Good Business

Being great at solving problems and making things doesn’t get the business… without effective communication. Engineering people are known the world over to be clever at exploring needs and working alone to create solutions – but not so good at conveying their ideas and products to others, especially non-technical people.

This communication gap often means missed business opportunities from potential clients.

Effective marketing is becoming more vital in our ‘mobile information age’ where so many people look to the internet for products and services.

And with geographical location becoming less of an issue, creating your own niche in the market gets more vital to succeed.

Passing it off and missing the benefits

Engineering people can dread marketing or dismiss it as hype, exaggeration of capabilities, ‘f luff’ that doesn’t add any value, or a necessary evil they don’t understand.

They may have had bad experiences with sales and marketing people who didn’t ‘get’ the technicalities of their business or see eye-to-eye with their technical people.

‘DIY’ marketing that misses the target

Engineering firms often struggle to scrape together ‘DIY’ text content – which usually turns out quite inward-looking and not very client-friendly or engaging. Most websites and brochures say the same sort of stuff as competitors – “we are… we do… technical features xyz”.

Their target audience can get bored or bamboozled, especially non-technical people who can’t see the benefits in their own language. These people are in a different world, with motivations and interests beyond the technical issues.

Engineering businesses are usually so deeply immersed in their expertise and products that it’s hard to see their target market’s viewpoint like an objective outsider can.

One of my clients, a ‘smart buildings’ designer/installer, showed me his website design – electronic boxes and cables which really appealed to him. I suggested that his potential clients didn’t want to see any of that, but would be looking for a good time entertaining their friends with their home theatre. So we pitched the text and images accordingly and his website took off.

Making the vital connection to advance your business

Your potential clients may see a number of firms out there technically capable of doing the job, so how can you stand out? How about carving out your own niche market of ‘ideal’ clients?

Coming up…

• How to find the raw materials for your ‘marketing machine’ – to realise your full business potential (mining the treasure you’re sitting on – to draw your ideal target clients). • How to get your ‘marketing machine’ performing – presenting your hidden treasure through your marketing channels (brochure, website, ads, white papers, proposals, and social media, etc.). • How to get better business results from your website (get the

critical factors right for higher sales conversion).