Manufacturing salespeople, I’m going to tell you something that may shock you. It’s time to take a more hands-off approach to prospect nurturing. I know, I know, that goes against everything you’ve been taught. However, just like you cannot expect to get married on a first date, you cannot expect to meet a prospect and close a deal immediately. The biggest mistake I see salespeople making is not customizing the sales approach based on where the prospect is in the buyer’s journey.

Not everyone is ready to buy, especially when you are approaching your quota deadline and fielding update requests from your sales manager. So, what are manufacturing salespeople to do to stay top of mind to their prospect and develop a relationship that ends in a sale? Also, what about all the TIME it takes to follow up with key prospects? Use the 3 key steps below to streamline your sales cycle and customize your approach to each prospect’s stage in the buyer’s journey more efficiently.

3 Key Steps to Streamline Prospect Nurturing Quicker and More Efficiently

• Targeted a specific type of buyer (prospect persona)

Need help? Why Developing Buyer Personas is Invaluable for Manufacturers

• Developed relevant and interesting content

Need help? Why Manufacturers Need a Content Map for Inbound Marketing Success

• Setup an automated way to personally communicate while you do another task

I know, the 3^rd point is daunting to most manufacturing salespeople.  Have you not found a way to clone yourself? Would be nice, right? Read on to hear how you can essentially “clone” yourself and multi-manage your prospect nurturing.

“I Like Pizza” Watch the movie Multiplicity. Not all clones are created equal!

Well, it is possible to save time and clone yourself, if executed correctly! Automated email sequences are the closest thing to cloning in the sales world and it works amazingly for us and our clients.

What Are Automated Email Sequences?

Email sequences are a pre-written, customizable series of emails and task reminders. Turn repetitive tasks, such as follow up reminders into simple, easy-to-launch messages. We utilize sequences to following up with prospects when they do the following: download an eBook, we see them at a trade show and think they can benefit from our media interview services, we identify a prospect that should parlay company announcements into published industry news stories, or even when we are trying to reconnect with a lead we have not spoken to in months or even years.

At any time, our agency may have multiple, buyer’s journey staged sequences with 4 or more emails, timed to send over a series of days. We can set reminders to call or even remind us to send a LinkedIn invite to prospects once emails have been automatically sent. Sometimes we get a response from a prospect on the very first email, which prompts an immediate conversation. Other times, the entire series plays out and we get nothing (which is good!)

Why You Should ‘Go For the No’

What’s good about hearing nothing back from a prospect you may wonder? Ever heard of ‘going for the no’? Not everyone who you meet in a target industry or who views your website is a prospect. The technology we use allows us to see if a prospect has opened an email and if they have clicked a link we provided. This inside knowledge of the prospect’s behavior, such as a download or reading of an eBook makes the follow-up call so much easier and more focused on their behavior.

Now sit back, use data to help you identify the best-performing sequences and bam, a successful use of your time and the perfect appearance of professionalism from your new cloned self.

Related Articles You May Enjoy:

• The 5 Biggest Inbound Marketing Mistakes Manufacturers Make
• Why Developing Buyer Personas is Invaluable for Manufacturers
• Inbound Marketing for Manufacturers

Manufacturing sales reps can compare the sales of the manufacturing sales process to a retail experience. From fast food to retail clothing, the phrase “How may I help you” is uttered repeatedly, almost unconsciously by armies of clerks, waiters and yes, sales representatives. In retail, the assumption is you are searching for something, otherwise, why would you be in the store, a brick and mortar store no less (read on).

Free Inbound Marketing for Manufacturers Assessment

In manufacturing sales, especially with high-ticket equipment, the sales cycle might be 12 or even 18 months. A consultative approach almost always requires in-depth questioning, audits, assessments and maybe even sample projects. Are you there to help? Of course you are.  If your prospect feels more like you are selling then consulting, a natural distrust creeps into your relationship. No one wants to, let alone admit to, being sold.

In our eBook, The Industrial Manufacturer’s Guide to Inbound Marketing we explain how building trust, converting visitors to leads and retaining customers is all about your prospect’s self-discovery of just how you can help.  And, here lies the success for manufacturing sales companies, focus on how and IF you can help. We find prospects more willing to discuss goals, challenges, and plans if they understand that your questions are just trying to determine if you and your company can help. How you can help, why, with what tools and tactics are best received if the prospect discovers this fact for themselves. See the inbound sales funnel here.

