Digital Marketing for Manufacturers: Four Ways to Generate Leads in a Competitive Market

In a competitive manufacturing market, marketers are presented with many challenges and opportunities. With constantly changing trends, marketers must navigate buyer expectations, what is effective and much more. A digital marketing strategy is more important than ever before to keep up with these trends and to ensure marketing efforts are aligned and moving forward with business goals. Here are five ways to generate more leads in a competitive market through effective digital marketing for manufacturers.

Utilize a Mix of Marketing Channels

There have never been more channels and opportunities to distribute content than there are today. Creating a presence across digital and traditional marketing channels is critical in the manufacturing space to reach target prospects. As channels continue to develop and grow in popularity, it is essential to understand which ones make the most sense for you to utilize. Connecting with your audience should be the top priority, so consider which channels they tend to frequent and use them to your advantage. Making sure you have touchpoints on these various channels for your audience allows you to create a consistent, unified experience. The consistency on each channel to channel is also important to note. Consistent branding across marketing channels and platforms can increase not only lead generation but also revenue by up to 23%. While it might seem enticing to use every marketing channel, you do not need to have a presence on every one. Instead, focus on channels that make sense for your organization and are proven to deliver results.

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Create a Library of Diverse Digital Content

As digital content consumption rises, so does the need for content creation. As people increase their usage of social media, videos, podcasts and more, they are constantly looking for fresh, engaging content. It is apparent that the need for content creation is at an all-time high. Plus, content drives digital marketing for manufacturers and lead generation opportunities.

How can you create content at an accelerated rate to keep up with buyer expectations? Here are a few tricks that can help you save time and resources while maintaining high value and impact.

• Keep it simple. Marketers try to overcomplicate content. Keep it simple. Think about your audience and their needs and pain points. Write content that addresses those. Craft content that provides value to audiences so that they can take something back to their organization and implement it.
• Repurpose content. This is a simple tactic that many marketers overlook. Some of the most valuable content you have is the stuff you have already written. Use what you have and turn it into something else. Have an article? Think about turning it into a blog series. Do you have an eBook? Think about how you can turn it into social media graphics. These can elevate your digital marketing to a new level with minimal effort.
• Outsourcing. Handing off content marketing to an outside source can be very beneficial. It gives you peace of mind knowing content marketing is handled and you can focus on other marketing or business activities.

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Enhance Search Engine Optimization Efforts

Search engine optimization (SEO) is a critical component of effective digital marketing. Here are some key SEO strategies to enhance your digital marketing for manufacturers.

• Keyword research. This step helps you identify keywords that are important and relevant to your target audience. It also gives you the starting point for content pieces. Knowing what your audience is searching for tells you what content to create.
• On-page content optimization. With a keyword as the focus for each content piece, on-page optimization is the next step. Ensure the keyword is included in your title tag, meta description, URL and throughout the content. Improvements in SEO boost search engine rankings and visibility, thus bringing more traffic to your website.
• Technical SEO. Your website is just as important as the content you create. Technical SEO elements include website speed, mobile responsiveness, site architecture and more. Google’s PageSpeed Insights tool can crawl your site and let you know key technical issues that are hindering your websites performance.

Incorporate Personalization Techniques

While personalization isn’t a new aspect of digital marketing, it is continuing to become more valuable as buyers are expecting more personalized experiences in the buyers journey. Upwards of 90% of people say they find personalization appealing. Audience members want to feel valued and it is in your best interest to deliver the most personalized experience that you can. Adding personalization fosters a connection, what does this mean for manufacturers? Here are a few examples:

• Segment by product interests. It is likely there are specific buyer personas that utilize certain products. Providing these specific personas with content relating to products that they will use or are interested in will further their progress in the buyer’s journey.
• Segment by job titles or other lead characteristics. Lead data collected is very valuable. This gives you the ability to segment your database and deliver personalized content or email touches that are specific to their job role, interests and more. This shows them you are tuned into who they are and give them relevant information.
• Segment by website behavior. Most organizations track website behavior. This gives you insight into what pages a visitor goes to. Based on this, you can give even more content or useful information to support your prospects in their journey of getting to know you and your product offerings.

Digital marketing for manufacturers is a key element for lead generation opportunities. Follow these strategies, you will be on your way to generating more leads and revenue for your business.

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