Signals from the Field

As artificial intelligence (AI) tools like ChatGPT explode in popularity and are layered onto platforms like HubSpot CRMs, many credit unions raise questions about the safety of using them. We have heard questions such as:

As a B2B manufacturing company are your marketing, sales, and service functions integrated and automated? An effective CRM increases sales revenue because it:

We regularly update the following post with the latest information pertaining to Digital Marketing Budgets.

Last update: November 2022 

B2B manufacturer marketing is not flashy because unlike B2C it is not about new trends and selling an irresistible product to people with disposable income. In B2B, there has to be a justifiable business need for someone to seek out products or services and since the investment is usually large, the buyer has no room for purchasing errors. That means the buyer needs a lot of clear, organized information that instills confidence that the product or service will work well in their process, integrate with the existing system, and solve their problem.

Producing content about your products and services is the most effective way to leverage organic search through an inbound marketing strategy (also known as content marketing). People such as engineers and plant managers searching for manufacturing equipment, typically experience a buyer’s journey that includes three phases: awareness, consideration, and decision. To leverage the power of inbound marketing for manufacturing equipment, content should be created or optimized for each of these stages in order to attract, engage and delight customers. 

If you work in B2B manufacturing marketing, you put a lot of thought into how to reach prospective customers including what marketing channels are best and the messages to resonate with your target audience. Your sales team is actively engaging customers and leads at tradeshows and through regular contacts but that only engages the leads you know about. 

Pages on a manufacturer's website that specifically name the industries you serve and how you solve problems for businesses in that industry are valuable content that serve many purposes. Manufacturing marketers can realize several benefits when website content is planned and built out around the types of businesses that use their product or services.  The below menu is an example of how one manufacturer structured its industry pages.

Effective websites attract visitors to your pages over competitors’ but a poorly designed or non maintained website can actually drive away prospects. Your website is the face of your business and if done well, is the primary tool for capturing the attention of prospective customers.