ILMA Compoundings November 2017 - 29

advertising, trade shows and referrals. They stay with the
marketing techniques that they see as tried and true, even if
the results aren't quantifiable or as effective as years ago.
There's plenty of digital noise regarding the best way to
do marketing and which avenues to travel down for the best
return. However, it's typically very fluffy, general information intended for any business. So, these companies tend
to dismiss the tactics either from lack of the convincing
argument's experience in their industry or because there's an
information overload and they don't know where to begin.
We've heard for five years about social media being effective in B2B, but which platform and what specific tactics?
We've all heard about the importance of an updated website
in the sales process, but what matters the most to you?
We've all heard about how great Google Search (organic and
paid) is to get found and generate leads, but companies have
tried it and the results weren't anything to brag about.
I'm here to cut through the marketing noise and provide
some insight into what we do every month for our manufacturing and industrial clients.

UPDATING YOUR WEBSITE

pending the last 17 years in manufacturing, with 12
of those years having served the industry's sales and
marketing needs, I've noticed that the main challenge
holding this industry back from better digital marketing
practices is the culture shift. The manufacturing and industrial industries are two of the slowest industries to respond
and adapt to cutting-edge marketing strategies and tactical
changes. The traditional marketing culture within this
industry has revolved mainly around three avenues: Print

Whether you overhauled your site two months ago or seven
years ago, the guide below will provide some insight into the
best practices used right now.
Websites used to be an affirmation of what your sales reps
were telling your clients. As long as you had a website and
it regurgitated the products, services and capabilities that
your sales representatives were pitching, you were fine. In
today's digital media climate, the website must be used as
a fine-tuned tool. The 2017 buyer, and beyond, is a more
informed buyer than in years past. They make buying decisions based on research they have done. To accommodate
the informed prospect, your website must become a sales
tool - bringing customers into your funnel and walking
them through your value proposition.
Blend the creative aspects of your site with manufacturing.
It shouldn't be strictly technical; it should have a creative
aesthetic as well, including more graphics, more images, a
larger font, full-width, no boxed content and no shrine of
photos of your products. Showing your brand in the 2017
creative environment is the key here.
What matters the most moving forward for your website
is content, because that is what matters to Google. Content
is how it ranks you, how consumers engage with you and
how they'll respect you as a subject matter expert. "Less is
more" may have been true in the past, so as to not overload
the audience with information, but we are now in the era of
the "informed buyer," and Google's algorithm has adapted.
With Google playing the largest part in how you are ranked,
it's key to note that Google does care about more content.
Accommodating this will, in turn, bring you a larger audience through increased ranking. It's less about stuffing your

ILMA Compoundings November 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of ILMA Compoundings November 2017