Marketing Strategy for Engineering Companies

Frequently Asked Questions

• Why do I need a marketing plan?

  The best companies plan ahead, have their leadership engaged in marketing, and are proactive, looking to the future while staying on top of the present. In the world of B2B marketing, priorities can change overnight and organizational needs can shift quickly. Having stakeholder alignment and a documented roadmap are the keys to future marketing success.

  

• How do I build a marketing plan for my technical business?

  Start by identifying your marketing planning committee. We recommend including the head of marketing, head of sales, senior sales manager, senior engineer, and the president or CEO. Set aside a full day of planning where you document your marketing goals, budget, team, marketing activities, personas, content plan, and metrics. 

  

• How should I source my marketing program?

  Though each company organizes its marketing team based on its unique culture, budget, and expected outcomes, there are three general approaches you can take:

  • Do-It-Yourself (DIY)
  • In-House Hire
  • Outsource to a Marketing Agency

  Each one has pros, cons, and cost analysis to consider and thoroughly evaluate before making the best choice for your company.

  

• What key marketing investments should I make?

  Whether you fall into the camp of “just getting started with digital” or “ready to get better results with content,” here are top 3 marketing investments we recommend:

  1. Redesign or improve your website, including the content housed within it

  2. Create and promote technical content that educates your audience and builds credibility and thought leadership

  3. Create or enhance your LinkedIn company and executive profiles

  4. Utilize organizations you are a member of like CSIA, by keeping your profile up to date and including new resources that link to your website 

  

• What activities should I include in my marketing plan?

  More than 60% of the buying process happens online, before a prospect ever speaks to someone on your sales team, with technical buyers now consuming more than 13 pieces of content in the evaluation phase of their search for a product or solution. 

  We recommend prioritizing the following four areas in your marketing plan: 

  1. A continually updated, high-performing website that is optimized for SEO

  2. A consistent cadence of  technical content that is written, published, and promoted online to increase brand awareness, thought leadership, and new leads

  3. Differentiated brand marketing including messaging, brand identity, and visual content including interactive graphics and video

  4. Marketing automation and lead nurturing to generate qualified leads and create efficiencies throughout your marketing and sales organizations

  

• What is the difference between inbound and outbound marketing?

  Inbound marketing focuses on the customer and involves four stages: attract, convert, close, and delight. Where outbound marketing focuses on reaching the customer by going out of your way to contact them, inbound marketing reaches them in a more organic manner by focusing on content shared on your website.

  

• How can I measure the ROI of my marketing plan?

  We recommend creating a marketing scorecard that measures overall marketing health metrics, like Web sessions, new contacts, and leads as well as metrics tied to your specific marketing campaigns. To be the most effective, your marketing scorecard should have specific targets and baselines to measure against.

  

• How far ahead of my product launch date should I create my plan?

  Product launches often require 3-6 months of advance preparation. Creating a plan and timeline well in advance of your launch will help ensure it's successful. 

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• What do I need to do before I launch an ABM campaign?

  ABM is all about focusing your marketing efforts on targeted accounts who are most likely to buy your products or services. When done well and applied to the right scenario, ABM can create efficiencies in your marketing organization and deliver faster, more targeted results than broad-based approaches. But it’s not a one-size-fits-all tactic and there are some prerequisites to success.

  1. Determine your selected accounts and the specific target audiences within those accounts.

  2. Create customized messaging for the target audiences.

  3. Know where this audience looks for information (i.e. website, LinkedIn, trade publications).

  4. Have tools in place including a CRM and marketing automation software to execute and manage the ABM campaign.

  5. Ensure you have your account contacts information updated in their contact record within your CRM.

  6. Get sales and marketing aligned on the campaign objectives, timeframe, budget, and success metrics.

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