Discover how to generate high-quality manufacturing sales leads with our top 10 strategies for B2B manufacturing firms and create a steady stream of meetings for your sales team.
Attracting new customers for your manufacturing business is akin to cooking a delicious meal, combining various ingredients for success. The mix of ingredients, their quality, and quantity are pivotal in determining the outcome of finding new B2B Sales. Just like cooking, continuously fine-tuning your approach improves results.
Below, I've outlined some winning formulas for manufacturing firms looking to grow and expand. Your task is to use these key components, adjusting the recipe as needed, to create a compelling sales and marketing strategy that both your team and customers will find irresistible.
The result? A truly satisfying success story!
Google Pay Per Click Advertising for Manufacturing firms
Social Media - a powerful strategy for Manufacturing firms
Search Engine Optimisation- get higher search engine rankings
Differentiate your Manufacturing Business
Leverage the power of Video content
Segmenting for Targeted and Personalised Outbound Strategies
Use a range of outbound strategies; don't rely on just one
Choose a Sales Automation tool to boost sales performance
Use a Customer Relationship Management System (CRM)
Include Cross-sell and Upsell in your sales process
Achieving B2B sales success with Google Ads is like having extra salespeople dedicated to winning new business 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Thorough research on your target audience and understanding their preferences is crucial, as is timely follow-up. You can maximise the effectiveness of your advertising budget by utilising well-researched keywords, quality scores, tracking and analysis, and optimised landing pages that capture leads (and their contact information) for sales to follow up.
For more information on Google Ads, visit our page to read about our fully managed Google Ad Plans.
Social Media is crucial for manufacturing firms, as it offers various platforms (such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and X (Twitter) to engage with customers. Choosing the right platform is key and should be based on where your target audience spends their time.
Utilising Social Media for advertising and Social Selling are distinct strategies. Many manufacturing firms opt for a combination approach, such as running paid LinkedIn Ads alongside Social Selling activities. This involves targeting prospects on LinkedIn, leveraging your sales team to expand their LinkedIn network, providing valuable content to connections, and nurturing online relationships with potential customers.
Expandi automated LinkedIn prospecting makes it effortless to expand your sales pipeline and early sales funnel with new LinkedIn 1st connections and reach 2nd and 3rd connections via campaigns and content using personalised messages, all within LinkedIn guidelines and terms of use.
Conducting a website review and effectively using blogs is essential for all businesses to improve search engine rankings and attract more potential customers.
Covering the basics of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) makes a huge difference to your website's visibility on Google. For example, by incorporating relevant keywords strategically into each page of your website and including keywords in headings, titles, and meta-descriptions, you can significantly improve your search engine rankings and visibility.
By focusing on elements such as on-page SEO, off-page SEO, and technical SEO, you can enhance your website's performance in search results. Additionally, creating a FAQ section on your website helps answer common queries and makes your website more user-friendly and informative for visitors.
Remember to regularly assess your content strategy and stay updated on keyword research to maximise the benefits of SEO. Read more about maximising content for SEO in our blog article. While SEO may take time to yield results, it is a valuable strategy that can significantly impact your B2B lead generation efforts and drive organic traffic to your site.
Focusing on these fundamental aspects of website optimisation can lay a strong foundation for attracting organic traffic and engaging with your target audience. Remember, small changes can make a big difference in improving your SEO and ultimately drive more website traffic.
Integrating a Chatbot or Live Chat feature may not directly impact your search engine rankings. Still, it can significantly enhance the overall user experience on your website, which is a goal we all aim to achieve.
Value versus volume, bespoke versus standard, quality over utility—depending on your position in the supply chain, standing out in a crowded market can be challenging.
Competitors often make similar claims about their products or services. Effective strategies to differentiate include adding services to products, such as offering leasing/rental rather than outright purchase, maintenance with Service Level Agreements (SLAs), and pick-up and delivery logistics, all covered by guarantees in response. You can instil trust and confidence in potential customers by clearly outlining how you stand behind your products or services and what specific benefits your guarantee offers.
Service Level Agreements with guarantees are a solid differentiator that helps you build credibility and demonstrate your commitment to customer satisfaction. They not only reassure customers about the quality and reliability of your offerings but also set you apart from competitors who may not offer similar assurances.
By showcasing your guarantee prominently in your marketing efforts, you can attract customers who value transparency, integrity and peace of mind when making purchasing decisions.
