We spend a lot of time working with manufacturing and industrial companies. During our years of marketing for manufacturing, we've noticed that many companies miss some of the basic things required to make an online presence productive.
We see websites that fall into one of three categories:
Business Card - This type of website is small, sparse, and just has the basic contact information for the company. No one that does not already know the company ever finds this type of site.
Catalog - This kind of site has basic company contact info as well as a listing of the products and services that the company offers. Often times the info is exactly the same information as listed in the sales literature. These sites have few if any, offers or solution-based content relating to the issues target customers face. This type of site is focused on the company and not its customers. Catalog sites are rarely found by anyone that does not already know the company.
Magnetic - This type of site is focused on customers and how the company can solve their problems. It is full of educational content that is regularly updated and refreshed. This type of site is optimized and includes many opportunities for visitors to convert and continue to communicate with the company. New people are finding this type of site every day and the company generates new leads and new sales based on their engagement with visitors. Magnetic sites benefit from their ability to answer their customer's questions and leverage their unique expertise.
How Do You Build a Magnetic Website?
Building a magnetic website that generates a significant return for your company is a process. To take the first step in that process consider the following elements of your site:
- Calls To Action and Offers - Are you asking visitors to do something; download, watch, read, share, attend?
- Conversion Forms - Are you asking your prospects for something, i.e. their contact info, in exchange for downloading helpful offers?
- Web-Only Phone Number - You should be tracking the calls that are generated by your website. You should also begin to track ROI for your online marketing.
- Blog - Be an expert and publish consistently! Studies show that blogs are one of the most effective ways to generate traffic and leads online.
- Case Studies and Testimonials - Are you taking advantage of case studies and testimonials to show visitors how you solve problems and make their business better?
- Social Media - Using social media sharing buttons gives visitors a chance to follow you. Social media also provides another outlet through which visitors can consume your updated content.
By helping our clients implement these basic online strategies, we've been able to see firsthand how rapidly they can increase leads and sales. Recently, one of our clients landed a deal with a customer that found them online. That one deal grew our client's company by 30%!
There are many manufacturers generating leads and sales using these and other online marketing tools. If your website is not one of them, you are falling behind, and catching up will only get more difficult the longer you wait.
Who knows who might find you if you give them a chance?
Topics: Marketing, Manufacturing