There is plenty of time, later in the process, to show your fancy presentation. I often repeat the phrase:
‘I am just trying to determine if I can help.’ Your questioning, unlike an inquisition, should be bolstered with tips and tactics that not only provide value to your prospect but position you as a caring expert in your field.

Can you help? Perhaps. You still need to gather information from your prospect to not only move them through the buying cycle but to discover for yourself if your services are a match. Also, do you like this prospect and can you do something spectacular together? This part of the process is most similar to dating. You’re not proposing marriage, talking about future kids and picking out china patterns on the first date. Dating is questioning. Keep asking and keep stating, you’re just trying to see if you can help. And, through mutual self-discovery you and the prospect both determine there is a way you can help, now your sale is closed.

Let’s face it, the manufacturing sales process needs a refresh. While manufacturing has evolved tremendously over the last 20 years, the manufacturing sales process has remained stagnant. Manufacturing sales managers are still using cold calling and door-to-door sales methods that are not only time intensive but also have little return-on-investment. Learn how inbound marketing can automate the manufacturing sales process and close sales quicker and more efficiently.

Real Time Analytics

Inbound marketing software allows manufacturers to get real time analytics about the visitors on their website. You can view a prospect’s log of every page they’ve viewed, every email they’ve opened (and every time they’ve opened that email), and every content offer to which they have subscribed. The insight sales managers can get from inbound marketing is powerful. Based upon a prospect’s behavior, you can learn what products or services they needs, gauge how seriously the prospect is considering your company, and determine where that prospect is in the sales process. Then, sales managers can tailor the sales tactics to the customer and have a more successful close rate.  Check out How to Convince Your Manufacturing CEO to Invest in Inbound Marketing for more information on the insight you’ll receive from implementing an inbound marketing platform.

Automating the Sales Process

Automation is a powerful tool that saves sales managers valuable time during the sales process. As your prospect continues to visit your website and read your content, they can automatically be enrolled in what we in the marketing world call “workflows”. A workflow is a series of content that is sent to that prospect that they are enrolled into based upon doing a certain action. We do a variety of workflows for our clients.

Sometimes, they are triggered by the prospect’s job title and industry, other times they are based upon a prospect visiting a certain page more than once or a series of pages on related products or services. Once the prospect completes a workflow or continues to visit your website many times and we are fairly certain that the prospect is in the decision making stage of the sales cycle, we can create “triggers” to tell a sales manager to pick up the phone and call a prospect.

Inbound Methodology

Inbound marketing works and saves sales managers time and money that they would have wasted pursuing prospects that weren’t ready to buy. However, the inbound marketing process isn’t as easy as it seems. There is considerable research required to develop engaging content that leads prospects through the sales funnel and learn the nuances of each individual buyer and how they liked to be engaged with by your company. On top of a need for constant keyword research and content development to keep attracting prospects to your website.

Long gone are the days of cold calling and door-to-door sales. Inbound marketing and automation give sales managers insight on who that prospect is and where they are in the sales process. Interested in learning more about inbound marketing? Check out our blog The 5 Biggest Inbound Marketing Mistakes Manufacturers Make for more information on how to avoid inbound marketing blunders.

Why Connecting with Past Customers to Grow Manufacturing Sales Works

Persistence, heart, effort pay off for Cleveland Indians in 2017

The key to manufacturing sales success that you’re probably missing is connecting with past customers. People, by nature are drawn to familiarity. It is much easier to sell to someone you have a previous relationship with than sell to a new prospect. You know that feeling when you run into an old friend at a restaurant? You went to high school, perhaps served in the same military unit or simply lived in the same neighborhood. We love to share past experiences and we all know what it’s like when you hear “You just had to be there!” When it comes to manufacturing sales, being familiar wins.

Customers relationships should be viewed the same way. You provide a reliable, memorable experience. Perhaps you spent weeks or months working on the sale, maybe another 6 months delivering your products and services. We also know that each experience with your customers, let’s call them ‘touch points,’ only further cements the relationship.

Past customers, like old friends, want to hear from you. Simply reaching out to tell them about your recent projects, sharing an article they might enjoy or announcing a new initiative (as we just did, click here), brings people back to the table.

Wait, you mean those folks who trusted you, gave you money willingly and occasionally return with more money in their hand? Create memories and build on familiarity. “You remember that time, Mr. Customer, when we went to the Indians’ game and they broke the record for the most consecutive wins in the American League?” How can you keep the same feeling alive with your customers?

