.convinceandconvert.com/ by Nicole Sorochan that outlined 14 Easy Ways to Build Backlinks. Nicole stresses that if you’re going to go to the trouble of doing backlinks to make sure to make them complete.
The more info you give the engines, the better chances you have of getting their attention. I thought I’d share five ways that hit home with me.
- Google profiles – Create for key employeees. Add a custom link with anchor text (words that make up the link).
- LinkedIn – Build a company profile as well as individual profiles on key people.
- Digg – Great place to put articles you want to promote.
- Stumbleupon – Another popular article discovery site.
- YouTube – Create a custom YouTube channel for your company.
So what are you doing to capitalize on backlinks?
by tradespeopleinsights | Aug 25, 2011 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing
Listening to customers is not a new strategy, but today we have more options to connect and listen, especially online. Social media and digital marketing is making it easier to monitor customers to see what they are saying about you and your competitors.
Smart companies are taking advantage of every possible opportunity and making it a part of their online strategy.
A recent article in emarketer.com highlighted results of a recent study by Forrester Consulting measuring the success of listening and engagement initiatives.
The key here is if you listen carefully, it will help you identify issues and ultimately start engaging the customer.
What are you doing to listen to your customer base?
