Every company has different goals and metrics to measure marketing success, but we can simplify the objectives to two main points:
- Attract more visitors to your website to learn about your products and services.
- Convert those visitors into customers.
These goals link marketing to advertising. Marketing includes strategies like setting up your website, creating content, optimizing for search engines (SEO), email marketing, and social media. Advertising is when you pay to promote your brand to potential customers. Marketing helps drive people to your website, but advertising is essential for consistent web traffic and new prospects. Here are five effective digital advertising tactics for manufacturers:
1. LinkedIn Advertising
LinkedIn is the top social media channel for manufacturing companies. Before advertising, you need to set up your company page, tidy up your personal page, join relevant groups, and follow best practices. Once your LinkedIn presence is established, you can use its advertising tools to target specific markets, industries, job titles, and more. LinkedIn’s ad options are tailored for business-to-business (B2B) companies like yours, allowing for experimentation with different pricing models to fit your budget.
2. Contextual Targeting
The internet runs on keywords. Contextual targeting allows you to place ads on websites, blogs, and articles that include manufacturing-related keywords. For example, if your company makes industrial machinery, you can place ads on sites with keywords like “gearboxes” or “right angle gearboxes.” This combines SEO and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, but with the advantage of displaying a well-designed ad instead of just text.
3. Retargeting
Attracting visitors to your website is easier with advertising and marketing efforts, but converting them into customers is more challenging. Many visitors don’t make a purchase on their first visit. Retargeting helps by keeping your brand in front of these visitors after they leave your site. This is done by adding a code to your website that tracks users’ device IDs and IP addresses, complying with data privacy laws. This allows you to show ads to past visitors on other websites, boosting conversions and building brand awareness. Retargeting is also useful for re-engaging previous or dormant customers.
4. Community-Based Targeting
While LinkedIn is crucial for professional B2B advertising, Facebook (Meta) can also be valuable. Business owners and executives often participate in local networking and business groups on Facebook. You can target these users based on their interests, adding a personal touch to your ads. This method allows you to reach people in a more casual, business-oriented environment, complementing your LinkedIn efforts.
5. Industry Publications
The manufacturing sector has many trade publications, both in print and online. These publications are trusted sources for industry news and trends. If you’re running print ads in these magazines, ask about digital advertising options. Digital ads are generally more cost-effective and measurable than print ads. Focus on online publisher advertising if you know which sites your audience visits for information. This is an easy and effective way to display your ads to a targeted audience.
Using these digital advertising tactics can help manufacturers attract more visitors to their websites and convert them into customers, ensuring steady revenue growth.
