As mentioned in our previous blog, B2B companies are slowly and steadily dipping their toes in the social media water, and rightly so. But there is another storm brewing in the present digital ecosystem, which is integrating mobile into the current B2B marketing mix. According to Forrester Research report for 2012, “By 2016, smart phones and tablets will put power in the pockets of a billion global consumers, and mobile is the manifestation of a much broader shift to new systems of engagement”.  This power shift is compelling not only for B2C companies to pay attention to mobile marketing, but B2B companies are also waking up to the innumerable opportunities, this evolving and interactive “touch point” can offer them.

Mobile smart phones and tablets are quickly becoming a way of life for all, especially for the on-the go workforce. To put things into perspective for B2B, mobile devices are MUST have business tools and are also the primary mode of communication used by many B2B professionals. More importantly, smart phones – sophisticated mobile devices have become an omnipresent all-in-one digital companion of the masses, which combines the capabilities of a personal computer/laptop, landline phone and Internet. Due to mass conversion in the consumption of communication and content on mobile devices today, mobile has the power to justify the status of being the biggest media platform.

By sheer virtue of the phenomenal adoption rate particularly in the B2B space, as mentioned in Marketing Sherpa Benchmark Report for 2012; B2B customers are using smart phones and tablets more than B2C customers. The growing use of mobile devices is driving the needs, attitudes, purchase behaviors and expectations among this new breed of B2B segment, which is more connected, more research-oriented, and more informed than their predecessors. Yet, B2B companies are slow to untap the full potential of this anywhere, anytime, always-on mobile media, in their pursuit to connect and engage with business audiences.

According to a research led by Oracle and Endeca in November 2011, published in an e-marketer article, “nearly one-quarter of B2B ecommerce professionals said that mobile web was one of the most influential touch points for their customers; In addition, 28 percent of US c-level executives used a mobile device to research business purchases, 21 percent used a tablet”.  The significance of how content consumption habits have changed among the senior decision-making business executives further implies that B2B companies need to embrace mobile in their marketing efforts more than ever.

Moving forward, in the high-touch, highly personal selling environment of B2B, where building one to one customer-relationships is the Holy Grail, thus making it imperative for B2B businesses to have mobile-friendly assets. To make the case for mobile-optimized content marketing opportunities for B2B even stronger and viable, Donovan Neale – May, executive director of the CMO Council, mentions in the study “Engage at Every Stage”, “Mobile is an enormously impactful channel for differentiating a brand and creating much closer and more dependable relationships with customers, suppliers, and the entire value chain”.  For B2B companies to venture into the world of mobile, a haphazard approach to developing and implementing mobile marketing strategies just by having a mobile-friendly website is not sufficient. Like everything else in Marketing, mobile marketing initiatives require aligning of the complex and rapidly evolving mobile ecosystem involving different combinations of device, wireless operator, and operating system, with the companies’ objectives and needs.  Jim Hemmer, CEO of Antenna Software, emphasizes in a Forbes article, on the need for mobile undertakings to be interactive and agile rather than tactical one-off projects with a beginning and an end.

Below are some mobile marketing “best practices” to guide your lead generation and nurturing efforts, in the B2B landscape.

Assess: To start with, it is important to assess what specific pieces of the existing content library are best suited for the mobile-specific business audience in order for them to make informed decisions, perform tasks and stay up-to-date. This can mean providing users with shorter version of lengthy content through short videos, content feeds or text message alerts. And which mobile tools and approach can enhance the overall B2B marketing campaign? For instance, there are potentially dozens of mobile tools at the disposal of marketers such as, QR code, location-based mobile services, mobile apps, mobile-friendly websites, mobile web banner ads and mobile e-mail/text messaging and multi-media messaging, all depending upon which mobile tools support the needs of the business audience.

Optimization: The key is to optimize the content of the website for the mobile environment with a special focus on improving the readability and relevance of the content to ensure campaign success and stickiness. All content, links, destination pages should be mobile-optimized and presented in a consistent, simple and easy-to-use manner, which not only drives engagement but also leverages to extend brand value proposition among its target consumers.

