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How Manufacturers Botch Social Media...and What They Can Do About It
July 29, 2013 |Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
It seems every manufacturer I talk to says the same two things:
“I need more sales;” and "Everyone just wants to buy on price.”
And I ask them what makes them special and that answer will go something like this: “Well, we have the Gropple Process. We have figured out a way to do it that results in less defects and faster processing time. (You can see the execs getting animated and excited as they talk about it.) The impact for our customers is a higher quality product and better delivery times than they would normally expect.” Wow. These folks have a serious story to tell the world. So, what is the message they send to the world via social media?
“5% off if you order this week!”I'm serious. I see companies doing this every day. They have legitimate technical smarts and a great story to tell and they use social media to sell...based...on...price (and, yes, I am grinding my teeth as I write this). Every company wants to differentiate themselves from competitors and this company has just stuck their hand up and said:
“We are a commodity.”They have taken social media--the marketing vehicle designed to showcase their leadership--and used it to firmly entrench themselves at the bottom of the pack. I mean, where do you go from there? Groupon for circuit boards?
Social media is not a cute promotional tool for more price specials. It is a means for a company to strategically differentiate itself from competitors. Social media is an opportunity to get across the message that there’s something in it for the customer. Something valuable. Something that will make their job easier or better. Something that makes this company one they should consider. And that something ain’t price.There's a big difference between social media adoption and social media integration. Many companies adopt social media. Hire someone young (i.e., inexperienced, but cheap). The result is a pretty Facebook page, price specials, and no positive impact on the businesses bottom line. Social media integration, on the other hand, involves goals that support the company’s goals, integration with sales and marketing, and has measurable results that can be judged just like any other part of the company. And, yes, there are real measurable results that can be derived from social media: Sales leads. In a properly run and integrated social media program, sales leads are higher quality and less expensive than through traditional outbound media.Adoption is an expense. Integration is an investment. As a matter of fact, InSite Communications found a positive correlation between integration of social media and a companies financial results. And more profits don’t come from offering discounts.Which do you think is a better use of social media?“Ten ways to design better printed circuit boards;" or “5% off this week only?" Which provides more value? Which is more likely to build long-term profitable relationships with a potential customer?Manufacturers don’t have to give in to the tyranny of low prices and lousy margins. There’s a reason your company is around after all this time and it isn’t because you charged the lowest prices. Social media is a tool that can help you showcase your industry leadership and the reasons why your customers keep coming back to you.Bruce Johnston is a sales consultant specializing in social media and especially LinkedIn. He has over 25 years experience in high tech sales and management. He can be reached at brucej@practicalsmm.com or through his profile on LinkedIn.