ThomasNet RPM & Engineering.com Webinar:

Telling a Good Engineering Story to Generate Leads

AGENDA

• Typical Manufacturing Personas

• Components of a Good Engineering Story

• Generating Leads From Engagement

DESIGN ENGINEERS

Focus Form, Fit, Function

Responsibility Create the Design, Solve the

problem

Stress No solution, no business

Questions What, How, Why

Desired

Content

Technical Specifications,

Configurations, Graphs,

Charts, CAD files, New

Knowledge

Targeting

Advantage

First Recommendation for

Components/Services

Control Bill of Materials (BOM)

Personal

Attributes

Engineering Degree,

Introvert, Efficient

PROCUREMENT MANAGERS

Focus Cost, Quality, Reliability

Responsibility Locating Product/Service Providers,

Negotiating Price, Maintaining

Supply Chain

Stress Choosing Wrong Supplier

Questions What, When, Who

Desired Content Technical Specifications,

Certifications, Standards, Lead

Times, Locations

Targeting Advantage Explores Alternative Vendors, Long

Term Contracts

Control Approved Vendor List

Personal Attributes Range of Technical Knowledge,

Extrovert

STORYTELLING FOR

ENGINEERS

John Hayes, ENGINEERING.com

PURPOSE AND INTENT

• Write each story with a goal in mind

• Make it specific and actionable, not generic

• Consider what you want the reader to do next

– Use CTAs

THE BUYER’S JOURNEY

Buyer’s journey:

– The active research and decision process a buyer goes

through that leads them to a purchase

Your stories will be written differently for each stage

Do I have a problem

that requires a

solution?

How can I address this

issue in a low risk way?

Vendor/product

selection – which

vendor is least likely

to get me fired?

DIFFERENT CONTENT FOR DIFFERENT STAGES IN THE

BUYER’S JOURNEY

http://advertise.engineering.com/digital-marketing-for-engineers-blog/mapping-content-keywords-engineers-buying-journey

WHO WRITES THE ARTICLE?

Who writes the article? Several methods:

1. Your own engineers

2. Write it yourself

3. Outsource

Engineers’ media habits – data from Content and Online Marketing to Engineers 2015 Research Report here:

http://advertise.engineering.com/research-report-engineers-content-and-online-marketing-preferences

EXAMPLE: HOW TO WRITE FOR THE AWARENESS STAGE

As an example, imagine

you’re writing from the

perspective of ACME

Fastners, a screws

manufacturer

What will your story for the

awareness stage be about?

A. Your products?

B. Your awesome

brand?

C. Your excellent

customer service?

A. Your products?

B. Your awesome brand?

C. Your excellent customer

service?

NONE OF THE ABOVE

EXAMPLE: HOW TO WRITE FOR THE AWARENESS STAGE

What will your story for the awareness stage be about?

It’s going to be about how to

approach a problem that

your product solves

• From the engineer’s

perspective

• In a format that engages

• With the right level of

technical depth

EXAMPLE: HOW TO WRITE FOR THE AWARENESS STAGE

WRITING FROM THE ENGINEER’S PERSPECTIVE

In the awareness stage, your target engineers aren’t

looking for a screw

They need to fasten two objects together for a specific

application:

– Proven

– Easy to assemble and maintain

– Low cost per unit

THE RIGHT LEVEL OF TECHNICAL DEPTH

In awareness stage, you will

be effective if you:

– Research and understand

their applications

– Be specific to their

application rather than

generic

– Discuss the demands of that

application using language

that is consistent with their

industry

– Get your story fact-checked

TECHNIQUES TO MAKE YOUR WRITING MORE ENGAGING

In awareness stage, you

can:

– Explore the alternatives

– Use humor

– Include lots of imagery

– Raise interesting facts

about fastening

MATCH KEYWORDS TO THE BUYER’S JOURNEY

Different keywords are appropriate for different stages

JOURNALISM LINGO

Three things you need to get right.