Mobile Testing: According to 2012 Mobile Marketing Benchmark Report, only 13% of marketers are conducting mobile testing whereas 59% did not perform any mobile testing or optimization. But to be effective in this rapidly evolving digital landscape, the verification of cross-platform delivery should be a mandatory step in executing any mobile campaign. Mobile testing process encompasses various tests to ensure consistency and quality of the content across all types of mobile devices and platforms.

Analysis: One of the great things about mobile marketing is that you can measure the effectiveness of the campaign and make quick adjustments in real time. A mobile website can give you rapid data such as click-through rate, impressions, conversion rates, download counts and number of forwards. Furthermore, with the use of mobile SEO software it can help in tracking and analyzing which devices and mobile operating systems are most used by the business audience, and how engagement, abandonment and behavioral patterns vary across these devices. All of this data can play an important role in the overall analytics of the B2B marketing campaign.

Take-away Note: For B2B companies to design and build a mobile experience, they need to look at mobile in a holistic way by putting the customer experience at the core of their focus.

Written by Vidushi Bhardwaj

Vidushi Bhardwaj is the Content Marketing Strategist at Grant Marketing. She possess a strong background in content marketing and integrated marketing communications. Passionate about innovation in the digital marketing and social media space has driven her to the marketing world. You can connect with her by sharing your thoughts on her blog.

We’re all used to seeing consumer brands pop up on our respective news and twitter feeds, but the trend of industrial companies engaging in social media is becoming more and more apparent.  Products and services such as rigid plastic boxes and medical device coating services are slowly surfacing on the social media wave, thanks to B2B companies that have taken the lead on the social media learning curve such as Alpha Rho Inc. and DCHN. Industrial firms are now a part of the growing trend of business-to-business companies using social media actively in order to direct traffic towards their usually e-commerce websites or if the social media is intriguing enough then into their physical locations. According to Debra Aho Williamson, principal analyst for social media at eMarketer Inc, “About 68% of business to business companies are engaged in social media marketing, where as 79% of consumer brands use social media for marketing purposes.” The gap is getting smaller.

Although the social media buzz is still relatively new within industrial companies and many firms continue to evaluate the effectiveness of social media in generating sales. According to the article, “87 More Vital Social Media Facts,” there is expected to be a 57% growth in buyers using social media to make purchase decisions, making it the second most used channel behind only face-to-face interactions. This rise can be attributed to the fact that social media provides a more cost effective and interactive way for B2B companies to generate leads, it has also proven to shorten the sale cycle for some. However, it is tougher for B2B companies to attract buyers online, as those companies do not have the same level of brand image or positioning as their direct-consumer-selling counterparts. According to Jeffrey L. Cohen in his article, “10 B2B Social Media Predictions for 2013,” “More B2B companies will see success in generating leads with social media, but it will still not be the norm.” The way to be effective on social media is by creating content, and the divide between B2B companies creating good and not-so-good content is widening. “Marketers who have mastered the art of blogging, e-books, visual content and video storytelling will forge stronger relationships with prospects, customers and advocates, while those who don’t will get left behind. Customer expectations will drive this disparity even more in 2013.” (Cohen)

Among the company websites where we monitor their online activity, we’ve see a dramatic increase in mobile devices being used when browsing.  It is apparent that mobile marketing is becoming increasingly popular and is the new norm by which we check our email or browse the web. Soon, mobile web will dominate B2B site traffic, B2B companies must look into developing and creating mobile marketing strategies that will allow for them to effectively market their products. Companies can become more mobile friendly by creating a mobile friendly website, and if it fits in their budget and strategy to create a mobile application for IOS and Android platforms.

The majority of CEO’s of B2B companies continue to be skeptical about adopting social media, however this disconnect between B2B marketers and their CEO’s will become smaller in 2013 as farsighted CEO’s begin to see the value in social media. Many CEO’s are on edge about engaging their consumers through social media because it is believed that their target market simply does not use social media, this myth is slowly being debunked as about 55% of people between the ages of 45-54 have at least one social media profile; according to Convince and Convert.

