Trade shows to the internet to social networking, I have been wondering lately which is the best way to connect with current and potential customers?
When I started working at Hill Engineering in 1988 the company had a pretty aggressive marketing strategy for a smaller company consisting of 2-4 trade shows per year, speaking at the roll forming conferences and had a very busy advertising schedule. Even though at times it was hard to put an exact number for the ROI it would be amazing how many people who contact us the first time say "I saw your advertisement", "you sent me information from a request out of a magazine", "I saw Mr. Don Hill speak at a conference".
Back before Al Gore created the internet most people in the manufacturing industry would find out about new products by reading the trade magazines, possibly visit an industry specific trade shows or technical conference.
As we got into the 90's and the power of the internet was at its starting point companies started having websites because that was the thing to do, but it also offered another avenue of advertising and then ordering your merchandise on line....that I am sure most people did not now that it would lead to where we are at now.
With advertising budgets thinned down in most companies due the most current economic down turn, companies have been turning to an avenue that has taken off in the past few years: social networking. There are many different styles of networking now, My Space, Facebook, Twitter, Blogger, just to name a few.
Mr. Dan Davis the editor-in-chief at FMA communications Inc wrote a nice editorial in the August 2009 Fabricator addressing this issue with a rundown of some of the different media's and as we at Hill Engineering and our sister companies in the Formtek Group have been embracing this type of technology, I wonder, are we adding to our industry base? With no doubts we are seeing different types of people and companies viewing our pages and some of these contacts we would not have reached by seeing at one of our trade shows or conferences but is the typed words or graphics on a page the same as shaking a person’s hand, greeting them with a smile, and conversing. What do you think?