Production Machining

AUG 2013

Production Machining - Your access to the precision machining industrial buyer.

Issue link: https://pm.epubxp.com/i/144459

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 25 of 67

WYSIWYG Exploring Marketing & Communications Strategies for Manufacturers Search Engine Optimization for Small Manufacturers Doesn't Have to be Complicated By AJ Sweatt S earch Engine Optimization (SEO) is a combination of technical and content techniques that ensures that a website maintains its highest prominence in search engine return pages (SERPs). By following sound protocols and principals, it is presumed that a site will rank higher in SERPs than a site that does not. Tese techniques include how a website is organized, coded and how often it's updated. Often, SEO requires the assistance of a professional designer to ensure that all SEO requirements are met to maximize a website's prominence. Also, unethical techniques used to "fool" search engines into raising a site's ranking can result in the site being "blacklisted" and severely afecting its trafc volume. Search engines are defnitely a critical path to your website: buyers and sourcing professionals continually point to them as one of the frst tools they use to identify new suppliers while they're in the discovery stages of the sourcing cycle. For this reason alone, adhering to sound SEO principles A combination of must be included in any strong, useful shop's successful marketing content coupled with strategy. sound, reasonable But because you're a contract manufacSEO techniques is turer, the volume of trafc the best solution to your site isn't as imporfor a discrete parts tant as its quality. Getting manufacturer or 1,000s of visitors to your job shop. site is meaningless—even if you have the resources to quote that many jobs and manage that many relationships, that volume would seriously stretch your resources too thin. Also, driving more trafc to your website without ensuring the content a prospect fnds there is useful to them is like inviting visitors to an empty shop. For contract manufacturers, the content of the site and how it's categorized play an even more critical role to diferentiate one's business from the many supply options ofered to buyers in this critical stage. A combination of strong, useful content coupled with sound, reasonable SEO techniques is the best solution for a discrete parts manufacturer or job shop —this approach won't break your budget or resource, and still give you the opportunity to encourage more prospects to take the next step and contact you. 24 PRODUCTION MACHINING :: AUGUST 2013 Your website's content is what will infuence buying prospects that are researching high-tech sources to manufacture a part and sustain the supply efectively. A high level of context and experience are necessary to create enough confdence for a manufacturing prospect to contact you as an alternative. In these industries, that's your primary responsibility through your company's site. Tat level of content will also directly impact SEO efectiveness. See the content and context of your site in terms of the value to your prospects frst, and SEO as a secondary beneft. Linking to your website from as many manufacturingrelevant directories, online marketplaces, forums and blogs is also good for SEO. By spending a little time each week participating in these relevant platforms, commenting on other relevant manufacturing blogs/articles, and keeping your business listings updated will create natural paths to your site and enhance your SEO posture. Te same SEO requirements are just as important for the profles you set up for your business on other sites. Te content you add to them is important and so are the SEO principles and techniques the owner of the site that houses your profle uses. Ask if they optimize for search engines as part of your due diligence when assessing whether or not to formally join a manufacturing marketplace or network. SEO is a crucial role for any online presence. But the value propositions vary somewhat between mass consumer market businesses and those you serve. Te more sophisticated buying cycles, stricter validation requirements for potential suppliers (that's you) and technical capabilities of the real world impact how SEO factors into your online marketing requirements. For most small and mid-sized manufacturing businesses, focusing on SEO as a primary performance metric isn't as efective for increasing exposure and sales as you might be led to believe. CONTRIBUTOR AJ Sweatt is the principal of AJ Sweatt Logic & Communications. He helps small and large industrial companies improve their businesses through tailored, sensible marketing strategies and is a speaker in the manufacturing industry. Contact :: 404-202-3536 ajsweatt.com

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of Production Machining - AUG 2013