Category: Content Marketing

How Can Manufacturers Align Sales & Marketing to Improve Lead Conversions in Complex B2B Industrial Sales?
Sales and marketing alignment for manufacturers is critical to improving lead conversions in complex B2B industrial sales. Yet, many manufacturers struggle with siloed teams, misaligned goals, and ineffective communication.

Gartner said, “Sales organizations that prioritize alignment with Marketing are nearly 3X more likely to exceed new customer acquisition targets.”

Download their Sales & Marketing Alignment Guide from here.

This blog explores key strategies to bridge the gap and drive measurable revenue growth.
Table of Contents
Why Sales and Marketing Alignment for Manufacturers is Essential for Lead Conversion
Overcoming Common Challenges in Aligning Sales and Marketing in Industrial Companies
How to Create a Unified Sales and Marketing Strategy for Industrial Lead Generation
Integrating Content Marketing and Sales Enablement Tools
Aligning Messaging Across All Touchpoints
Bridging the Gap Between Sales and Marketing for Measurable Growth
Why Sales and Marketing Alignment for Manufacturers is Essential for Lead Conversion

Sales and marketing alignment for manufacturers is no longer optional—it’s a necessity for generating high-quality leads and driving higher conversions in complex B2B industrial sales. Yet, many manufacturing companies struggle with siloed teams, leading to wasted marketing efforts, lost opportunities, and unqualified leads that never make it through the sales funnel.

When sales and marketing teams operate independently, the disconnect results in marketing generating leads that sales dismiss as low quality. Meanwhile, sales teams often fail to follow up on valuable leads due to a lack of clear qualification criteria.

According to HubSpot, organizations with strong sales and marketing alignment achieve 38% higher win rates and 36% higher customer retention—a critical advantage in the manufacturing sector, where long sales cycles and multiple decision-makers make the buying process more challenging.

Unlike in other B2B industries, manufacturing sales cycles can take weeks, months or even longer due to high-value purchases, technical specifications, and strict procurement processes.

Industrial buyers conduct extensive research before engaging with sales, making industrial content marketing a crucial tool for lead generation and nurturing.

71% of prospects prefer independent research over interacting with a salesperson. (HubSpot)

However, the recent shift to Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE) is changing how prospects find information. Traditional SEO strategies that once focused on keyword optimization must now account for AI-driven search results that summarize content rather than direct users to specific pages. Manufacturers must ensure their content remains authoritative and valuable enough that Google’s AI Overview cannot provide a quick answer. Read my previous blog, SEO for Manufacturers in the Age of AI: How Google’s Search Generative Experience is Reshaping Search Results.

A well-structured Sales and Marketing alignment for manufacturers ensures that marketing delivers sales-accepted leads (SAL) while Sales follows a set process to engage, nurture, and convert them. It is important to understand the differences between Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs) and Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs) and their impact on conversion rates. (See my blog, Lead Quality: Why It’s More Important Than Quantity for Manufacturing Marketing Success.)

Sales must provide feedback to marketing to refine the strategy and the process. Manufacturers can create a more seamless, effective revenue-generating process by bridging this gap.

Overcoming Common Challenges in Aligning Sales and Marketing in Industrial Companies

Despite the clear benefits of sales and marketing alignment for manufacturers, achieving it is easier said than done. Many industrial companies struggle with deeply ingrained silos, differing priorities, and a lack of shared processes. Addressing these challenges is critical for manufacturers looking to improve lead quality and increase conversions.

The Disconnect Between Sales and Marketing Goals

One of the biggest obstacles is the lack of shared objectives. Marketing teams are often measured by lead volume, while sales teams focus on closed deals. This misalignment results in Marketing generating leads that Sales doesn’t prioritize, creating frustration on both sides.

Solution: Establish common Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that align both teams, such as Sales Qualified Leads (SQls), Marketing-Sourced Revenue, and Lead-to-Customer Conversion Rates. When marketing is accountable for generating sales-qualified leads rather than just filling the funnel, and Sales is involved in defining lead qualification criteria, alignment becomes more achievable.

Long Sales Cycles and Multiple Decision-Makers

Manufacturing sales cycles are often long and complex, involving multiple stakeholders such as engineers, procurement managers, and executives. A lead that enters the funnel today may not convert for weeks or months, leading to disjointed follow-ups and lost opportunities.

Solution: Implement a structured lead nurturing process with marketing automation, lead scoring, and targeted industrial content tailored to different decision-makers through the different stages of their buying journey.

For example, technical buyers may need spec sheets and detailed engineering content as part of their ‘design in’ process, while procurement teams require cost-benefit analyses. Sales and Marketing must collaborate to map out the buyer’s journey and deliver the right content at each stage.

Inefficient Lead Handoff and Follow-Up

A common complaint from manufacturing sales teams is that Marketing delivers leads that aren’t ready to buy, while marketers feel that Sales fails to follow up properly. Without a clear handoff process, leads fall through the cracks, resulting in wasted efforts.

Solution: Define and document a lead qualification and handoff process between Marketing and Sales. This includes:
- Clear definitions of MQLs, SALs, and SQLs are needed to ensure that Marketing only hands over nurtured and qualified leads.
- A defined lead follow-up timeline (e.g., Sales must engage with SALs within 48 hours).
- Ongoing feedback loops where Sales provides Marketing with insights on lead quality and common objections.
By addressing these core challenges, manufacturers can create a more seamless and effective lead generation and conversion process.

How to Create a Unified Sales and Marketing Strategy for Industrial Lead Generation

Sales and Marketing alignment for manufacturers isn’t just about improving communication—it requires a well-structured strategy that defines shared goals, processes, and responsibilities. A unified approach ensures that both teams work toward the same objective: converting high-quality leads into new and loyal customers.

Integrating Content Marketing and Sales Enablement Tools

Marketing’s role in lead generation doesn’t end when a lead is handed off to Sales. Manufacturing buyers conduct extensive research before making purchasing decisions and expect relevant, educational content at every stage.

Solution: Develop a content strategy that supports sales by providing:
- Product datasheets and engineering guides for early-stage research.
- Case studies and application notes to address mid-stage buyer concerns.
- Product demo videos and ROI calculators to support final-stage decision-making.
Marketing tools such as CRM-integrated content libraries and email automation sequences can help sales teams nurture leads more effectively.

Aligning Messaging Across All Touchpoints

Industrial buyers interact with multiple channels—websites, LinkedIn, trade shows, and direct sales outreach. If the messaging is inconsistent, it can create confusion and reduce trust.

Solution: Ensure marketing and sales align on key messaging by:
- Creating a positioning framework that defines core value propositions.
- Training sales teams to use marketing-approved messaging and content.
- Developing email sequences and LinkedIn outreach templates that maintain brand consistency.
A unified Sales and Marketing strategy ensures that industrial buyers receive the right message, at the right time, from the right source—leading to better lead conversion rates and stronger customer relationships.

Bridging the Gap Between Sales and Marketing for Measurable Growth

Sales and Marketing alignment for manufacturers isn’t a business exercise. It’s about creating a strategic framework that generates higher-quality leads and drives better conversion rates. At Tiecas, we strongly believe in developing a tailored Manufacturing Marketing Strategy that aligns with your business goals, ensuring that both sales and marketing teams work together toward measurable growth.

But strategy alone isn’t enough—it needs expert execution. That’s where our Fractional CMO for Manufacturers comes in. We help manufacturers and industrial companies implement and refine their marketing strategies, optimize lead generation efforts, and bridge the gap between Sales and Marketing to drive real business impact.

