The key to effective marketing

Just because you’re selling a good product or service, you still need people to know about it - this is where marketing comes in. Aro PR and Marketing’s director, Billy McKenna (pictured top) looks at how companies are marketing themselves in the composites industry. “I know that half of my advertising dollars are wasted … I just don’t know which half.” [1] This quote is sometimes attributed (wrongly) to Henry Ford. A more interesting quote from the iconic car manufacturer is: “A man who stops advertising to save money is like a man who stops a clock to save time.” There is a lot of debate about the value of advertising and indeed marketing in general to a business, and that is especially true of parts of the composites industry. For some the debate ends with a simple put down: “We’re doing alright. We don’t need to market or advertise.” One (albeit narrow) definition of marketing is “the process for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitably.” It is widely accepted as the lifeblood of consumer companies and key to the success of companies as diverse as Apple, Unilever and Proctor and Gamble. These companies have been investing heavily in marketing for decades. However marketing is not as widely accepted in the composites industry. There seem to be two polar extremes on how composites companies view marketing. Many smaller companies, especially micro businesses, don’t see a need for it. They limit their marketing investment to a website and some don’t even bother with this, relying on word-of-mouth and contacts. Meet your market This view extends to some larger businesses, which also rely on word-of-mouth to extend their reputations and attract new customers. And in a rapidly growing market such as composites, this can seem the most sensible course of action. Does it make sense to invest in marketing in such an industry? Claire Horsman, (pictured middle) Formaplex’s marketing manager: “Yes. Markets and customer requirements will continue to change as technologies and materials advance. Increasing customer awareness will strengthen our position within the market place.” Rob West, general manager of the newly-formed pattern and composite machining division of Newbury-based Progressive Technology also addresses this point: “At the moment there’s a lot of work around for everyone, but if you can put yourself at the forefront of it, you can steal a march on the competition. Just because you’ve got a really good product or service to sell, you still need people to know about it and that’s where marketing comes in.” Claire Whysall,(pictured bottom) Composites UK’s marketing manager, considers the issue of marketing in a growing market from a slightly different perspective. “There are many sectors in which composite materials can be used and some of these sectors are more knowledgeable about the materials than others so it’s key for companies to know what gap in the market their products can fill and the level of knowledge transfer (from supplier to customer) it would take to convince your ideal customer – at whatever level this is at – that your solution is the best one. Potential customers like to buy from companies with a reputation, with a presence, with a profile.” However the point about the effectiveness of marketing spend is emphasised by West: “We have invested significantly in three new large CMS Ares 5-axis machines and have to date relied on word-of-mouth to attract new customers. “However to grow the customer base, I realise that marketing is very important and we’re starting to advertise and will be dipping our toes in trade shows in the next few months. But, and it’s a big ‘but’, I’m still unsure of the effectiveness of marketing. Even though we’re fairly new to active marketing, I’m not sure how many leads it is generating, though it’s still early days.” It’s also a question of prioritisation. If you have 20 calls to make in a day and 19 of them are responding to urgent customer requests, which will ultimately bring money into the business, while one is to your marketing team, which in the short term spends money, it’s not rocket science to guess how these will be prioritised. Invest in the best However ignoring marketing creates problems for companies in the longer term. At some point the composites market will not be growing so strongly. Investing in marketing is investing in the business of the future. At this time, customers will make their purchasing decisions based on the quality of the product or service and how it is perceived, and how the organisation is perceived too. In marketing terms this is all about branding, not just the physical product or service (or indeed the logo or name), but the emotional reaction in buyers. After all people don’t buy a Rolex watch just to tell the time, or a Porsche to get from A to B! This is especially important to new customers, where effective communication of reputation and capabilities is vital. Some composite companies, such as Norco, have recognised this for years. And tradeshows, such as the Composites Engineering Show or JEC are important events for marketing. But it’s not just about tradeshows. There’s also direct mail and media relations, including the increasingly popular social media. Michael Last, managing director of Formaplex, on social media: “The composites industry is a fast-moving sector attracting a new generation of engineers. If you want to communicate with them as potential employees or potential customers, one angle is to use social media. We’re engaging with them directly in ways they want to be reached.” And this is backed up with the growth in social media in the composites industry in the past year. The numbers of followers of the key composites publications on Twitter have increased by around 50%; the membership of LinkedIn composites discussion groups has increased by at least 20%, with the ‘Composites’ group itself putting on over 4,000 members (with some meaningful technical discussions taking place in this forum, as well as people looking for jobs). And this really is the key to effective marketing – engaging with people who are important to your business, in the way they want to be reached. Aro is exhibiting at stand G145 at the Composites Engineering Show. If you’d like to explore any of the issues raised in this article, do pop along for an informal chat. www.aroprandmarketing.co.uk 1. Attributed to US Postmaster General John Vansant Wanamaker (1838 - 1922), a United States merchant, religious leader, civic and political figure, considered by some to be a ‘pioneer in marketing’.