The Importance of Email Marketing for Manufacturers

I’ve covered many other industries. Now, it’s time to tackle email marketing for manufacturers!

These days, there are dozens of ways to attract customers. Printed advertisements are falling by the wayside. In their place, digital marketing is rising to the challenge. It is, after all, a convenient and adaptable way to woo potential customers.

Moreover, digital marketing has embedded itself within the fabric of the manufacturing industry. Its capabilities have earned the medium boundless respect, yet it harbors a little-known secret. Its showier version, social media advertising, often takes center stage. However, digital marketing tactics truly shine when brands utilize the medium’s lesser-known offshoot, email marketing.

That’s why I’m dedicating today’s blog post to the power of a well-rounded manufacturing email marketing strategy.

It’s time to see the potential of your marketing campaigns! An email is more than a message. It’s a vessel for valuable content. In skilled hands, email marketing becomes a multifaceted solution to customer relationships. It even extends beyond simple customer acquisition. With the right marketing strategy, your manufacturing company can turn the otherwise mundane art of email marketing into a perennial source of constant contact, recommendations, success stories, and tailored messages.

How?

Well…

The Benefits of Email Marketing for Manufacturers

First, I want to dispel some pesky myths.

Contrary to the vocal opinions of some opportunists, email marketing is not dead. It’s also far from dying! In fact, 38% of small businesses reported an increase in their email marketing budget in 2023. Similarly, 87% of marketing professionals cite the channel as their most important marketing strategy.

Yes, it’s more common in business-to-consumer (B2C) ventures, but a well-implemented email marketing strategy can be an equally valuable asset for any business-to-business (B2B) transaction — and that includes your manufacturing business!

The Power of Consensual Content Marketing

One of email marketing’s greatest strengths is its status as a consensual marketing channel.

Let me explain.

Unlike social media or SEO marketing, emails are wholly and unambiguously mutual exchanges. (The only exceptions are mandatory transactional messaging and cold emails.) Subscribers must agree to receive emails from manufacturing companies. Thus, every customer begins with some preexisting knowledge of the brand.

This inherent familiarity gives email marketing efforts an unprecedented amount of strategic power.

Through segmentation, a manufacturing company can craft incredibly specific audiences and deliver equally intimate messaging. Similarly, existing customers can become a target audience, laying the groundwork for satisfaction-driven strategic messaging.

Amplify Your Impact With Targeted Campaigns

Speaking of segmentation, it would be foolish to overlook the importance of email marketing’s robust customization options.

Yes, on the surface, users gain access to a mind-boggling array of bells and whistles. Automated email campaigns increase output and engage email recipients at opportune times. Drip campaigns build brand awareness. Newsletters become vessels for trustworthy industry news.

However, I must also emphasize the importance of segmentation and personalization. These tools create separate lists for different audiences, ensuring everyone receives relevant content. They’re essential parts of industrial-scale email marketing, capable of making or breaking customer relationships.

Grease Those Sales Funnels With an Email Marketing Strategy

Perhaps more importantly, this two-pronged approach to email marketing provides businesses with an unprecedented amount of control over their sales process.

This is a foundational element for any successful email marketing strategy, but its importance really shines in pricey industries. With more expense comes more consideration, meaning email marketing campaigns must accommodate many potential customers and mindsets.

It’s an unavoidable fact of large-scale business. The manufacturing industry shares its lengthy sales process with similarly high-value industries — including construction, higher education, and real estate.

Fortunately, email marketing tools simplify the customer journey. Customers enjoy relevant content marketing, and companies reap the benefits of fully automated messaging.

Every potential customer is satisfied, even entirely new prospects.

Tips & Tricks to Improve Your Email Marketing

We know why to use email marketing for manufacturers. Now, I want to emphasize the practical side of the equation.

How does one go about implementing email marketing for their manufacturing business?

Manufacturing companies already have so much to do. Between delivery and customer service, it may seem there’s no time to ponder the specifics of how to deliver strategic messaging to potential customers. It may even seem as if it’s impossible to find enough time to even begin planning an effective email marketing strategy!

If you relate to those statements, don’t worry! I’m here to prove otherwise.