Hed

Image

Dek

SOCIAL MEDIA SHARING

Don’t forget to optimize

your story for social media

sharing

• This means:

– Image

– Title no more than 100

characters for social

sharing

– Deks are also good

tweets

HED, DEK, IMAGE

Cut through the clutter of social media

IMAGES

Examples of images that appeal to engineers

LEDE AND NUT GRAF

LedeIdentifies the audience

Nut grafTells what the story

will be about

NOTE THAT ‘WHO’ IS LATER IN THE STORY

Who

ORDER OF CONTENT

We turn the typical pyramid upside down for engineers

STORYTELLING FOR ENGINEERS CHECKLIST

Identify your audience

Select an image that captivates

Write a hed about the “what” that can stand out in social media

Chose a dek that will intrigue your target audience

Write a strong lede and nut graf that highlights the “what” and the

“how”

Use descriptive sub-heds

Consider your use of passive voice, long sentences and adjective

stacks

Use scenarios to make your story more concrete

Break up your text with lots of white space

Get the reader to take action through the ending

Source all material properly

AFTER A GOOD STORY, GIVE THEM MORE WAYS TO LEARN

HIGH QUALITY CONTENT FUELS CONVERSION

PROPER CTA DESIGN

• Tell them what to do

• What will they’ll get out of doing it?

• High value

• Make it easy

CTA LOCATION AND CONVERSION RATES

Fewer Clicks, Higher Conversion

More Clicks, Lower Conversion

Fewest Clicks/Conversions

DIFFERENT CONTENT FOR DIFFERENT STAGES IN THE

BUYER’S JOURNEY

http://advertise.engineering.com/digital-marketing-for-engineers-blog/mapping-content-keywords-engineers-buying-journey

CONVERSION ANALYSIS

Data Set Of Views:

230,000How do different types of content convert?

MARKETING QUALIFIED LEADS

Awareness/Consideration

Content Average Conversion Rate

25.4%

65.2%

34.8%

Awareness/Consideration Content New Lead Rate

ExistingContacts

New Contacts

***Note: Data set does not include CAD file views and

downloads. High conversion rate skewed data.

SALES QUALIFIED LEADS

34.4%

65.6%

Decision/Action Content New Lead Rate

ExistingContacts

New Contacts

Decision/Action Content

Average Conversion Rate

5.7%

SMALL PRODUCT OEM (<10LBS) CONTENT ACTIVITY

29.8%

27.6%

27.5%

20.1%

19.77%

19.43%

14.5%

13.8%

5.98%

4.9%

RFQ

CAD Library Access

Product Information

Consultation Request

Material Performance Charts

Product Availability Guide

Submit Photo

Company Info

2D CAD Downloads

Contact Us

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0%

Small Product OEM Conversions

MIDSIZE PRODUCT (>10 LBS) OEM CONTENT ACTIVITY

22.3%

11.77%

11.68%

9.50%

9.3%

8.2%

6.1%

4.0%

Infographic

Energy & Cost Savings eBook

Product Fact vs Fiction eBook

Product Catalogs

Warranty/Registration

Product Benefits eBook

RFQ

Contact Us

0.0% 10.0% 20.0%

Midsize Product OEM Conversions

DISTRIBUTOR CONTENT ACTIVITY

29.4%

18.01%

16.96%

3.85%

3.7%

Troubleshooting Guide

Maintenace Checklist

Maintenace Guide

Resource Library Login

Contact Us

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0%

Distributor Conversions

CUSTOM MANUFACTURER CONTENT ACTIVITY

32.1%

19.22%

17.90%

15.0%

12.07%

11.3%

4.7%

2.5%

Cost & Lead Time eBook

ISO Certification

Prototype eBook

RFQ

Choosing a Supplier eBook

Case Study Library

Equipment List

Contact Us

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0%

Custom MFG Conversions

NEXT STEPS

• Choose your target persona

• Pick an engaging topic

• Tell a good story

• Provide CTA for correlating high quality content

• Generate leads for the sales team!

REACH OUT TO US

ThomasNet RPM

• Learn more about Generating Leads for

Manufacturers

• Get a free Digital Marketing Assessment

• Website: http://rpm.thomasnet.com

ENGINEERING.com

• Subscribe to the Digital Marketing to

Engineers Blog

• Website:

http://advertise.engineering.com/

Questions?

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