Let’s start a conversation if your manufacturing company is struggling with Sales and Marketing misalignment. Contact us today to discuss how Tiecas can help you create a unified strategy that delivers more qualified leads and higher conversion rates.
March 4, 2025
SEO for Manufacturers in the Age of AI: How Google’s Search Generative Experience is Reshaping Search Results
SEO for manufacturers, or organic SEO for manufacturers, has undergone a seismic shift in the past year. While Google’s AI Overview is still in its experimental phase, early data indicates that it’s already influencing search rankings dramatically—impacting up to 100% of complex queries while prioritizing contextually relevant content. (Source: Search Engine Journal).

This shift isn’t an anomaly. BrightEdge data confirms that Google increasingly relies on AI Overviews (AIOs) for complex searches, particularly those involving multi-step, conversational queries. This suggests that Google’s growing confidence in AI-generated responses reduces visibility for traditionally optimized content. (Source: Brightedge).
Table of Contents
Why Clicks and Traffic from Organic SEO for Manufacturers are Declining in the Age of Zero-Click Searches
What Is Search Generative Experience (SGE) and AI Overview? How Do They Differ from SearchGPT?
Improving Manufacturing SEO Requires Rethinking and Refining Your SEO Strategy
Writing Industrial Content in a Structured Format That Answers Search Queries
Why Clicks and Traffic from Organic SEO for Manufacturers are Declining in the Age of Zero-Click Searches

The dominance of AI Overviews isn’t just shifting search behavior—it’s drastically reducing organic clicks to manufacturer websites. According to SparkToro’s 2024 Zero-Click Search Study, for every 1,000 Google searches in the U.S., only 360 clicks now go to the open web. (Source: SparkToro).

This trend signals a growing challenge for manufacturers relying on traditional SEO strategies. With Google keeping more users within its ecosystem, fewer searches result in actual website visits. Instead, AI-generated answers, featured snippets, knowledge panels, and product carousels provide information directly on Google’s SERP—eliminating the need for users to click through to manufacturer websites.

What Is Search Generative Experience (SGE) and AI Overview? How Do They Differ from SearchGPT?

As organic search traffic declines, manufacturers must understand why Google’s AI-driven features are reshaping search behavior—and what that means in SEO for manufacturers. Search Generative Experience (SGE) and AI Overview are two key technologies driving this shift. While both rely on Google’s AI models, they function differently from SearchGPT, which represents a broader class of AI-powered search tools.

Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE)

SGE is Google’s AI-powered search experience, designed to provide contextual, AI-generated summaries at the top of search results. Instead of displaying a list of blue links, SGE generates a conversational response based on multiple sources, allowing users to refine their queries interactively.

For manufacturers, this means that traditional ranking factors are evolving, as Google’s AI pulls content from multiple sources rather than directing users to individual web pages.

AI Overview

AI Overview is a subset of SGE that appears for certain queries, offering concise, AI-generated answers at the top of the search results. Unlike SGE, which is more interactive and detailed, AI Overview provides quick, summarized insights—often eliminating the need for users to click on any external links.

Consider this real-world example of my Google search query—“What are the differences between pneumatic and electric actuators in ball valves?”—now triggers an AI Overview that dominates the entire top half of the search results page. As shown in the screenshot, no traditional blog posts or authoritative articles appear above the fold.

AI Overview instantly delivers a structured answer, reducing the likelihood that users will scroll down to traditional organic results.

How SearchGPT Differs—A Niche Keyword Discovery Advantage

SearchGPT represents a new breed of AI-driven search engines that don’t rely on Google’s ecosystem. Unlike SGE and AI Overview, which aim to enhance Google Search, SearchGPT operates as an independent AI chatbot—similar to ChatGPT but optimized for real-time search queries.

One of the biggest advantages of SearchGPT for manufacturers is its ability to uncover niche, long-tail keywords that traditional SEO tools often miss.

Example: Consider a manufacturer of industrial valves for the oil & gas industry. Conventional keyword research tools may suggest broad terms like:
- industrial valves
- high-performance butterfly valves
- ball valves for pipelines
These terms are often highly competitive and generic, making it harder to rank organically. However, SearchGPT can analyze buyer intent and technical specifications to generate hyper-specific long-tail keywords such as:
- corrosion-resistant butterfly valves for offshore drilling
- high-pressure ball valves for LNG applications
- API 6D-certified valves for hydrocarbon processing
While these long-tail keywords have lower search volumes, they attract highly qualified leads searching for specific industrial solutions—making them far more valuable for conversions.

Some industries have seen traffic skyrocket — an increase of ~700% from ChatGPT Search alone. (Source: seoClarity). It’s not just a trend; it’s the new reality.

This ability to discover niche search patterns and generate precise queries is something traditional SEO tools often fail to do, giving manufacturers who leverage AI-powered search engines a competitive edge in their strategy for SEO for manufacturers.

Improving Manufacturing SEO Requires Rethinking and Refining Your SEO Strategy

As Google continues to evolve with AI-driven search experiences, manufacturers can no longer rely on traditional SEO tactics alone. The shift toward Search Generative Experience (SGE) and AI Overview means that simply ranking for broad, high-traffic keywords is no longer enough. Instead, manufacturers must focus on refining their SEO strategy to align with AI-driven search behaviors.

What Needs to Change?
1. Prioritizing Context Over Keywords – Manufacturers should optimize for topic clusters, search intent, and AI-friendly structured content instead of targeting high-volume terms. AI-generated results pull contextually relevant information rather than relying solely on keyword density.
2. Expanding Beyond Google’s Traditional SERP – With zero-click searches increasing, SEO must integrate with thought leadership, social media visibility, and AI-based discovery platforms to ensure manufacturers remain visible.
3. Leveraging AI for SEO Optimization – Generative AI tools can identify gaps in existing SEO strategies, analyze competitive content, and generate insights that traditional analytics tools might overlook.
For a deep dive into how AI is reshaping industrial SEO, check out:
- Could Generative AI Revolutionize Your Industrial SEO Strategy?
- Effective SEO Strategies for Manufacturers and Industrial Companies in 2024
Manufacturers looking for a structured approach to SEO, marketing alignment, and business growth should consider a Strategic Roadmap and/or Fractional CMO.

Writing Industrial Content in a Structured Format That Answers Search Queries

Google’s AI-driven search features, particularly AI Overview and SGE, prioritize well-structured, authoritative content that directly answers search queries. This means manufacturers must shift from traditional promotional content to a more structured, answer-driven approach in their industrial content marketing.

Why Structure Matters for Manufacturing SEO
- AI Overviews favor content with clear headings, bullet points, and concise summaries.
- Complex technical topics must be broken down into digestible, scannable formats that align with AI’s response structure.
- Search queries are becoming more conversational, making FAQ-driven and topic-cluster content more valuable.
Yet, creating high-quality content that ranks and converts remains a major challenge for many manufacturers. According to research from the Content Marketing Institute, one of the top struggles for manufacturing marketers is producing content that is both engaging and leads to measurable business results. (Source).

This is where industrial content strategy must evolve—moving from generic blog posts to highly structured, problem-solving content that aligns with AI-driven search behaviors.

Manufacturers looking to enhance content performance and ensure their insights are shown in AI-generated search results should focus on:
- Industrial Content Creation – Learn More
- Industrial Content Marketing – Learn More
Stay Ahead of AI-driven SEO Changes with Tiecas

Manufacturing SEO is no longer about just ranking on Google—it’s about adapting to AI-driven search experiences that shape buyer decisions. With Google SGE, AI Overview, and evolving search algorithms, manufacturers must rethink their SEO strategy, content structure, and digital presence to remain competitive.

