To manufacture great products and customer experiences, your business processes must be on point. Every stage— from the sales lead to the production line to delivery—should be well-executed. This is why aligning your sales and marketing efforts is so important. It unifies two departments that fuel revenue generation and brand awareness, empowering you to make big business decisions.
READ THE BLOG: BEST PRACTICES OF USING THE CONNEX VIRGINIA MARKETPLACE TO FILL IN SUPPLY CHAIN GAPS
In this blog, we’re closing the deal on manufacturing sales and marketing:
- Why manufacturers should align their sales and marketing teams
- How social selling and sales tactics work
- How to boost manufacturing sales and marketing with this continuous improvement tool
Why Align Sales and Marketing in Manufacturing?
- You get better brand awareness.
Maybe you offer revolutionary product features. Or fast customer service. Or an easy shopping experience. Whatever your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) is, marketing helps you compete with local, international, and online businesses by creating and distributing relevant and engaging, SEO-rich content that shows why your products or services are worth it. On top of that, better brand awareness means a better chance of retaining top talent.
- Stronger lead generation and nurture.
Marketing can also aid sales by generating and qualifying leads through email, social media, webinars, and events. Marketing can then nurture these leads with personalized and well-timed messages until they are ready to buy.
- Conversion and revenue can go through the roof.
Sales can enhance manufacturing marketing efforts by offering feedback on the quality and quantity of leads and the challenges and objections encountered during the sales process. Sales can also leverage the content and tools that marketing provides, such as case studies, testimonials, demos, and proposals, to persuade and close prospects.
- The buying process becomes much simpler.
Buying from manufacturers can feel complicated. It’s even more challenging with remote work, where approvals might need virtual meetings or long email threads. By simplifying the buying process, trained reps, and investing in e-commerce can help manufacturers make things easier. This means better communication, fewer repeated tasks, and better resource use. Ultimately, you’ll see improved efficiency, cost savings, and a better investment return.
- More customers, more retention.
Marketing and sales can improve customer experience and retention by ensuring consistent and personalized communication and interaction across the buyer journey. Advanced analytics and CRM systems can tailor content and communication to meet customer needs and preferences. With better customer loyalty, you can shorten the sales cycle in turn.
Social Selling: The Key to Better Manufacturing
Social selling uses social media platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to connect, engage, and influence potential and existing customers. Rather than pitching or spamming, social selling is about building valuable relationships. Here’s why it works:
- It expands reach and visibility.
Social selling can help salespeople reach a larger and more diverse audience beyond their network and geographical constraints. By sharing valuable content, insights, and opinions, salespeople can showcase their expertise, increase visibility, and attract more prospects.
- It enhances trust and reputation.
Social selling can also help salespeople establish and maintain trust and reputation with their prospects and customers. By interacting and engaging with them regularly, salespeople can demonstrate their authenticity, credibility, and reliability, as well as their understanding of the customer’s needs and challenges.
- It accelerates sales cycle growth.
Social selling can also assist salespeople in accelerating the sales cycle and growth by enabling them to identify, qualify, and nurture leads faster and more effectively. By using social media to research, listen, and communicate, salespeople can tailor their messages and offers to the customer’s preferences and pain points and move them along the sales funnel.
- It tracks hot trends for your sales strategy.
Social selling can also be an effective tool for tracking and capitalizing on manufacturing trends. By maintaining an active presence on platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook, manufacturers can stay ahead of industry developments, such as additive manufacturing, collaborative robots, smart manufacturing, and other trends detailed in the How Small Manufacturers Can Use Market Research To Stay Competitive blog. These trends can be instantly communicated to your manufacturing team and implemented into your business processes.
Continuous Improvement Elevates Your Manufacturing Sales Strategy
Boosting your manufacturing sales doesn’t have to be a tough nut to crack. A clear strategy, the right tools, and a healthy dose of grit can change your sales game. Speaking of the perfect tools, CONNEX Virginia can drive your continuous improvement efforts— a huge lean manufacturing principle.
CONNEX Virginia is an online database and communication platform created specifically for Virginia manufacturers, both large OEMs and small suppliers. With CONNEX Virginia, manufacturers can quickly adapt to changing market demands, find new qualified suppliers, identify contract opportunities that match their capabilities, and connect to state manufacturing resources.
By facilitating these connections and providing real-time analysis of supply chain risks and opportunities, CONNEX Virginia improves sales and marketing strategies for manufacturers. Get a free assessment from GENEDGE to get started!
