While manufacturing and construction are distinct business processes, they have a lot in common. For instance, both processes require a certain level of manual labor – even though the intensity differs.
Another similarity comes from the fact that in many cases, both processes are aimed at producing products for commercial use. Also, both manufacturing and construction processes must produce a desirable level of quality on the end product.
When it comes to marketing, the two industries also share numerous similarities. Marketers in the construction industry appear to face the same problems that those within the manufacturing industry experience.
Understandably so, considering the ‘boring’ nature of the product offerings of these industries. No wonder a good number of manufacturing and construction brands are still stuck with the traditional methods of marketing, such as networking events, trade shows, and word-of-mouth referrals.
And while these tactics work to some degree, the cutthroat competition in these two industries demands you do more in terms of marketing. The current customer demands a digital presence.
Better yet, digital marketing is the best channel to tell fascinating stories about the most seemingly boring products and services.
Before we determine why manufacturing and construction firms shouldn’t be left behind as far as embracing digital marketing is concerned, let’s define digital marketing.
What Is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing is the process of promoting your company and its products or services on the internet. Digital marketing encompasses dozens of strategies that are designed to enhance brand awareness, besides ensuring consistent business growth over time.
Digital marketing utilizes online channels, digital technologies, as well as electronic devices to advertise and market a brand. Some of the most popular digital marketing techniques include pay-per-click (PPC), search engine optimization (SEO), email marketing, social media marketing, content marketing, and so on.
Benefits of Digital Marketing for Manufacturing and Construction Firms
Manufacturing and construction companies cannot afford to overlook digital marketing. Don’t believe me?
Here are some of the things you will be missing out if you don’t focus on digital marketing:
1. A great way to position your brand as an authority in your industry
One outstanding trait about B2B buyers is that they don’t engage in impulse buying as consumers do. Even their buying process is quite different. For instance, industrial buyers do not buy a product without first establishing the business need for acquiring it.
Ever heard of someone hiring a construction company to build a shopping mall on a whim, without even having the land for it ready? Yeah, me neither.
After a clear need has been established, the industrial buyer then proceeds to determine the requirements that the product or service must meet, after which they start considering the right product/service to purchase.
Industrial customers’ buying process also entails determining if purchasing the product in question is financially justifiable or affordable. Your customers’ buyer journey is comprised of three major phases: awareness, consideration, and finally, decision.
As such, one of the best ways of gaining a competitive edge is to position yourself as an expert in your industry. Use your company website to provide valuable content to your target market.
While your website visitors may not always be ready to purchase your products at the time of the visit, the content they find will determine if they will ever remember to look for you when they do need to make a purchase.
For this reason, consider creating useful content capable of making your target market earn your trust. Remember that your audience is educated and highly knowledgeable. You don’t want to sound inefficient and unaware of your product’s potential.
2. An opportunity to establish credibility
Manufacturing and construction companies must not only exhibit their specialized expertise but also credibility. Prospects want to work with a brand that knows its niche exceptionally well.
Proper use of digital marketing can help you establish credibility. Publishing things like how-to-tutorials and blogs can assist your business in building a strong reputation as the thought leader in the construction or manufacturing landscape.
3. The perfect way to create and spread brand awareness
Digital marketing allows construction and manufacturing companies to not only create but also spread brand awareness. You can use various digital marketing platforms to do so.
Brands can achieve this using online platforms such as social media (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc.), email marketing, search engine optimization, and content marketing. Fight for a strong online presence because the better it is, the easier it will become for new clients to find your construction or manufacturing business.
4. A simple way to showcase your products and services
Nowadays, businesses have a variety of easy-to-use internet platforms at their disposal for demonstrating their products and services’ use cases. Firms in the manufacturing and construction industries find this feature particularly useful mainly because it may not always be easy/possible for the target market to experience firsthand how your products can be of help to them.
Live Q&A sessions and video demonstrations can help manufacturing and construction businesses to grow their potential client base. Plus, you can show your products’/services’ value without the hassle and expense of an in-person demonstration.
5. A way to put your marketing on auto-pilot through automation and integration
Digital marketing allows manufacturing and construction companies to automate their different functions, including customer relationship management (CRM), enterprise resource planning (ERP), email marketing, and so on. By using construction CRM software, construction companies can streamline communication, track project progress, and manage client relationships more effectively.
The beauty of automation is that tasks that were previously handled by the employees are performed by software. This means that workers can concentrate on other essential activities.
Automation also brings about efficiency, time-saving and effectiveness. For instance, in the case of email marketing, and automation solution allows faster email response and better management of the subscriber list.
With automation comes the desire to use several solutions at the same time. Companies are yet to find a single automation software capable of accommodating all their business processes. Now, how can companies use several software solutions at the same time without negatively interfering with the business processes?
Integration is the way to go! Two great examples are SyncApps by Cazoomi’s Salesforce to Mailchimp and Dynamics 365 to Constant Contact integrations. Some of the companies operating in the manufacturing industry, such as Promag Enviro, are already using SyncApps to integrate their two software solutions – NetSuite (for handling core business processes) and Mailchimp (for automating their marketing activities).
Promag Enviro, an industry leader in the supply of chemical and equipment for treating wastewater and water, has managed to link Mailchimp to NetSuite thanks to SyncApps seamlessly. As a result, the company has an increased ability to serve its customers.
Conclusion
It’s almost impossible for businesses in the manufacturing and construction industries to grow in the absence of digital marketing. You need to position your brand as an industry leader, build credibility, build brand awareness, and, most importantly, make your target market aware of what you’re selling.
What a better way to achieve all this than with the help of digital marketing? And while at it, don’t forget about the incredible benefits of marketing automation and the much-needed integration to make the most out of your digital marketing efforts.