At Tiecas, we specialize in strategic marketing for manufacturers, helping industrial companies navigate AI-driven SEO changes with data-backed strategies, structured content, and expert guidance.

Let’s talk about how we can refine your SEO and content strategy to align with AI-driven search trends.
February 5, 2025
Is Industrial Marketing Wasting Resources on New Leads and Ignoring the Goldmine?
Huh? What the heck am I talking about, and why am I suggesting the pillar of B2B industrial marketing success is somehow broken? Is this clickbait? Have I lost my mind?

Wait, don’t post your angry comments yet. Read on…
Table of Contents
The Problem: Let’s Talk About Industrial Marketing’s Obsession With New Leads
Why Accurate Measurement Matters in Industrial Marketing
The Challenge of Attribution
Consequence: Proving Marketing ROI
Why Industrial Content Marketing is the Key to Balancing New Leads and Customer Retention
Lead Generation vs. Demand Generation
The Power of a Documented Industrial Content Marketing Strategy
Industrial Content Marketing for High-Quality Lead Generation
Industrial Content Marketing Success Hinges on Quality Content
Industrial Content Marketing Builds Brand Awareness, Loyalty, and Thought Leadership
Do You Need an Industrial Marketing Agency or a Consultant?
Tiecas: The Best of Both Worlds
The Pareto Principle is a fascinating observation that states roughly 80% of consequences come from 20% of causes. Originally coined by Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, this idea found widespread application in the business world.

An article in Forbes highlights this observation; it translates to the idea that 80% of a company’s revenues often come from a mere 20% of its customers. This disproportionate impact underscores the importance of understanding and leveraging this principle to make strategic business decisions.

A more recent variation of that is what I found in an interesting article by Ross Graber, VP, Principal Analyst at Forrester. He says, “Seventy-three percent (73%) of B2B revenues come from existing customers in the form of renewals, cross-sell, and upsell, and the remaining 27% comes from new business. While growth from net-new customers isn’t insignificant, the bulk of B2B revenues come from an existing customer base.”

How does all this relate to industrial marketing?

The Problem: Let’s Talk About Industrial Marketing’s Obsession With New Leads

Let’s be clear: there’s absolutely nothing wrong with industrial companies dedicating resources to generating fresh leads. A healthy pipeline is essential for growth. However, it’s easy to fall victim to the “new and shiny” syndrome, becoming overly fixated on fresh new leads while existing customers languish.

Industrial marketers—bless their hearts—are a little bit like those folks obsessed with finding shiny new pennies. They get a thrill from the hunt, the possibility of a bigger, better customer lurking just around the corner. The SEO tinkering, the paid campaign tweaking, the perfectly crafted lead magnet… it’s all a quest to snag that mythical new customer.

Meanwhile, the metaphorical treasure chest of existing customers sits slightly dusty and neglected. Don’t get me wrong, everybody loves getting new business! But what about those loyal customers who ALREADY like your products and services? They’re eager to be upsold, cross-sold, and reminded of just how awesome your solutions are. Yet, we often leave them to figure it out themselves, or worse, let a competitor swoop in and give them the attention they crave.

This is where the Pareto Principle sucker punches us right in the ROI. Think about it: are we spending more time, money, and effort chasing a smaller slice of the revenue pie?

Why Accurate Measurement Matters in Industrial Marketing

The imbalance between the focus on new leads and the often-overlooked potential of existing customers becomes even more problematic when we consider the data: a recent report by the Content Marketing Institute revealed that nearly half (48%) of manufacturing content marketers struggle to measure content performance accurately.

This lack of clear measurement makes it difficult to know what’s working and what’s not, leading to a potential over-reliance on tactics that prioritize lead generation at the expense of nurturing existing relationships.

The Challenge of Attribution

The buyer’s journey is rarely linear in long and complex industrial B2B sales. There might be multiple touchpoints across various channels, with different stakeholders involved throughout the decision-making process.

The four conventional stages of the industrial sales cycle—Awareness, Interest, Decision, and Action—may not hold true anymore. ThomasNet published an interesting chart showing the complex journey of industrial buyers today.

Consequence: Proving Marketing ROI

Demonstrating the return on investment (ROI) from industrial marketing initiatives without adequate measurement and attribution becomes incredibly difficult. This lack of clarity leads to wasted resources, misguided strategies, and a misalignment between marketing’s perceived value and its true impact on the bottom line.

As I highlighted in a previous blog post, “Top 5 Challenges of B2B Industrial Marketing and How to Overcome Them,” traditional marketing attribution models often make it difficult to accurately distinguish the impact of marketing efforts in marketing to existing customers if you focus solely on acquiring new leads.

So, how can industrial marketers address these measurement challenges and ensure their efforts are aligned for maximum impact? This is where a robust industrial content marketing strategy comes into play.

Why Industrial Content Marketing is the Key to Balancing New Leads and Customer Retention

Lead Generation vs. Demand Generation

While there is a lot of overlap between lead and demand generation, they are distinct activities.

Lead generation focuses on identifying and attracting potential customers, often through tactics like paid advertising, targeted outreach, and industrial content marketing.

Demand generation takes a broader perspective, aiming to create awareness, interest, and a desire for your products or services among your target audience. Industrial content marketing plays a vital role in nurturing leads and fueling demand.

The Power of a Documented Industrial Content Marketing Strategy

A well-defined industrial content marketing strategy is a roadmap to success. It aligns your content with business goals, target audience needs, and the buyer’s journey. Without this strategic foundation, content efforts can become scattered and ineffective.

In my blog, “Industrial Marketing Strategy Must Be Documented for the Best Results,” I delve further into the benefits of a documented strategy. Our Strategic Roadmaps service can assist you in developing a customized roadmap for your industrial business.

Industrial Content Marketing for High-Quality Lead Generation

Industrial content marketing positions you as an expert and builds trust. By providing value through informative content, you attract prospects who are genuinely interested in your solutions. Your content acts as a filter, resulting in higher-quality leads that are more likely to convert.

To accelerate your sales pipeline, check out these proven strategies from my blog: “Manufacturing Lead Generation: 5 Strategies to Accelerate Your Sales Pipeline.”

Strategic email marketing, often supported by marketing automation platforms, allows you to nurture these leads efficiently over the long sales cycle, ensuring your brand remains top-of-mind.

Industrial Content Marketing Success Hinges on Quality Content

Focusing on your products is tempting, but industrial buyers want solutions. Create content that speaks directly to their pain points and offers actionable insights. Content that connects is more about them and less about you.

Remember, effective industrial content marketing isn’t a sales pitch in disguise. It’s about demonstrating your understanding of your target audience’s challenges and how your solutions can help them achieve their goals. By positioning yourself as a valuable resource and trusted advisor, you build lasting relationships that translate into increased sales over time.

Industrial Content Marketing Builds Brand Awareness, Loyalty, and Thought Leadership

Industrial content marketing is a powerful tool for building brand awareness. By consistently publishing valuable customer-centric content, you become a trusted source of information for your target audience. This positions your company as an industry thought leader, demonstrating your deep understanding of the market and your commitment to innovation.

When buyers trust your expertise, they are far more likely to consider your products, remain loyal customers, and even refer you to others within their network. In complex industrial sales, thought leadership establishes credibility and long-term competitive advantage.

My article, “B2B Thought Leadership Marketing—How Small Manufacturers Can Drive Big Results,” outlines the strategies and benefits involved.

