When you visit a web page, you naturally focus on what’s inside the browser window — the words, images, products and other elements on the page itself. However, when it comes to optimizing your own industrial website, you also need to pay attention to what’s happening up above in the address bar. That’s because the difference between having HTTP and HTTPS in your address can have big implications for your business.

As technologies continue to advance and industrial buyers increasingly turn to the internet for the information they need to find suppliers and source products, digital marketing has become indispensable in the B2B manufacturing and industrial sphere. Sending out mailers or relying on word of mouth is no longer enough to attract and convert valuable leads; now, a multifaceted approach is necessary to stay relevant in today’s shifting B2B landscape. 

A successful, ongoing digital marketing campaign will encompass a few different digital marketing strategies and elements; a strong, interactive social media presence, pay-per-click (PPC) ads, and use of SEO best practices are just a few of the many channels being used today to expand company awareness and gain leads.

But once you have a solid digital foundation in place, what are the best ways to stay ahead of the curve? Below, we’ll delve into five simple — but super-effective — ways to amp up your digital marketing presence.

Over the past few years, there’s been increasing interest in bringing U.S. manufacturing back to American shores, or “reshoring.” But “nearshoring,” or moving operations to nearby countries, rather than very far away, is becoming increasingly popular as a more economical, practical alternative to offshoring.

It’s important to have a solid understanding of both concepts when deciding on the best strategy for your company. Below, we’ll take a deeper look at these two options and compare their benefits and drawbacks.

In today’s increasingly connected world, establishing a strong digital presence is crucial for effective brand exposure and lead generation. With more and more people accessing business and product information online, it’s no longer effective to rely solely on broadcast commercials, newspaper ads, or telephone campaigns for effective B2B marketing.

As technology and industrial marketing methods continue to evolve, implementing a comprehensive, multifaceted approach is critical for staying ahead of the curve and ensuring potential leads become aware of your company.

Below, we’ve outlined some of the many different ways to advertise your business online and generate valuable leads.

The manufacturing industry can be unpredictable. One minute you might be entering into a lucrative contract with a great new customer; the next, that customer could be going out of business – putting your own company at risk in the process.

The best way to guard against this risk is to diversify your business and expand into new markets. Here are three reasons why you should consider it in your shop:

The punchline of every presentation at the first annual IMPACT Live, a two-day conference for sales and marketing executives, this week seemed to be "If there's one thing you can takeaway from this to bring back to your own company..." Which, of course, means I have more than 15 "one things" as action items in my brain — in addition to the dozens of ideas I tweeted about and my boss logged in Trello.

But if you're reading this post, you probably weren't there or feeling as inspired as we all are (or maybe you did attend and you want to re-live the magic), and I think it's unfair for me to not share at least some of the knowledge I gained from: networking with 150 marketing, sales and business professionals; listening to presentations from big names such as Marcus Sheridan, Mike Volpe, David Meerman Scott and Mark Roberge; and bouncing ideas off of the Thomas team.

There were plenty of pointers on being genuine in your company and discussions on the importance of taking risks, but if I were to write out all of the takeaways from the event, this blog post would be about 25,000 words. So, I'll keep it short (but you can get a full recap on IMPACT's blog) — here are a few considerations for you:

The American manufacturing industry is on the rise, with businesses expanding and hiring activity picking up. Now, shop owners must do all they can to manage, and maximize, their growth.  

CMTC suggested four investments manufacturers should consider when expanding their businesses. According to CMTC, two of the most important investments are equipment and warehousing:

Businesses are transitioning to LED lighting in the 5.6 million commercial buildings in the United States. And, in many regions, the addition of solar solutions for energy independence is also underway.

The number of lighting fixtures that can be connected inside and around these buildings creates significant opportunities to impact and optimize the business occupying the space with the addition of sensors and data analytics.

While the immediate goal of LED retrofits is often energy efficiency and improved space appearance, there are long-term business productivity gains that result from creating connected intelligent environments.

You worked hard to market your capabilities and nurture your prospects. Now your sales team has a healthy list of leads. However, research shows that 40-50% of these leads are ignored and never followed up on, which can add up to a lot of lost revenue for your business.

Developing an effective lead follow-up process can ensure that you don’t leave leads – and potential revenue – on the table. Here are five strategies that should be a part of your process.