SOCIAL MEDIA IN MANUFACTURING

What is social media? SOCIAL MEDIA Social media is a series of websites and applications designed to allow people to share content quickly, efficiently and in real-time.

Should manufacturers use social media? 81% of B2B companies use social media, however the manufacturing industry is slow to adopt it. B2B businesses use social media to showcase their expertise and build relationships with prospective customers. Manufacturing customers are no different!

How powerful a tool is social media? Increases web traffic up to 300% and boosts lead generation by 150% Allows you to run targeted ads Builds initial and ongoing relationships with customers Gain insight about customers

Top 5 most useful Social Media networks for manufacturing Twitter – 336 million users LinkedIn – 106 million users YouTube – 1.8 billion users Facebook – 2.2 billion users Instagram – 800 million users

Social Media Explained Machining a Part Twitter – “I’m machining a part” LinkedIn – “My skills include machining a part” YouTube – “Here I am machining a part” Facebook – “I like machining parts” Instagram – “Here’s a photo of me machining a part”

Be Consistent and Say Something Worthwhile SOCIAL MEDIA Be Consistent and Say Something Worthwhile Don’t think of social media as a chance to sell your products, but as a place to provide value to your customer, prospects, colleagues and partners. Ask yourself, what are the main challenges in my industry and how can I create content that makes my customers’ lives easier Create Video Content 60% of people prefer watching a video over reading Videos increase click-through rates up to 200%

Best Times to Post to Social Media Twitter: 1-3pm, Monday-Thursday LinkedIn: 7-9am, Tuesday-Thursday Facebook: 1-4pm, Tuesday-Thursday Instagram: 5-6pm, midnight-2am, Wednesday YouTube: These don’t track in a most recent feed. Link videos to the other Social Media sites using their best times to post

SOCIAL MEDIA Track Your Success Rate and if Your Social Media Efforts are Making a Difference. Most social media networks have tracking tools to track effectiveness. Track if website traffic has increased using Google Analytics or other traffic tracking applications Ultimately, Social Media is not the end all for marketing efforts, but it is an important tool in your toolbox that should be utilized to the fullest.