Do You Need an Industrial Marketing Agency or a Consultant?

Choosing between an industrial marketing agency or a consultant requires careful consideration. Here’s a breakdown:
- Agencies: Offer a team of specialists and often work on monthly retainers. Best suited for larger marketing budgets.
- Consultants: They can be more cost-effective and may also work on retainer models.
Key Deciding Factor: Regardless of size, the focus should be on experience and proven expertise in your industrial niche.

Remember, 61% of small to medium-sized manufacturers face limited in-house marketing resources. That’s where outside experts come in. You need a partner with industry knowledge and proven experience to create content that resonates. Consider our Industrial Content Creation service to help you connect with your audience.

Tiecas: The Best of Both Worlds

Here at Tiecas, we offer a unique hybrid model. With decades of hands-on industrial experience led by a Marketing Engineer, we understand your audience. This translates to effective content strategies and content creation. Let’s discuss how we can elevate your industrial marketing efforts with the best of both worlds. Let’s Talk.
May 7, 2024
How Manufacturers Can Use Content for Differentiation and Create a Competitive Edge
Using content for differentiation of your manufacturing company can be a powerful marketing strategy. Across various industries where global competition is fierce, finding ways to set your company apart from competitors is crucial.
Table of Contents
The Power of Content for Differentiating Your Brand
Identify Your Target Audience
Understand Your Unique Value Proposition
Showcase Your In-house Expertise
Educational Content and Thought Leadership
Leverage Customer Testimonials and Case Studies
Don’t Forget About Organic SEO
Measure, Refine, and Repeat
This goes beyond just marketing tactics and carries real-world significance. When companies have similar value propositions, creating real differentiation that doesn’t come across as a mere imitation or can be easily replicated by the competition allows you to stand out and establish a unique selling proposition. Doing so can attract potential customers, expand your market share, and ultimately drive business growth.

Those are lofty goals for industrial content marketing. You’ll need strategic planning, diligently executing the strategy, and measuring results regularly to achieve those goals. The more successful manufacturing content marketers almost always focus on quality content over quantity.

80% of those who always/frequently differentiate their content said they do so by producing better quality content than their competitors. (Source).

The Power of Content for Differentiating Your Brand

To use content for differentiation, you have to take several steps. This post is written for manufacturing content marketers who are not well-versed in marketing to engineers and technical professionals. There is nothing to be ashamed of; marketing to engineers is different and can be challenging.

Identify Your Target Audience

Determine who your ideal customers are and what their needs and pain points are. This will help you create content that resonates with them.

It would help if you went deeper than industry classifications and company size. You want to identify who within those niches you want to target (Job Titles, role in the buying decision – Specifier vs. Functional Buyer).

Many marketing consultants will advise you to interview your top 10 customers. There is nothing wrong with that per se; however, your favorite customers already like you and do business with you. These are not prospects that you need to win over.

Talk to your sales team and ask them about the objections they heard from leads that seemed promising but never closed. Combine this information with what you learned about from the loyal customers. This will provide a more complete picture of your target audience.

Understand Your Unique Value Proposition

To stand out from the competition, your manufacturing company must identify and emphasize what sets it apart from others in the industry. This could be a variety of factors, ranging from your expertise and experience in the field to the exceptional quality of your products.

Product features and specifications are essential because they show your products meet the technical requirements, but those alone are not enough.

Highlighting any innovative approaches or technologies you utilize in your manufacturing processes can showcase your company’s commitment to staying ahead of the curve. You must be careful not to give away proprietary information and/or the company’s IP.

Another aspect that can separate your business is exceptional customer service, which allows you to build long-lasting relationships with your customers and establish a positive reputation. You can’t just say, “We offer exceptional customer service.” You have to prove it to the skeptical audience.

For example, you can say:
- We offer a 24/7 emergency call number where a technically competent person will answer
- We can deploy a crew to your jobsite or plant within 24 hours
- We have a searchable knowledge base of common troubleshooting questions
- Our online video library has many how-to videos for field repairs (Field MRO people may not have a say in the initial purchase but can make or break repeat orders)
The key is to identify and effectively communicate the unique aspects of your business to potential customers. This strategic approach is essential for ensuring your company’s continued success and growth.

Showcase Your In-house Expertise

Use content to demonstrate your expertise in your industry. Bring your in-house Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) to the forefront. As a content marketer, you are responsible for extracting the key talking points from your SMEs and expanding them into cohesive, customer-centric content that addresses the audience’s challenges. Don’t ask them to write the content for you.

Have the SME review and vet your draft and publish it under their names. One engineer to another is a powerful strategy and lends credibility to your content. This could involve sharing success stories, highlighting your team’s qualifications, or providing thought leadership content. (See Industrial Blogging Lessons Learned from Working with Technical SMEs).

Educational Content and Thought Leadership

This could include blog posts, case studies, whitepapers, videos, infographics, or technical articles published in well-known industry portals and publications. Manufacturing blogging is an excellent channel for this. Focus on creating content that educates and informs your target audience.

You should share industry insights, best practices, tips, and tutorials about your manufacturing niche.

Regularly creating and publishing technical blog posts is challenging for many manufacturing content marketers, especially those just starting out. If you are in this situation, consider outsourcing your manufacturing blog creation. Learn from them until you feel confident about writing them yourself.

59% of manufacturers outsource at least one marketing activity. Last year’s survey found content creation was the most outsourced activity at 80%.

However, it is not just a matter of finding low-cost freelance copywriters from one of the many services out there. The two biggest challenges were finding partners with adequate technical knowledge and understanding the target audience’s mindset. (Technical Content Writing is Challenging for Manufacturing Marketers).

Leverage Customer Testimonials and Case Studies

Incorporate customer testimonials to build trust and credibility. This can help potential customers see the real-world benefits of working with your company. The problem you may face is that many customers tend to shy away from endorsing any vendor. You have to work at it and assure your customers you won’t misuse or abuse their trust when they agree to provide a testimonial. A video testimonial will provide a level of authenticity that is hard to get from written text.

Case studies are powerful content assets as assurance for your potential customers that your company knows its stuff and has “Been There Done That.”

Sometimes, NDAs can make it difficult to name names, but there are legal ways to overcome those hurdles.

Leveraging the persuasive power of customer testimonials and case studies is a highly effective strategy to build trust and credibility, ultimately driving the success and growth of your manufacturing business.

Don’t Forget About Organic SEO

With social media garnering all the attention these days, it is easy to think that organic SEO for manufacturers is dead. Nothing could be further from the truth. After all, your audience has to find your content before they can read it.

Make sure you’ve optimized your content for search engines by using relevant keywords and meta tags. This will help your content rank higher in search engine results and attract organic traffic. Use strategic internal links to drive readers deeper into your site and improve engagement. It also helps with your SEO.

A word of advice—Don’t rely 100% on organic SEO. Promote your content by sharing your posts and other new content through various channels, such as your social media platforms, email newsletters, and industry forums. Engage with your audience and encourage them to share your content with others.

Measure, Refine, and Repeat

Track the performance of your content using analytics tools. Monitor metrics such as website traffic, engagement, conversions, and customer feedback. Use this data to refine your content strategy and make improvements over time.

Engagement metrics reveal user interaction with your content, such as time on site, pages per visit, and bounce rate, helping you identify engaging content and areas for improvement. Similarly, tracking conversions—like newsletter sign-ups, purchases, or form submissions—is vital to understanding what drives users to act and enhance your site’s conversion process.