SLAs play a pivotal role in ensuring seamless operations between businesses. These SLAs act as formal contracts that define the expected service standards, response times, and resolution metrics, fostering trust and reliability between ecommerce partners. With the rapid pace of digital transactions, timely and effective customer service becomes crucial, and SLAs serve as a safeguard to maintain high service quality.
Naturally, implementing a robust system to manage SLAs and keep customers updated can significantly enhance the efficiency of your customer service team. Discover how the latest features in HubSpot's Service Hub are designed to accomplish precisely this.
Two key criteria for buying decisions are 'show me it working' and 'tell me who else is using it'.
Case studies are a powerful tool for building trust and credibility with potential customers, showcasing real-world examples of how your products or services have benefited your previous clients. These in-depth stories provide a detailed look at the challenges faced, the solutions implemented, and the outcomes achieved, giving prospects a clear understanding of the value of your offerings.
By highlighting specific case studies that resonate with your target audience, you can effectively demonstrate how your products or services address their unique needs and pain points and perhaps show a use case they may not have previously considered. This personalised approach helps build trust and allows potential customers to envision themselves experiencing similar success by choosing your company.
Furthermore, case studies serve as social proof, validating your claims and providing evidence of your expertise and track record. They offer a tangible way to illustrate the benefits and results of working with your business, making it easier for prospects to see the value in what you offer. Incorporating compelling case studies into your sales and marketing efforts can help you win new business by showcasing the real-world impact of your solutions.
Video has become an essential tool for engaging B2B audiences, and there is a growing preference for video consumption. Whether it's a polished, professional video or more candid iPhone footage, both have their place in promoting your business effectively.
From showcasing a virtual tour of your premises to giving a behind-the-scenes look at your production process, video content offers a dynamic and engaging way to showcase your business to potential prospects. By incorporating visually compelling videos into your marketing strategy, you can capture attention, convey your brand story, and connect strongly with your audience.
In recent years, video has become a valuable asset for sales teams. Tools like Hippo Video, Loom, and Wistia offer a convenient way to send personalised video messages to prospects and customers, enhancing the effectiveness of almost any sales sequence. With an array of new AI-powered features, including text-to-video, it's worth exploring what these video platforms can add to your messaging to help your teams cut through the crowded inbox. Don't overlook the power of video in creating personalised content and converting your target customers.
Consider expanding your use of video by having your support team create short explainer videos or screen recordings to assist with customer queries or support calls. Videos can offer an effective means of communication, especially in situations where the intended message may get lost in an email.
Consider incorporating a video gallery on your website or blog posts. This is an excellent way to showcase related videos highlighting your products, awards, milestones, and achievements.
Watch example video created by a salesperson at a Woodway UK [packaging company]
Segmentation is a valuable strategy that helps businesses group potential and existing customers based on shared characteristics like age, location, or past buying behaviour. By targeting these market segments with tailored campaigns, businesses can attract customers more likely to engage and purchase. Segmentation allows for a deeper understanding of your audience's needs, interests, and behaviours, enabling a more effective sales and marketing strategy.
B2B companies tend to focus on firmographics and business needs
Firmographics are key characteristics of a business organisation that can be utilised as criteria for segmentation. In contrast to demographics, psychographics, or behaviours commonly used by B2C marketers, B2B marketers may focus on different criteria such as:
In order to make effective marketing decisions, B2B companies also need to understand the buying process and decision-making criteria within the businesses they're approaching. This will ensure that the messaging, marketing experiences, and sales activities are designed specifically for the business they’re approaching.
Market segmentation is the strategic process of identifying, organising, researching, and targeting specific segments within a larger target market.
In understanding this definition, we can outline a simple four-step process for developing a segmentation strategy:
1. Identifying the major segments within your broad customer base - Conduct broad market research to uncover your target market's characteristics, desires, and needs.
2. Organising the target market into segments - Define segments based on various features and characteristics of your market.
3. Researching and selecting a segment - Dive deeper into each segment to determine which one to focus on in your marketing campaign.
4. Creating offers, crafting messaging, and selecting venues - Develop offers for the targeted segment, create messaging that resonates with them, and choose venues that will provide maximum exposure for your target audience.
Other types of segmentation to consider are;
Diversifying your outbound strategies is crucial for successful lead generation. By incorporating various tactics, you can maximise your reach and engagement with potential prospects, such as multichannel campaigns across email, social media, phone outreach, advertising, in-person events, and direct mail.
