industrial marketing 2014: international survey of manufacturers
DESCRIPTION
Marketing technology continues to advance as rapidly as production technology, and we here at CoreElement were interested in knowing whether or not industrial manufacturers have been keeping up with the times. Do more with less isn’t optional. Marketing is no exception. The latest tools offer intriguing possibilities when paired with new media. The question is whether manufacturers are adopting and adapting to this new world. So we decided to ask - from presidents to CEOs to VPs to sales managers - industrial manufacturers all about their marketing strengths, weaknesses, strategy and tactics. Here are some of the findings. For full survey results go to http://Core-El.com.TRANSCRIPT
A CoreElement Special Report
Industrial Marketing 2014: International Survey of Manufacturers
core-el.com
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Survey Purpose: Answer This Question
How are Industrial Manufacturers Adapting to the New World?
For full survey results visit Core-el.com
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Respondents answered 40 questions on 7 subjects:
380 responses: The Questions
• Sales Techniques & Tactics
• Marketing Strategy & Intelligence
• Marketing Automation
• Website Design & Function
• Social Media Commitment
• Social Media Usage
• Optimization
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• Span 4 continents
• Have annual revenues ranging from less than $10 million to in excess of $500 million
• Employ from fewer than 25 employees to over 10,000
380 responses : Respondents
Sales managers, presidents, managing directors & CEOs from middle market industrial manufacturers that:
Most are private, family held businesses and two-thirds have international reach.
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Respondent Economic Outlooks: Company Confidence
are “confident” or “very confident” in the outlook for their company.
Nearly
74% How confident are you in the outlook for your company?
44%
30%
18%
7%
1%
We will have our share of problems
Worried
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Respondent Economic Outlooks: Economic Concerns
What are your current economic concerns?
Qestion: How do you believe your country’s economy has performed over the past year?
Manufacturers remain uneasy about the slow economic recovery in the U.S.
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Sales Techniques & Tactics: New Customer Sources
The chosen sales and marketing strategy of most industrial manufacturers remains predictably “old-school.”
Which of the following are sources of new customers for your company?
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Nearly a third of industrial manufacturers do not treat marketing as a budgeted item.
Marketing Strategy & Intelligence: Marketing as a Budgeted Activity
31%Is marketing a budgeted activity for your company?
43%
31%
23%
2% 1%
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of manufacturers are doing all marketing in-house.
Marketing departments may be undermanned and overworked.
Marketing Strategy & Intelligence: Marketing Management
84%
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A majority are unhappy with their lead conversion rate.
Yet...
Marketing Automation: Lead Conversion Satisfaction
60%
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Roughly two-thirds use their website as lead generator or sales tool, yet many are outdated and lack mobile capability.
Website Design & Function: Opinion of Current Site
66%Which most closely matches your opinion of your company’s current website?
40%
26%
20%
10% 4%
Q: Biggest website frustration?“Too little actual lead generation.”
- T.S., USA
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Social Media Commitment: Staffing
30% reported making a real commitment to social media from a staffing perspective by using full-time staff, an external firm or a freelancer / subcontractor.
About
How is your company managing your social media program?
Committed to Social Media
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believe social media is either not for them (or for industrial companies).
The majority don’t have social media programs or aren’t tracking results.
Social Media Commitment: Attitude
23%What is your general attitude toward social media for industry?
37%
22%
15%
14%
9% 3%
Worth considering
Currently testing
Positive results
May work for some, not us
Not for industrial companies
Should have started sooner
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Social Media Usage in Industrial Marketing: Platform
46% nearly half, are sharing content via Twitter.
Which social media platforms are your company currently using?
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state search engine optimization (“SEO”) is critical to companies’ overall marketing strategies.
Search Engine Optimization: Analysis
62%We don't performanalysis
Good, it providesuseful information
Fair, it's interesting,but we're not surehow to use the data
Excellent, itcontributes to ourdecision process
Poor, the analysis isuseless
32%
31%
25%
6%6%
How would you grade the quality of your company’s SEO analysis?
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Key Findings
Industrial manufacturers are unaware of, or have not embraced, marketing automation, nor new strategies, including content marketing.
They remain rather “old-school” with their tactics, relying heavily on trade shows and cold-calling as new customer sources.
Industrial manufacturers are not dedicating the time, money or manpower necessary for finding marketing success, particularly in the area of social media.
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CoreElement creates and implements effective industrial marketing programs for manufacturers that leverage the power and intelligence of the internet.
Marketing Strategy & Planning
CRM Implementation & Administration
Marketing Automation
Lead Generation / In-bound Marketing
Content Creation
Social Media
Website Design
Search Optimization
Email Marketing Campaigns
Tracking: Statistics & Analysis
For full survey results visit Core-el.com
Call: 216-400-8201
Cleveland, OH USA 44119
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