Remember that discovery optimization (SEO) differs from conversion optimization (CRO).

It is tempting to start with step 1 in this post. Before implementing any content marketing tactics, you should develop a content marketing strategy that aligns with your business goals. It will provide you with a clear roadmap to success.

Without it, you may get frustrated with the lack of results and find it difficult to prove ROI to upper management.

We at Tiecas take a strategy-first approach before implementing any hit-or-miss tactics. Take a look at our process to learn from it.

Developing a content marketing strategy first and following these steps, you can use content to differentiate your manufacturing company and attract customers who value your unique offerings.
January 17, 2024
Leveraging Industrial Content Marketing for Manufacturers—a Key Strategy for Lead Generation
Industrial content marketing for manufacturers is a powerful tool to help your business achieve its lead generation and sales goals. It’s a strategic marketing approach focused on creating, distributing, and promoting valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and engage a clearly defined audience. Ultimately, it aims to drive visitor action leading to conversions.

Some refer to it as inbound marketing, which is a business methodology that attracts customers by creating valuable content and experiences tailored to them. That term was first coined in 2005 by HubSpot’s co-founder and CEO, Brian Halligan, and became popular around 2012.
Table of Contents
Understanding the role of industrial content marketing in manufacturing
Developing an effective manufacturing content marketing strategy
How to leverage industrial content marketing for lead generation and conversions
How to Measure the Success of Your Manufacturing Content Marketing
Putting it all together—A real-world case study
Outsourcing vs in-house: choosing the right approach for your manufacturing content marketing
Understanding the role of industrial content marketing in manufacturing

The importance of content marketing for manufacturers cannot be overstated. With the advent of digital transformation and the changing landscape of the manufacturing sector, traditional marketing methods are no longer sufficient. It’s no wonder why more and more manufacturers are turning to content marketing to reach their target audience, build trust, and generate leads.

Moreover, content marketing is not just about selling products or services, but it’s about providing useful information that helps your audience understand your products and solutions better. It’s about telling your company’s story, showcasing your in-house expertise, and positioning your company as a thought leader within your industry or niche. This, in turn, can strengthen your brand’s credibility, boost customer loyalty, and drive business growth.

This strategic shift in manufacturing marketing aligns very well with today’s industrial buyers who are in self-select and self-serve mode. They don’t need to speak with your salespeople to get product information.

Developing an effective manufacturing content marketing strategy

Creating a successful manufacturing content marketing strategy requires careful planning and execution. It’s not just about writing blog posts or creating videos but about delivering the right content at the right time to the right audience. I have often said, “Content creation is not content marketing.”

First, it’s essential to understand your audience. Know their needs, challenges, and pain points so you can create content that resonates with them. This involves conducting market research and creating buyer personas. This step is critical as it forms the basis of your content marketing strategy.

Next, set clear goals for your content marketing efforts. This might include boosting brand awareness, generating leads, increasing website traffic, or improving customer engagement. Having well-defined goals will help guide your content creation and distribution efforts, ensuring that every piece of content serves a specific purpose.

(Source: Manufacturing Content Marketing Insights for 2023, CMI).

Last but not least, it’s crucial to measure the effectiveness of your content marketing strategy. This involves tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) like website traffic, lead generation, social media engagement, and conversion rates. By monitoring these metrics, you can determine what’s working and what’s not, allowing you to tweak your strategy as needed.

How to leverage industrial content marketing for lead generation and conversions

Leveraging industrial content marketing for manufacturers for lead generation and conversions is about using content to attract, engage, and convert visitors into potential leads. It’s about providing valuable content that answers your audience’s questions, solves their problems, and guides them through the buying journey in a logical manner to make a more informed buying decision.

One effective way to generate leads is by offering gated content. This is content that requires visitors to provide their contact information to access. Examples of gated content include eBooks, whitepapers, and case studies. Gated content offers valuable information in exchange for the reader’s email—this is where you capture top-of-the-funnel leads (MQLs) that you can nurture into qualified leads.

Gated content can be a pitfall if you are not careful. Content not perceived as valuable by your audience but gated for the sake of capturing contact information can hurt credibility and damage your brand.

A recent survey of B2B technology buying decision makers done by Informa Tech showed that 71% of respondents were sometimes or often disappointed by the quality of the gated content.

Optimizing your content for search engines is another crucial aspect of leveraging industrial content marketing for manufacturers for lead generation. This involves using SEO best practices like keyword optimization, creating high-quality backlinks, and ensuring your website is mobile-friendly. By improving your search engine rankings, you can drive more organic traffic to your site and increase the chances of converting visitors into leads.

How to Measure the Success of Your Manufacturing Content Marketing

Measuring the success of your manufacturing content marketing involves tracking key performance indicators (KPIs). These might include website traffic, number of leads, social media engagement, and conversion rates.

Website traffic is a crucial metric, it is the lifeblood of online marketing. This can help you gauge the effectiveness of your content marketing efforts and identify areas for improvement.

Lead generation is another critical KPI. You can determine how effectively your content attracts and converts visitors by tracking the number of leads generated through your content marketing efforts. However, quality trumps quantity when it comes to leads.

Social media engagement is also an essential metric. It measures how people are interacting with your content on social media. This can provide insights into how your audience perceives your content and how effectively it’s engaging them. Temper your expectations from social media because engineers and industrial professionals tend to be passive participants. They like to read or view videos but don’t leave comments or share often.

Finally, conversion rates indicate the percentage of visitors who take a desired action, such as filling out a form or making a purchase if you have an online store. You can assess how effectively your content drives profitable customer action by tracking your conversion rates.

Connecting the dots between publishing content and lead generation is often difficult, and many manufacturing content marketers struggle with it. However, you can’t escape or ignore this part because the C-suite execs want to know what they are getting for the money invested in industrial content marketing. They are not impressed by top-of-funnel stats from Google Analytics.

Putting it all together—A real-world case study

Manufacturing Content Marketing Helps Improve Industrial Digital Marketing KPIs and Achieve Goals

Read case study

Outsourcing vs in-house: choosing the right approach for your manufacturing content marketing

When it comes to executing your manufacturing content marketing strategy, you have two options: outsourcing or in-house. Each has pros and cons, and the right choice depends on your needs, goals, and resources.

Outsourcing your content marketing can be a great option if you lack the time, expertise, or resources to do it in-house. It can also give you access to a team of experts with the skills and experience to deliver high-quality content that resonates with your audience.

On the other hand, keeping your content marketing in-house gives you more control over your strategy and execution. It also allows you to closely align your content marketing efforts with your overall business goals and strategies.

Ultimately, choosing between outsourcing and in-house depends on your specific needs and resources.

“59% of respondents said their organization outsources at least one content marketing activity. Their top challenge is finding partners with adequate topical expertise (60%)”
Source: The Content Marketing Institute

Industrial content marketing for manufacturers is a powerful tool that can help you attract, engage, and convert visitors into potential leads. By understanding your audience, setting clear goals, creating high-quality, relevant content, promoting your content, and measuring your success, you can leverage content marketing to boost your lead generation and conversions.

Whether you choose to outsource or keep your content marketing in-house, the key is to ensure that your content marketing efforts are strategic, targeted, and effective.

Remember, content marketing is not just about selling products or services but about providing valuable information that helps your audience make a more informed buying decision and elevates you to a valued partner, not just a supplier.

Need help improving your industrial marketing for manufacturers? Let’s talk.
October 16, 2023
What Content do Engineers Want When Visiting Websites?