By developing a social media presence B2B companies can enable themselves to increase the company’s SEO which is vital for when purchasing agents are looking for a company such as yours, it also allows for companies to strengthen the relationships that they have with their clients. Furthermore, engagement in social media also provides a place for employees to collaborate; this collaboration provides a more insightful perspective of the company at hand which again aids in creating more meaningful relationships with consumers. Additionally, social media can also aid B2B companies in monitoring public mentions of their companies which is integral in trying to portray a positive and inviting brand image.

The bottom line: The time has come for industrial manufacturers to get on board with Social Media before it becomes difficult to catch up with competitors who have already embraced this revenue-increasing-technology.

Written by Anushka I. Kassim

Content Marketing should be an imperative part of your strategy to drive traffic to your website and bring awareness to your brand. The main idea behind content marketing is to build engagement with potential and current customers. If you are unsure of what content marketing is then click here, but be sure to come back to finish reading this blog to view the 4 common challenges that content marketing tends to bring about.

1. Developing Meaningful Content that Engages Your Audience

Companies publish tons of content only to find that it is meaningless to their customers. Before publishing it is imperative to do some research as to what the customer wants to know and hear about your company.  A great way to conduct this type of research is to analyze your website and social media analytics, what topics got the most traffic and produced organic conversations? You should also take a look at what your competitors are doing. You may be able to learn something new about how they engage your audience.

2. Creating Enough Content

As buyers require more information before making buying decisions, it becomes more difficult to create just the right amount of information in order to satisfy their needs. According to Marketing Matter study on Challenges that B2B Content Marketers face, 64% of companies surveyed said that ‘producing enough content’ was their number one problem, ‘producing the kind of content that engages’ came in a close second with 52%.

One must be able to keep the buyer engaged throughout the buy cycle. You not only have to provide detail information about your company’s products and services, but you need to be able to highlight why your company is superior to your competitors. It can be rather difficult for a buyer to figure out which company is best for them, but you can make this process easier by placing a spotlight on your company’s best characteristics. It is the right content and the right amount of content that will aid in creating a long lasting and profitable relationship based on trust between your company and your customer.

3. Repurposing Content

Reusing content can be tricky, but to be effective you need to reach your buyers wherever they may be found.  About 45% of companies in the Market Matters survey placed ‘producing a variety of content’ as their top challenge in content marketing. Consumers may research information that relates to your company in many different places so you want to be sure they find information on your company in all of those places. For instance, a consumer could watch videos, subscribe to e-newsletters, listen in on webinars, or keep a tab on your social media presence. To decide where you need to be you must find out where your audience lives and researches information you may have. If it is mostly through social media then you need to be on sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Don’t panic! Instead of posting the same thing with a twist on each of these sites you can also just post it once and set up your accounts in such a way that the content gets posted on all of them.

4. Lack of Budget and Lack of Human Resources

The most difficult challenge with content marketing has got to be learning how to allocate your budget. About 39% of companies ranked their lack of budget at the very stop of their content marketing grievances in the study conducted by Marketing Matters. You can pay others to create content for you or you can try and create it yourself, either way you have to decide how much money or time you want to invest/. To reiterate some statistics from my last content marketing blog: In B2B Marketing’s research on content marketing it was approximated that marketers spent 25% or more of their budget in content marketing and that 60% of B2B marketers intend to increase their content marketing budget in the next 12 months.

Needless to say content marketing is on the rise, and it’s on the rise because it is effective!

Written by Anushka I. Kassim

Social Media Strategist

Grant Marketing

On June 26th we will be sponsoring a live workshop exclusively for manufacturers and distributors. 60% of all clicks from organic search go to the top 3 listings and 75% of searches do not go beyond the first page. If you are a manufacturer or distributor trying to generate sales or inquiries from your website, how are you going to achieve your objectives if you are not on the first page of Google?

Join this unique workshop presented by Bret Olseth and Julie Heltunen of EcreativeWorks. They have designed websites and/or provided search engine optimization for thousands of industrial companies. The workshop will be divided into 3 phases. Phase one is a tutorial on how to increase Google Ranking. Part two is a one-on-one review of your company’s  specific website, and part three is a lesson on how to install Google Analytics on your website.

