Foundry-Metalcaster UGLY Marketing Newsletter 365501

$39
CEO, Owner, Marketing Director Edition

Money Inside this issue
Q&A…………………………………………..7
Hot topic…………………………………….2
Copywriting Review……………………3
Time Management……………………..6
Philosophy Corner………………………8
My Schedule………………………………8
Peek in my library………………………4

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Foundry-MetalCasting

UGLY
Marketing Newsletter
“Powerful, NOT pretty”

Mark’s Monthly Musings…
Your website sucks… and is losing you
money…While preparing a marketing article for the
AFS magazine, I came across some interesting
research.(And I assume if you are reading this
newsletter, it doesn’t include your foundry…) A
surprising number of foundries and metal casters do
not have any type of website. Hopefully, just an
oversight. This is a primary failure to understand the
market. In today’s age, your customers are searching
on the internet. Buyers, agents, reps, purchasing
agents- you name it- all have computers on their desks
as primary tool for work and research. The days of
using yellow pages, calling information 411, and using
paper is almost non-existent in B2B markets. There are
a few exceptions, but don’t count on anyone finding
you without at least a minimalist website. (Unless you
have a HUGE referral program in place that you
aggressively monitor and monetize. But that’s another
article for another edition.)
But the more important point, since you probably have
a website if you are reading this, is how poor the
existing websites are in this industry. Sure, the
technology is changing rapidly. What everyone
proposed yesterday or last week is now out of vogue.
But I am not referring to the pretty stuff. You don’t
need dancing cat videos to entertain visitors. I’m
talking about websites that 1. Are not generating any
revenue 2. Are not saving you any time or labor, and
3. Are oriented to your business and not clients.
Yes, you are probably an engineer. And you took one or
two marketing courses somewhere in your history. But
let’s shift and realize that marketing shouldn’t be a cost
center but a profit center. Using your website is one
way. Instead of making it a digital brochure, it needs to
be useful- and oriented- to your prospects/clients, and
reduce the load on your staff at the same time. I would
divide these issues into six categories:

Mark Mehling
1. Designed for easy prospect answers to common
questions. Not an FAQ (the old Frequently Asked
Questions) but white papers, case studies, and
other data prospects can use to justify their
decisions. Your team can probably tell stories of
how many times prospects ask the same questions.
Answer these on your website and the phone calls
(and wasted time) will diminish.
2. Should reduce phone calls that distract your staff.
The method in #1 is only one way to cut time
wasted answering questions by phone. Is your site
clear about how to request a quote? How to
contact you? Who to send quotes to? Is there an
online quote request form? Shipping policies? Lead
times?
3. Should address the ‘benefit of the benefit’. Most
websites are full of data that few buyers would
ever use in their decision making. Think about your
own buying habits. Do you make a car buying
decision based on how old the dealership is? On
how many square feet are devoted to showrooms?
How many cars they sold 5 years ago? Yet foundry
websites are full of just this stuff. Acres of
buildings, number of employees, age of the firm,
tonnage produced. If you have DATA showing this is
how YOUR clients buy, then keep it. Otherwise,
Think Like a Client©.
4. Should track all visitors as much as possible. A
marketing list is a huge asset that most foundries
ignore. Build your list by, among other things,
offering people valuable information to help their
decision making in exchange for contact
information. There is a reason someone came to
your site.
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© The UGLY Marketing Newsletter for Foundries/Metal Casters/TheFoundryMarketer 2014. All rights reserved