What content do engineers want is probably a question you’ve asked yourself many times. An industrial website is the hub for manufacturing content marketing. It is by far the most important digital asset you own. I don’t need to repeat all the reasons for having a robust website. Yet, I’ve seen content take a backseat instead of driving an industrial website redesign.

Where do engineers go to find information for making a purchase decision?

Let’s back up a bit to see the sources engineers use to find content when making a buying decision. According to the 2022 State of Marketing to Engineers research report published by GlobalSpec and TREW Marketing, 69% of engineers go right to the source—supplier/vendor websites when researching a product or service for a business purchase.

Now that we know the number one source of information, let’s ask ourselves, what content do engineers want to see and consume? Here’s another chart from the same research study I’ve cited above.

Surprised by #1? After all, datasheets are considered product-centric and not really customer-centric content.

If you manufacture industrial components, your product specs must meet the engineer’s design specifications. Otherwise, the conversation doesn’t even start.

Now, you may be saying to yourself, “We have plenty of those.” Then let me ask you, “When was the last time you downloaded and read one of your datasheets?”

I’m not trying to be a smart-a** here. I’ve seen outdated datasheets that do not match current product specifications, added options, and features. You may lose a sales opportunity or, at the very least, damage your credibility when this happens. Do a complete audit of all your current product literature, update old ones, and create new materials if necessary.

Challenges in manufacturing content marketing

Okay, so all you need to do is create more datasheets, easy peasy lemon squeezy, right? Think again!

As a manufacturer or a distributor, your primary audience is engineers, MRO, and other industrial professionals. Creating technically accurate content that this audience will find relevant and moving them forward logically in their buying journey is a big challenge. I’ve read several research studies documenting this problem which has persisted for a few years.

It takes knowledge of the technical topic and preparing intelligent questions to ask of in-house Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) to extract the key talking points. Then, add good copywriting, editing, and SEO skills on top of that. You must go back to the SME for his/her approval before publishing any content. Rehashing product features with clever wordsmithing won’t cut it.

“Respondents said their top three content marketing challenges are creating valuable content instead of sales-oriented content (51%), overcoming the traditional marketing and sales mindset (51%), and accessing subject matter experts to create content (50%).”

That’s a direct quote from the 2022 Manufacturing Content Marketing report published by the Content Marketing Institute.

It isn’t as simple as outsourcing technical content creation either. According to the same report, 59% of respondents said their organization outsources at least one content marketing activity. Their top challenge is finding partners with adequate topical expertise (60%).

Industrial blogging—benefits and difficulties

Industrial blogging is an essential and integral part of manufacturing content marketing. If you’ve been blogging for a while, you already know blogging’s positive impact on organic SEO. That’s not all. Consistently publishing posts your audience wants to read will help win the engineer’s mindshare and build trust.

However, industrial blogging is an underutilized content strategy and has its own challenges. Read my earlier post, Using Manufacturing Blogs for Lead Generation, to learn more.

Manufacturing marketing budgets

The average marketing spend increased from 6.4% to 9.5% of company revenue across almost all industries in 2022. (Source: Gartner).

However, manufacturers tend to lag as compared to other industries. According to the latest CMO Survey, the marketing budget for manufacturers averages 4.52% of revenue and 7.65% of the total company budget as compared to 8.6% of firm revenue and 12.1% of the total budget across industries.

Marketing to engineers is not easy

I’ve worked with many in-house marketers at manufacturing companies who know marketing but struggle with engaging with engineers and technical professionals. It is not just about creating content; they need help understanding how this audience makes buying decisions.

In addition, they have difficulties formulating effective strategies for marketing to a committee of stakeholders, some of whom may never visit their websites, and the sales cycle is usually long. They want me to coach and consult with them to overcome some of these hurdles of marketing to engineers.

My presentation topic at the 2019 Content Marketing World Conference was “The Unique Challenges of Marketing to Engineers and Industrial Buyers.” You can view the video recording here.

Don’t be a victim of the “shiny new toy” syndrome

As an industrial marketer, adding a new technology stack that will make you and your team more efficient and add cool new features to your website is tempting. Nothing wrong with that goal per se. However, you probably won’t get an increase in the marketing budget if technology is the primary focus at the next planning meeting.

I recently read an interesting article by Robert Rose, the founder and chief strategy officer of The Content Advisory, the education and consulting group for The Content Marketing Institute. He explains why technology alone is not the answer, and the initial subscription cost may just be the tip of the iceberg. Read his post, “Your 2023 Planning Shouldn’t Be All About That Tech,” for valuable insights.

Content should drive your website redesign plan and the strategy for manufacturing content marketing. Don’t try to retrofit content to a design or a strategy as an afterthought.

October 18, 2022
How Industrial Marketing for Manufacturers Helps in Building New Relationships
Job #1 of industrial marketing for manufacturers is to generate leads. Is that assumption valid? To me, that’s like putting the cart before the horse. So, before I explain why I said what I just said, let’s look at the goals manufacturing marketers have achieved by using industrial content marketing over the past 12 months.

(Source)

Let’s reverse engineer the above chart to understand the process of generating good quality industrial leads using industrial marketing for manufacturers.

Step 1: Raise brand awareness – Your target audience must know about you and find you (SEO) during the early stages of their buying journey.

Step 2: Earning trust – You have to win their mindshare by publishing content that helps your visitors gain confidence in your ability to understand and provide a solution for their challenges or applications.

Step 3: Be prepared – When a prospect contacts you, you must be ready to provide relevant and technically accurate content to help that industrial buyer make a more informed decision. They don’t want to hear a sales pitch without proof of concept.

In this day and age, when industrial buyers are in self-select and self-serve mode, the adage buyer beware has been turned on its head to seller beware.

Engineers were most annoyed by the “lack of technical knowledge” when interacting with a supplier’s sales team. That was one of the findings from the State of Marketing to Engineers, 2022 report.

Sales first mindset is a problem with manufacturers

I had a recent conversation with a manufacturer of micro injection molding machines. He wanted his target audience to find his site on Google and contact his sales team. He didn’t have an answer when I asked him, “Why should a site visitor contact you and not the competition?”

He assumed that his site visitors would be so impressed with his history of being in business for 50+ years that they would contact his sales team after the first visit.

51% of manufacturing marketers were challenged to create valuable content instead of sales-oriented content and overcome the traditional marketing and sales mindset.

Discovery optimization (SEO) is hard enough, but it is not the same as conversion optimization (CRO), even though they are related. It is not uncommon to find manufacturers who find it hard to wrap their heads around the concept of Marketing and Sales working together as a team. It has always been that the sales team generated leads, and Marketing only provided sales support as in trade show graphics, brochures, and PowerPoint presentations.

That is not just my experience. For example, the CMI report I cited earlier in this post found that 51% of manufacturing marketers were challenged to create valuable content instead of sales-oriented content and overcome the traditional marketing and sales mindset.

Build new relationships using industrial marketing for manufacturers

A related problem to the sales mindset is relying too heavily, in some cases exclusively, on old relationships. I understand that building new relationships is hard work and takes time. Most manufacturers have heard of the Pareto principle, which states that 80% of a company’s sales come from 20% of its customers. So why bother building new relationships.

As Bob Dylan’s hit song goes, “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” if you haven’t already realized that.