When we announced our international marketing collaboration with Adexma, we received countless ‘congratulations, nice to hear it, way to go’ messages even from past customers who have not purchased in months or years. We, Felber PR & Marketing, are the familiar. We were established in 1993, so we have many past friends, shared experiences, and stories. Oh, do we have stories. Sharing our knowledge with our network, whether in an email, via social media, or even as a speaker for a colleague’s association, creates more ‘familiar’ touch points. Add up the points and you’re winning the relationship game.

So, then, why are we so fixated on always attracting shiny new prospects? Well, we all need new customers and they really do keep us on our toes. New customers help our companies grow and further develop our offering. Are you starting to see where I am headed? You have invested so much in the new customer relationship. And, just when they trust you and are comfortable with your service, billing and culture, you close the door. You can almost hear your mother now, “you don’t call, you don’t write, you don’t even like the photo of your father in his plaid golf shirt I posted to that book site…”

Keeping in touch with your network is simple in the digital age and one simple touch can make a huge impact.

Sending regular emails, a hand written now, commenting on their LinkedIn post, sending a “customer exclusive offer” are all examples of keeping in touch. Be the familiar, not the lost friend. Use the resources you have in social media and email communications to keep your family close. Keep the pressure on, now and throughout the season and you too can string manufacturing sales, win after win for your firm.

Guest blog provided by Hannah Gierosky of Briteskies

ERP system integration is a hot topic in the manufacturing sector and for good reason. Today’s manufacturing companies face a variety of challenges: pressure to increase productivity, lower operating costs, and manage ever-changing data needs. These days, data is king. Most companies do not have an issue generating data; problems arise when trying to access it and leverage it to positively position themselves within a competitive marketplace.

One of the best ways to harness the power of your data is to integrate your ERP with B2B eCommerce capabilities. By adding B2B eCommerce, you can greatly improve the effectiveness and efficiency of your back office processes. Using a sophisticated integration strategy, B2B companies can leverage the combined power of their ERP system and the online channel to simultaneously increase revenues and drive costs out of the organization.

Connecting an eCommerce system to a large and stable ERP, such as JD Edwards, allows for a seamless movement of data. However, the integration effort can be one of the most difficult parts of any implementation initiative. These projects require a robust and well-planned strategy that covers data flow, business logic, and an ERP integration methodology.

Data: There Can Only Be One Source of the Truth

The first item that should be addressed in an ERP and eCommerce integration project is to determine where each data element should be stored, and which system “owns” the data. You should consider specific items such as Customer Master Data, Item/Catalog data, and Customer Order Information.

After you decide on where each item should reside or if it should be shared, create a data map so that ownership is clearly defined. A great mantra to keep in mind is: “There can only be one source of the truth,” which will help you establish whether the eCommerce or ERP system should own the data.

Put the Logic Where It Belongs

After it’s determined whether the eCommerce or ERP system owns each piece of data, consider the business logic required to process an eCommerce order. ECommerce systems typically include functionality that is duplicated in the ERP, such as item pricing, taxing, and order processing. In considering these redundancies, you should look to keep a business function within the system that is best suited for processing that function.

A great example is tax calculations. In most instances, you can keep the tax calculation function of the ERP, as this is where all order processing occurs. However, if orders entered into the ERP are not taxed and the orders in the eCommerce system are taxed, then it make more sense to have the eCommerce system house the tax calculation logic.

Use the Best ERP Integration Methodology for the Job at Hand

Finally, you should look at ERP integration methodologies. There are a host of options from which to choose, including a simple FTP process, an MQ Series, Web Services, and more. It’s often more beneficial to use an integration methodology that is already being used. This allows for consistency across all projects. We believe that this allows the development team to better understand and support new integration points.

Also, consider how close the data needs to be to real-time, as the closer it is to real-time, the more labor-intensive and costly the integration project becomes. We also like to keep things as simple and straightforward as possible. Over-complicating the integration simply makes everything that much harder, from programming it in the beginning to supporting it after go-live. If you’re keeping everything as simple as possible, it’s usually a good indication that you’ve chosen the best integration method.

Summary

Integrating a B2B eCommerce site to an ERP, such as JD Edwards, can be a challenge, but it’s worth the effort. Getting your back office and eCommerce site to communicate with each other will significantly improve sales interactions for your company. This allows the order management process to become seamless, and data and order information to be easily accessible.

In executing any integration, planning, organizing, and documenting a strategy allows for a much smoother project. So measure twice, cut once, and keep things simple.

If you’re interested in integrating your ERP and B2B eCommerce systems, contact the qualified Briteskies team to see how we can help.