4 Must-Have Lead Generation Website Examples For Steel And Metals Companies

RFI submissions for steel on Thomasnet.com are up 217% year-over-year (year-to-date 2020 vs. 2021). So how can steel and metals companies ramp up their existing efforts to increase their RFI submissions? We took a look at some steel and metals companies to see how they’re using their website to target engineers, procurement managers, and MRO managers.

What Industrial Buyers Care About Most When Shortlisting New Suppliers

The industrial buying process can be long and complex. Buyers these days prefer to source, research, compare, and shortlist potential partners anonymously online. Creating a shortlist is an essential component of the supplier discovery and selection process, but what kind of information are these buyers looking for, and what factors matter most when deciding to make a purchase decision?

We polled more than 400 real, verified, and registered buyers who source on the Thomas Network. Here a look at the top 4 most important factors they consider when sourcing new suppliers.

New Suppliers on Thomasnet.com for May 2021

This month we have a lot of exciting and noteworthy companies added onto Thomasnet.com^®. From cutting-edge advanced manufacturing technologies, such as robotics that leverage neuroscience and movement science research, to operational technologies for manufacturing security, such as quantum security products and platforms, we hope you’ll enjoy browsing our featured list of new companies added to our platform this month.

New and Noteworthy Categories on Thomasnet.com for May 2021

As North American supply chains are still recovering from the impacts of pandemic-induced disruptions, we are seeing surges of sourcing demands in advanced manufacturing services. To help the 1.6 industrial professionals who use our platform monthly find what they need, this month's categories of note include everything from aluminum PCBs to digital safety standard training, all curated to ensure you can find exactly what you need.

What Manufacturers Need To Know About Chatbots

When it comes to digital marketing, capturing leads is the ultimate goal. Always has been, always will be. How those leads are being captured, however, is changing right before our eyes. Landing pages with forms have another friend in the lead generation toolbox to help book meetings, qualify visitors, and provide information more easily.

You may have experienced them before. It’s midnight, and there you are, minding your own business, checking out a website, and hunting for information. A chat box pops up — bloop! — and asks you if you need help. This surprises you because you figured you were the only one awake at this hour. Surely their customer support isn’t available now, right?

HVAC Marketing Basics: How To Advertise Your HVAC Contracting / Manufacturing Business

The U.S. HVAC services market is predicted to increase value from $25.6 billion in 2019 to $35.8 billion in 2030. A successful growth strategy centered around your customers’ behavior can be invaluable for HVAC contractors and manufacturers. Here are some basic marketing ideas for HVAC companies to grow their business and tap into more market share.

Marketing Tasks Manufacturers Are Tackling This Summer

The summer is upon us, and while you may be on vacation for a week or two, that doesn't mean your marketing should take a break too. That's because the buyers you want to do business with are looking for suppliers like you all year round. 

How To Improve Your Supplier-Distributor Relationship

A prospect that you’ve been chasing for months has been researching you as well, checking out your product catalog on a distributor’s website and downloading your CAD models. They’ve narrowed down their shortlist to you and a couple of your competitors, and now they’re visiting your website to gather additional details.

But when they arrive on your site, what they see doesn’t quite match what they saw on the distributor’s site. Part numbers are off, and specs aren’t aligning 100%. Plus, basic company information doesn’t match with what they read before and content looks outdated.

Reconciling the differences would take way too long, so instead they just cross you off their list. And you never even knew they were interested in the first place.

Unfortunately, this scenario plays out all too frequently and prevents the supplier and distributor from meeting their goals. In some cases, the scenario results in a dropped key customer and the existing customer base begins to diminish.

Email Marketing Do’s And Don’ts For Manufacturers

In today’s increasingly digital landscape, email marketing is one of the best ways to remain top-of-mind with existing customers while gaining traction with potential leads. HubSpot's State Of Marketing Report states that promotional emails are still the number one type of email used by marketers. Smart email marketing tactics not only allow you to grow brand awareness, they also help spread the word about your content offerings and company news. When combined with other inbound marketing efforts, you can engage high-quality leads.