The retirement of aging engineers is a well-documented problem in the manufacturing industry. On top of that, there have been cutbacks from offshoring and downsizing. The shrinking team sizes have led to two significant issues. These problems have a bearing on industrial marketing for manufacturers.
- About 33% of engineers stated that employee loss due to retirement or layoffs/downsizing has increased or increased significantly over the past two years
- 58% of engineers indicated that knowledge and/or information loss as employees left the company was very or extremely important
Source: 2021 Pulse of Engineering Survey

In the first case, engineers say they are under tremendous pressure, more so than before, to do more with less.

As an industrial marketer, you need to do all you can to alleviate some of this pressure. The most effective way is to make content marketing a core component of your strategy for industrial marketing for manufacturers. It will help you forge new relationships with younger engineers and win their mindshare and loyalty.

Offering downloadable CAD files, eCatalogs, and online design tools are enormous time savers and improve design consistency. Added benefit – 82% of CAD/BIM downloads turn into actual sales.

Read my earlier post, Using CAD and BIM Files in Manufacturing Content Marketing.

Engineers and other technical professionals constantly seek out and use content to help them perform their jobs better. Younger and less experienced engineers are increasingly looking to their suppliers to fill the knowledge gap as in-house resources shrink.

What can you offer them to build new relationships? Think about creating a robust online resource library of online training courses, webinars, eBooks, quick start guides, and white papers. Focus on making these assets more educational with judicious mentions of your solutions and products.

A word of caution here, don’t just pump out more product-centric content and thinly disguised promotional pieces. Engineers want technically accurate and current content written by Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). This is another challenge for manufacturing content marketers. 50% of them said they are challenged with accessing subject matter experts to create content. (Source: CMI Report).

My solution and advice to others who have to overcome this hurdle is, do your own research, and then interview your SMEs with a list of relevant questions to ask based on your research. This will help you get the key talking points about the topic and then as a content marketer, it is our/your job to expand those points into cohesive customer-centric content. Don’t be in a hurry to publish before your draft is fully vetted by your SMEs.

The last point, publish your content under the SME’s name(s) for credibility, even though you did the heavy lifting.

Here’s something else I’ve observed working with manufacturers. Don’t just focus on getting in front of the key decision-makers and ignore strong influencers. Less experienced engineers are often tasked with gathering information in the early stages. They are the ones who are online, researching and creating the shortlist of vendors with possible solutions. You may never make it to the RFQ stage if you don’t build relationships with them.

Younger engineers may not have final buying authority today, but ignore them at your own peril.

Another strong reason for building new relationships is that people are promoted to new roles or move to other companies as part of their professional growth. Engineers stated they are, on average, only moderately likely to be employed at the same company five years from now. (Source: 2021 Pulse of Engineering Survey).

Since today’s engineers and technical professionals spend a good portion of their buying journey online before contacting a salesperson, it makes sense to use the full power of industrial marketing for manufacturers to start new relationships and build trust. This will pave the way for you to generate high-quality leads that turn into sales opportunities.
May 25, 2022
3 FAQs About Manufacturing Content Marketing
I understand you may have more than three Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about manufacturing content marketing. This post will focus on the three questions that my manufacturing clients ask me most often.

To validate my own experiences, I’ll refer to research findings from the report Manufacturing Content Marketing Insights for 2021 published by the Content Marketing Institute (CMI).

How will manufacturing content marketing improve our sales process?

This is a broad question and really gets to the heart of the matter—Why bother doing manufacturing content marketing in the first place. Traditionally, most manufacturers have considered marketing as only sales support. It is difficult for them to reset their mindset that today we need a more hybrid approach where Sales and Marketing need to work together towards a common goal of growing sales and increasing revenues.

This change has been forced upon them by the change in the behavior of industrial buyers. They prefer to remain anonymous for a larger portion of their buying journey and only interact with your sales team when they are ready.

I have talked to manufacturers who think of manufacturing content marketing as the new way of doing organic SEO. The logic goes something like this, Get found in Google > Get visitors to the site > They’ll contact your sales team after the first visit.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. There’s a big difference between discovery optimization (SEO) and conversion optimization (CRO), even though they are related. You are not using the full power of manufacturing content marketing if that’s your narrow understanding.

Manufacturing content marketing needs to play a more active role in setting the table for Sales. It must achieve many goals for it to generate more qualified leads successfully. Here are the goals achieved by manufacturers in the past 12 months, according to the CMI report.

Why haven’t we seen any results from all the content we’ve created?

How long it takes to produce measurable results with manufacturing content marketing is a significant area of concern and frustration. The problem as I see it is that decision-makers in manufacturing companies tend to think of this industrial marketing strategy as a campaign that they are accustomed to from the past.

My answer to this question is always the same, “Industrial content marketing is a process and not a one-off campaign.” Let me expand on that a little bit to provide some clarity. It can take anywhere from 6 to 9 months, depending on the competition and the state of your own marketing. I’m upfront with my clients in telling them that it is not a quick fix for slow sales. I recommend that they consider other options if they are not prepared to invest the time and money to do content marketing correctly over the long haul. I have mentioned this fact in a few of my earlier posts too.

I also make them aware that they should expect and will see interim results such as more traffic to the site, top-of-the-funnel leads, fixing technical issues that may negatively impact engagement, and improving on-page SEO.

Manufacturers have become better at content marketing over the years. However, many had to adjust their messaging and content because of the pandemic. Here are three key findings and a chart from the CMI report.
- 39% of respondents said that their companies were in the sophisticated/mature phase of content marketing maturity as compared to 29% last year
- 70% of manufacturing marketers surveyed changed their targeting/messaging strategy in response to the pandemic
- 69% of manufacturing marketers surveyed think the pandemic will have a significant or moderate long-term impact on their organization’s overall content marketing success
How can we do content marketing when we have limited bandwidth?

The time crunch is a constant one for manufacturers because marketing is not their primary job. Their Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) are busy doing what they do best and don’t have time to create content.

You are not alone if you feel that way if that’s any consolation. More than half the manufacturers have small teams serving the entire company and they may also be handling other marketing responsibilities.

It shouldn’t surprise you that 61% of manufacturing marketers indicated that they outsourced at least one content marketing activity. Content creation is the activity outsourced most often.

There’s another problem manufacturers must deal with because of the technical nature of their business and the target audience of engineers and industrial professionals—Finding the right partner.

One thing to keep in mind is that content creation is not the same as content marketing. It is not just a matter of copywriting and or clever wordsmithing. There are many more aspects, such as a deep understanding of how engineers and industrial buyers make work-related decisions, interviewing SMEs to extract the key talking points, converting those bullet points into cohesive content that is technically accurate and presented logically, knowledge of SEO, and content distribution.

I have published articles on each of those aspects of manufacturing content marketing. Search this blog, and you should be able to find those posts.
June 15, 2021
Industrial Customer Journey and the Digital Experience
Understanding the industrial customer journey is essential to the success of digital marketing with content. Based on my conversations with manufacturers, I sometimes get the impression that it is just a marketing exercise to them and is not taken seriously. Why do I say that? Let me give you two examples.

Example #1: Conversation with the VP of Business Development of a manufacturer of industrial mixers and agitators.

Me: “How long is your sales cycle?”

VP: “Oh, it is just a matter of a week or two for us to get an RFQ or PO after we’ve talked to the right decision-maker(s).”

He was either clueless or chose to ignore the time it took for the prospect to go through his or her process or journey before deciding to contact this manufacturer. The concept of mapping the customer journey was alien to him, and he told me that it was a waste of time.

Example #2: Conversation with the National Sales Manager of a manufacturer of Butterfly and Control valves.

Me: “How do you define a qualified lead?”

Manager: “I don’t consider a prospect a lead until we have a serious conversation about putting together a quote.”

