This week, the Industrial Marketer podcast takes a look industrial marketing trends in 2021 and the opportunities they present for industrial marketers, particularly in the field of digital sales.
Digital sales and e-commerce top the list of industrial marketing trends for 2021. Manufacturing as a sector has been slower than its B2B peers in adopting digital approaches in many areas, and sales is no different. The legacy of developing sales leads through trade shows and personal sales networks undoubtedly plays a big role in that, as does the highly targeted nature of prospect audiences in the industrial landscape.
But engineers and purchasing managers have been doing more and more online research for several years. The impact of trade shows had been diminishing before the pandemic, which forced laggards to get their digital acts together in terms of access to information about their products and services. Not only were they generating fewer leads, they have become opportunities for customer engagement much later in the sales process. This put companies that were over-reliant on trade shows at a competitive disadvantage.
But the growth in digital sales is overdue for many manufacturers, for many other reasons. For example, the focus on digital has meant growth in manufacturing e-commerce as well, especially for industrials and distributors selling replacement parts and supplies.
Other Industrial Marketing Trends
Manufacturing is clearly on the rebound, with increases in orders for parts and products, as well as capital expenditures from manufacturers themselves. Among the most impactful trends in digital media for industrial marketers are:
- Growth and evolution of virtual events, which will play a role even when trade shows return to the landscape
- Video will become more prominent in many areas, from testimonials to product demonstrations
- Account-based marketing will become more commonplace, as will more channel partnerships
Listen to the Podcast to Learn More About Industrial Marketing Trends
What does this mean for industrial marketers? Listen to the podcast to find out, where we examine five trends in industrial sales and marketing you don’t want to miss.
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