My opinion: Marketing advice has become too complicated for owners of smaller manufacturing companies. Jargon, such as “top of funnel” and “customer journey,” are hard to comprehend, implement, and track, especially through fragmented digital marketing channels.
And too, as a manufacturer, you are B-U-S-Y. You put out fires all day long. You barely have time to respond to an email let alone sit down to work through your customers’ journeys.
How do I know? I’ve worked with people like you for over two decades.
Tracking marketing results: Conversion Reports
It’s been a year since we introduced our Conversions Report to clients. We send these reports out every week showing them where their conversions come from, their ad spend to date, and their goal progress.
I personally set and track my own goals, and do the same with my Ongoing Marketing clients as well. With one client, we’ve already surpassed this year’s RFQ goal and will hit the stretch goal by the end of the month (November).
The important things I’ve learned from compiling the data for these reports every week:
- There is no silver bullet with regard to sales and marketing
- Consistently tracking conversions every week provides actionable insights that lead to more conversions
- Your own data is 100x better than anything a guru can tell you
During a meeting, a client reported his team had received a signed PO. Yay! I immediately asked for the company name so I could match it back to the conversion report.
We couldn’t find it. “Hold on,” said the client. He checked the CRM. “Ah, that guy called in on this date at this time.”
Bingo! Found it. The call came from a Google Ad — a $5.00 click that became a significant sale. 🙌
Moral: Keep things simple
- Set goals and track your metrics religiously.
- Figure out what’s working and what’s not — and fix what isn’t.
- Don’t mess with what isn’t broken.
- And most importantly, answer your phone!
Marketing is a partnership
Our best client engagements are when clients and their sales and marketing teams see us as their partner — versus a “vendor.” Relationships are based on trust and mutual respect; we cheer all the wins, large and small.
When our clients succeed, we succeed — and that’s the best result I can think of.