To register for this workshop that will be held at Riverside Office Center in Newton, Massachusetts go to Online Workshop .

Just  a brief note that Grant Marketing has moved to Back Bay Boston. You will find us on the 16th floor of the Prudential Building. We look forward to greeting clients in our new location where the coffee is always hot or cold bottled water, if you prefer. Once we are settled we will be hosting brand and marketing workshops. Our first workshop is on June 26th for more information click on Web Sales and Google Ranking.

For more information on our move go to Grant Move .

by Bob Grant

All indications are that American manufacturing is coming back and will lead us out of our economic doldrums.  According to a recent study by the Boston Consulting Group wages are rising in China, and although significantly lower that US wages, when combined with other production costs and shipping the China advantage drops to single digits. This has encouraged manufacturers like Caterpillar, and NCR to bring back manufacturing operations to the US. While China and other countries will continue to manufacture many products used in the US, we will see lot more products “Made in the USA” in the next five years according to Boston Consulting Group.

According to a study by Global Spec,  20 of 23 industries expect higher sales in 2011 including paper, printing and textiles,  packaging machinery, chemicals, plastics and rubber, medical equipment and instrumentation.

Manufacturing companies of all sizes should be evaluating their sales and marketing strategies to take advantage of this new opportunity. According to the Global Spec study 75% of engineers and purchasing agents will spend three or more hours per week for work related purposes. These individuals spend time viewing supplier websites, online catalogs. They also do searches on general search engines, read e-newsletters, and subscribe to online events like webinars.

How can manufacturing marketers prepare and take advantage of this potential new business?

1.     Develop an online marketing plan – with the continuing increase of engineers and buyers using the Internet for research and locating vendors for products and services, be sure to develop an online marketing plan and strategy, including e-mail marketing, webinars, and social media.

2.     Build content on your website – Engineers and buyers will visit company websites that make their jobs easier. They are looking for resources to make decisions. If you have a catalog, make it online searchable. If you have engineering information, place it on your website. The more  specific content you have on your website will also help make it more popular with search engines, which will give your site more favorable positions for  certain keywords and phrases.

3.     Track activity for ROI – At a minimum, add Google Analytics to your website, so that you can track how vistors located your website and which pages converted them to leads. There are also other programs that can identify visitors and keep track of subsequent visits. Programs are also available for tracking phone calls from your website.

If you need help with any of these suggestions, contact us.

by Bob Grant

Bob Grant

A recent white paper by Frost and Sullivan distributed through GlobalSpec  addresses how and why the marketing landscape has been shifting from traditional methods of marketing to online marketing methods, and  the process buyers and engineers currently  use to locate suppliers and make purchasing decisions.

While I agree with the paper’s premise that looking for products and vendors online has lagged behind how consumers use the Internet to make purchasing decisions and purchases, the mental process of industrial buying has not changed for decades. The buyer or specifying engineer, when determining that he or she has a need for a product, would begin a search for the right product and company. For years most manufacturing companies invested in sales people, manufacturer reps, trade shows, and advertising, to generate sales. However, once industrial buyers recognized a need, the buyer sought out the seller. This is the selling premise that Thomas Register, now Thomasnet, was built on since 1905. That is 115 years ago. At one point, Thomas Register had more than 20,000 manufacturers marketing this way. So, what has changed is not so much the process, but the medium.

Buyers can now search more easily for manufactured products on Google, Yahoo, Bing, or more vertical industrial sites like Thomasnet and GlobalSpec. Thousands of manufacturers are aware of the importance of the Internet to the buying process. What separates the successful from the not so successful manufacturing marketer is the content of the website and the visibility on the Internet.  Industrial buyers need information and they want to be able to retrieve that information quickly and efficiently. Companies with websites that grab attention and provide resources and content to solve the buyer’s needs are more likely to get the order.

The next advance in industrial marketing will be social media. Like the Internet, consumers are leading the way in social media, and it is almost a requirement that online and offline merchandisers must provide a platform and community for consumers to review, compare, and comment on products. I think we will see a growth of online social media networks for industrial and b2b buyers over the next several years.