He couldn’t care less about top-of-the-funnel Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs), nurturing them into Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs) before handing them off to Sales. All he was interested in are leads that were ready to buy. (See my article, “SAL is the Glue that Binds Sales and Marketing in Lead Generation.”)

FYI: I published that article in December 2010, and it is still the third-highest visited post after more than ten years. Talk about the power of blogging!

Industrial buy cycle and the customer journey

The industrial buy cycle consists of four distinct stages, at least that is the conventional definition. The stages are:
1. Needs Awareness
2. Research
3. Consideration & Comparison
4. Procurement
According to the research done and published by THOMAS™ for industry (Thomas Publishing Company), the industrial buying process is now made up of 6 stages. Their version applies to all industrial buyers—Engineers, MRO, and Purchasing professionals in companies of various sizes and industries.

Now, you may be saying to yourself, “Okay, it has grown from 4 to 6 stages. No big deal.” Wait, things get a lot more complicated because engineers and buyers face many challenges at each stage, and they present new opportunities for the supplier. Look at this chart from another ThomasNet presentation.

Personal buying experiences influencing industrial buying expectations

Buyers of generators, pumps, motors, etc., expect the same kind of easy access to digital information, search capabilities, and comparison features that they are familiar with and similar to their personal online buying experiences. Anything less, and the visitor is off to another site with a click of the mouse.

I recently read a fascinating white paper published by Accenture. They defined this change in industrial customers’ expectations as Industrial Consumerism. I think that’s a brilliant and apt label.

Here’s a direct quote and an illustration from the white paper, which was published in 2016.

“By 2020, thanks to a seismic shift in customer expectations, B2B companies will need a completely different approach to driving growth. Is your sales and marketing organization ready?”

Conventional differentiation of the past where industrial companies relied on superior product features, may no longer be enough. Today, they must leverage newer technologies to better understand the customer journey and meet the digital expectations of industrial buyers who are in self-serve and self-select mode.

The Accenture report identified areas where digital technologies will have the most significant impact and where gaps exist.

Enter the 4th Industrial Revolution and the COVID pandemic

If the changes in industrial buyer expectations weren’t enough, the 4th Industrial Revolution has brought about significant digital disruptions in industrial sales and marketing. The COVID pandemic of 2020 has only accelerated some of these changes, and many will become permanent.

Klaus Schwab, executive chairman of the World Economic Forum (WEF), introduced the concept of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in his article which was first published in Foreign Affairs in December 2015.

Most manufacturers and engineering companies are playing catchup when it comes to digital disruptions. That extends well beyond just sales and marketing. Some companies have taken the lead and embraced digital initiatives in transforming their industrial sales and marketing strategies to better align with customer expectations.

I came across the article “Industrial Firms Need to Give Their Customers a Digital Experience,” published in the Harvard Business Review which cited several good examples. Here’s one:

“Linde, a global industrial gases and engineering solutions company, developed an augmented reality (AR) application to engage customers and facilitate the sales conversion process. Their tool uses AR to give customers a ‘live’ experience with the company’s cryogenic freezers by projecting an image of the freezer into the customer’s factory setup. While clarity on dimensions within the actual production space had previously driven a lengthy sales process, Linde’s use of AR has helped customers get over the conversion hump and improved the overall purchase experience.”

Also, read my earlier post, “Manufacturing Marketing in the Age of Industry 4.0.”

The importance of mapping the industrial customer journey

Google the phrase mapping customer journey, and you’ll get 245,000,000 results as of writing this post. Obviously, there’s a ton of information out there. However, information or someone’s opinion doesn’t easily translate into actual action.

The point is, there are no shortcuts when it comes to understanding the customer journey. Apply those insights to rethink your industrial marketing strategies and sales processes to deliver a better experience to your customers and align well with their expectations.

You can read some of my earlier articles on industrial content marketing to learn more about using this strategy for engaging with industrial buyers at every stage of their customer journey.
May 17, 2021
Manufacturing Content Marketing—What’s Ahead in 2021

No, I don’t have a crystal ball. What I do have is the brand-new report, Manufacturing Content Marketing, Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends—Insights for 2021 published by the Content Marketing Institute.

I was given an advanced copy thanks to Amanda Subler of Informa Connect/CMI, so I got to see some of the new findings before it was released to the public. You can download the final report from here.

As usual, it is chock full of useful information that manufacturing content marketers can put to good use while making their plans for 2021.

Manufacturing content marketers have grown up

Content marketing among industrial companies have come of age. That is very encouraging indeed.

It makes it easier for industrial marketing consultants like me who otherwise have to spend significant amount of time convincing clients on the benefits of content marketing. Not that I expect this responsibility to go away completely.

There are still some growing pains as you can see from the chart below.

39% of respondents indicate their manufacturing organization is in the sophisticated/mature phase of content marketing maturity, compared with 29% last year.

Manufacturers have been responsive to the pandemic

Many manufacturers have had to make serious changes to their operations because of the pandemic. Some were protective and responded quickly to meet the increased demands for certain safety related products. Others retooled their production lines to manufacture new products to meet the needs of the hour.

Early on in the pandemic, most of the content was about how manufacturers were following all guidelines from the CDC and local authorities to keep their employees, customers and partners safe.

Over time, I have seen a gradual shift to publishing content that has to do more with how companies have repositioned themselves to meet the demands of their customers as their businesses have changed.

Take a look at these two charts that tell the story of the changes brought about by the pandemic.

Note that nearly all (91%) expect some of the changes to stay in effect for the foreseeable future.

70% of manufacturing respondents changed their messaging/targeting strategy in response to the pandemic.

Content marketing tactics used by manufacturers

Just like in the past year, manufacturers continue to use a variety of content marketing tactics. I’m not saying you need to use all of them, instead use this as a guideline to figure out what makes most sense in your situation and realistically, what you can do regularly.

Not surprisingly, the use of virtual events/webinars/online courses increased to 55% from 39% last year and conversely, in-person events decreased to 38% from 65%.

Manufacturing content marketing team sizes and outsourcing

The question I get asked a lot is, “How can we get all this done when we have a very small marketing team?”

You are not alone if you feel overwhelmed by the amount of work involved in creating technical content. Take heart though, more than half (55%) of the manufacturers surveyed said that they have one or no full-time person dedicated to content marketing.

Outsourcing continues to be popular with manufacturers—61% of manufacturing marketers indicate their organization outsources at least one content marketing activity. Content creation is the activity outsourced most often at 80%.

It’s not just a matter of visiting a freelance site and finding an affordable copywriter. The biggest challenge is finding the right partner with the subject matter knowledge and expertise. If and when you do find someone, hang on to him or her because they are worth their weight in gold.

I’ve been paying attention to this outsourcing trend and offer a technical blog post writing and other content creation service. Have a look to see if it will fit your needs. 😉

Manufacturing content marketing goals and KPIs

The importance of generating leads has remained pretty steady over the past few years. However, manufacturers are using content marketing to achieve many more goals as you can see from the first chart below.

Notice how “Build credibility/trust” has climbed up to 74% from 60% two years ago. Earning trust is the cornerstone of content marketing. It sets the table for generating better qualified leads that turn into sales opportunities and wins.

How are manufacturing marketers measuring their success? Take a look at the second chart below.

That wraps up this post on manufacturing content marketing, but stay tuned as I plan on publishing more posts where I’ll dissect the latest findings and share my thoughts.

Wishing all my readers in the U.S. a Happy and Safe Thanksgiving Holiday!

November 20, 2020