Each channel offers unique opportunities to connect with your target audience at different touch points in their customer journey. Email campaigns allow for personalised and targeted messaging, with the option of including 1:1 personal video messages. Social media platforms provide a space for interactive and engaging content. Phone outreach allows for direct and immediate communication. Advertising reaches a broader audience. In-person events create face-to-face connections, and direct mail can stand out digitally.
Using these tactics, you can create a cohesive and comprehensive outbound strategy that effectively captures attention, builds relationships, and drives conversions. Remember, the key is to adapt your approach based on the preferences and behaviours of your target buyers to ensure maximum impact and results.
We cover these elements in our growth plans. If you would like more information, please contact us or book a meeting for an obligation-free chat
Sales automation streamlines your processes and empowers your sales team to focus on what truly matters – building relationships and closing deals. By automating tedious tasks like data entry, follow-ups, and scheduling, you free up valuable time that can be better spent on nurturing leads and providing top-notch customer service.
Choosing the right sales automation tool is crucial for seamless integration with your CRM system. This ensures that all customer interactions and data are stored in one centralised location, providing a single source of truth for your sales team and, in fact, across all teams and departments within your business. With real-time access to up-to-date customer information, your team can deliver personalised and targeted messaging that resonates with your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP), buyer personas, and existing customers.
Investing in a sales automation tool that aligns with your CRM boosts efficiency and enhances team collaboration. You can drive revenue growth and customer satisfaction by automating repetitive tasks and providing valuable insights into customer behaviour and preferences. Review all the features and what's included in HubSpot Sales Hub on our comprehensive Sales Hub page.
Generating leads to your ICP and Buyer Personas via email outreach, Google Pay Per Click Ads, and LinkedIn campaigns can become overwhelming without a CRM. With the inclusion of a CRM, all of the above come together and function much more effectively, with very little or no IT support.
Your CRM is a valuable tool for enhancing your business's sales, marketing, and customer service operations. Its primary function is to efficiently organise, record, and facilitate actions based on customer data, ultimately guiding and progressing customers through each stage of their buying journey.
Numerous CRMs are available in the market, each with its own unique features and benefits. While some may be challenging to use and result in low adoption rates, others may require specialised IT consultants for installation. Selecting the right CRM is vital as it will become the foundation of your sales and marketing success.
After exploring many options, we selected HubSpot due to its user-friendly interface and award-winning functionality. HubSpot's intuitive design allows for seamless navigation across the HubSpot suite, making it easy for team members to transition between different hubs (Service Hub, Sales Hub, etc)
In addition to the free plan, HubSpot offers various paid options, including Starter, Professional, and Enterprise plans. Each package comes with a wide range of features and hundreds of integrations that cater to B2B businesses across various industries, such as manufacturing, distribution, wholesale, and more.
The free online training academy ensures all users can maximise the platform's capabilities. With seamless integration capabilities and cost-effectiveness, HubSpot is an ideal choice for manufacturing firms looking for an efficient and user-friendly CRM. HubSpot is approximately 40% cheaper than Salesforce). Read our article what can a CRM do for my business to learn more about the benefits a CRM can bring to a manufacturing firm.
In 2024, 74% of companies report that cross-selling and upselling drive up to 30% of their total revenue highlighting the significant impact these strategies have on business growth.
Cross-selling is about offering related or complimentary products to what a customer is already buying. Think of it as helping them complete their purchase. For example, if someone is purchasing a laptop, you could suggest adding a laptop case or an external hard drive to their order.
Upselling, on the other hand, focuses on encouraging the customer to buy a more premium version of the product they’re interested in. Instead of just suggesting add-ons, you’re offering an upgrade. A good example is offering a customer a higher-end smartphone with better features when they're browsing the standard model.
For a close look at how to include cross-selling and upselling in your sales motion, read our article here
If you need assistance implementing any of these initiatives, please use this link to contact us for an obligation-free chat or read about our sales consulting services and our success with growth plans for manufacturing companies.
From Lead Generation Campaigns, Go To Market Strategy, defining Ideal Customer Profile, Pricing and Packaging review and Sales Process audit, we guide you on what to do and how to do it. And show you the potential for Sales Hub to assist your sales team.
Winning Big Deals - the Sales Playbook
Comprehensive Guide to Google Ads
lead generation for manufacturing firms
What is an ICP and a buyer persona?
Grow your business with Sales and Advertising Campaigns
Align your sales process with the buyers journey
The Sales Cycle | HubSpot Blog
McKinsey | The future of B2B Sales