Why B2B Manufacturers say Marketing does not work
The other week, I was sitting with a client who is into engineering components manufacturing for the Logistics industry. We were discussing how to build his brand, when he shows me a digital marketing proposal he received. This was almost a template of many others I’ve seen before — X number of posts in Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, paid marketing, SEO, guaranteed number of followers and engagement — no mention of target markets, objective, and real world measures. This was a proposal shared based on a 15 minute phone call which involved a cursory look at the business and existing digital presence.
B2B Manufacturing is a key part of a growing economy but is mostly not visible to end consumers or the general market. While there is a need for marketing and a strong digital presence, just as any other business, B2B manufacturing has to be given a different treatment and approach.
B2B Manufacturers often serve a specific niche of industry based on their capabilities and expertise and have very clear target segments they need to reach out to. Unlike end-user/consumer products which have a large and diverse target market, B2B manufacturers look to expand into similar or related markets as their current customer mix. Marketers need to invest time to understand the product, the company, the current and target customer mixes and most specifically, the objective for digital marketing from the manufacturers POV — more often than not, this requires consultative selling and hand-holding to guide the manufacturing clients as to what their objective and requirements are for a marketing program. This could vary across brand building, talent attraction, lead generation and target market education.
One of the most important tools in the digital marketing toolkit for B2B manufacturers is Content Marketing — one of the best ways to showcase capabilities, expertise and experience. A strong website, designed with the customer in mind (and not the manufacturer) with simple intuitive navigation and well organised content can be a starting point. Videos and blogs — on the website, Youtube and Blog portals — are a great way to tell a story about the manufacturing capabilities and expertise. Case studies are crucial to let the world, and target markets primarily, know about the kind of problems you solve and the spread of solutions you can deliver. A Google Business Page is a must-have and costs nothing more as it can be developed reusing the content developed earlier — however, it does create a decent first impression when somebody is searching for you.
With the primary content development mechanisms in place, it is more efficient to market using various social media channels. Marketers here should pay note to the different social media channels and the audience they cater to. Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn each work differently and cater to different requirements of the audience — These need to be used judiciously to connect the defined target markets (potential clients, media, talent, etc.) to the content that is published on various platforms. SEO is a good way to drive audiences to the website; Paid Ads however should be used only as required — based on the manufacturers specific needs. Quora and Reddit can be useful in targeting specific communities and queries to build awareness as well as establish leadership and mindspace in your target markets.
Targeted Email marketing can be a very powerful tool if personalised emails with links to contextual case studies and services can be delivered to target markets post research and definition
More often than not, the challenge lies in content development at the manufacturer’s end — as they may have multiple stories to tell, but don’t know how to. Marketers need to have content developers in their teams who understand the engineering and manufacturing space and can develop the relevant content — video, audio, graphic or written — for their clients. Most B2B manufacturers are also focussed on operations and production capability at one end and fulfilling orders at the end. Marketers here again need to develop a consultative approach and evolve into partners by understanding the business better in every way
Agencies looking to make an entry into the market and gather as many clients in their portfolio, will often adopt a templatized approach, which is not beneficial in the long run. While these agencies may get the client initially, relationships can sour when objectives are not clearly understood and defined and will, often, spoil the manufacturers outlook and get them to say ”Baah, Marketing does not work!!”
While this write-up covers a lot of different areas and there are more to be covered, I have limited it to those that I feel are critical and important. I welcome your views, comments and feedback to the same