Yes, it takes work. You won’t build an effective email marketing campaign overnight. However, with the right tools, even the busiest of manufacturing businesses can reap the success of top-notch email marketing!

Find the Right Email Marketing Software

Start with a solid foundation.

You’ll need strong email marketing software to handle your key metrics. Klaviyo, MailerLite, and Moosend are just a few examples of premium email marketing packages. These platforms serve countless businesses — including industrial companies — by managing every aspect of email marketing.

Of course, there are few one-size-fits-all solutions in the world of email marketing software. Each option has its strengths and weaknesses, and your “perfect” fit may change as your email strategy evolves. Ultimately, the best pick will be whichever email marketing platform helps you save time and maximize your profit.

I can’t tell you which option to choose, though! That’s up to you. However, you can simplify your search by considering these critical features:

• Audience Management: What does your customer relationship management look like? You’ll want a tool that handles your customer relationships intuitively. Consider how many people are on your mailing list and how you wish to sort your potential clients.
• Automation: Find something that’s easy to use. (I’ll discuss this more in a moment!)
• Data Reporting: How much information will you use? Is your email marketing doubling as a direct line of communication? Similarly, are you leveraging your emails to create a positive user experience? Educational content can only carry you so far. You must also have the data to back your messaging.
• Database Management: Do you want automated list hygiene? Some email marketing providers offer built-in list management; others do not.

Master the Art of Email Marketing Automation

Okay. Backing up a bit…

Email marketing automation powers most modern marketing campaigns. It’s the process used to schedule and dispatch future campaigns. For most manufacturing businesses, your automated flows will likely revolve around delivering trustworthy industry news.

At the very least, you’ll want the ability to segment subscribers. This ensures you’ll deliver relevant messaging and urge prospective customers further down the sales funnel. However, you should also seek out options that allow varied scheduling tools and in-depth customization for each email campaign.

Know How to Capitalize on Lead Generation

You’ll also need some sort of lead generation plan.

As exciting as it may be to you, most consumers aren’t thrilled about your company news. You can dress it up as much as you like, but you won’t drum up more business by focusing on yourself. More importantly, you won’t collect email addresses with a company-centric strategy.

Fortunately, there are many ways to attract new customers. An enticing subject line is only the beginning! Many brands drum up interest by using lead magnets to pull in more email contacts. These tantalizing handouts often contain well-researched information on industry trends and manufacturing businesses as a whole.

You can also get more creative! Video tutorials and interactive content marketing are similarly effective ways to begin building customer relationships.

Regardless of which route you choose, you’ll need to know your target audiences and place within the industrial marketing landscape.

Hire a Professional Email Marketing Team

At this point, you may be saying, “Woah, Melanie! That’s a lot to consider. I already have enough on my plate. I don’t have time to compose an in-depth welcome email, too!”

Well, I have good news and bad news.

The bad news is that we’ve barely scratched the surface. I haven’t even mentioned the legal side of email marketing — that bulky CAN-SPAM Act. And I’ve yet to dust off the big book of compelling subject lines!

As beneficial as it may be, email marketing for manufacturers is a tricky business. It’s all about balancing the needs of your target audience with your email marketing performance and overall budget. You may have mastered the art a few years ago, but it’s changed a lot over a decade. Now, we must consider the needs of mobile devices and newfound spam sorting advancements.

But I also have good news!

There’s an easier way to manage your email marketing!

I founded The Email Marketers as a hand-picked team of email pros. I work alongside them, producing customized email marketing campaigns to fit individual brands’ needs. More importantly, I’ll craft an valuable content to satisfy your target audience — not some generic manufacturing email marketing campaign.

The Email Marketers is dedicated to polishing even the smallest of email campaigns to a sparkling shine. We’ll tweak every subject line to perfection and dazzle everyone. Your current customers will love your newly minted email campaigns, while new subscribers will be wowed by your stellar targeting.

So, what are you waiting for?

Schedule a free strategy session and see how The Email Marketers can turn your otherwise drab email marketing campaigns into lucrative sources of revenue. You can also learn more about email marketing campaign creation while you wait; just browse the many other posts on my blog!