SME manufacturers: 11 Social Media Marketing Tips For Manufacturing Day In October
Manufacturing Day (MFG Day) is a crucial event for small to medium manufacturers to showcase their products and capabilities.
However, many manufacturers struggle with effectively utilizing social media to promote their businesses during this time. That’s why I’ve compiled a list of 11 social media marketing tips specifically tailored for manufacturers, to help them make the most out of Manufacturing Day and reach a wider audience.
Whether it’s creating engaging content, utilizing industry-specific hashtags, or collaborating with influencers, these tips will help manufacturers make a significant impact on social media during Manufacturing Day.
So, if you’re a small to medium manufacturer looking to maximize your social media presence and make the most out of Manufacturing Day, keep reading to discover these valuable social media marketing tips to help you make the most out of Manufacturing Day on social media platforms.
But first…
Background of Manufacturing Day
Manufacturing Day is an annual event takes place every first Friday of October.
This annual event also serves as a way to educate the public on the contributions of manufacturing to the U.S. economy, as well as its importance in creating jobs and boosting the economy.1
Manufacturing Day celebrations take various forms, with MFG Day events being organized by local manufacturing companies, educational institutions, and industry organizations.
Manufacturers can open their doors (in-person or live video) to the public and offer facility tours, allowing visitors to witness firsthand the groundbreaking technologies and processes that power modern manufacturing. It also encourages students to consider pursuing a career in manufacturing.
Here are some reasons Manufacturing Day is significant for small to medium enterprise manufacturers:
- Policy Advocacy: Through Manufacturing Day, manufacturers can advocate for policies that support their industry, such as workforce training programs, research and development funding, and trade policies. A collective industry voice can influence policymakers to create a more conducive environment for manufacturing growth.
- Promotion and Visibility: Manufacturing Day provides an opportunity for smaller manufacturers to showcase their operations, products, and innovations to a wider audience, including potential customers, partners, investors, and the local community. This can lead to increased brand recognition and awareness.
- Educational Outreach: Hosting tours, workshops, and demonstrations on Manufacturing Day allows manufacturers to educate students, teachers, and community members about the manufacturing industry. This helps dispel misconceptions, highlight career opportunities, and foster interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields.
- Talent Development: Small to medium manufacturers often struggle to attract skilled workers due to competition from larger companies. By participating in Manufacturing Day, these businesses can engage with local schools, colleges, and workforce development programs to identify and nurture potential talent, helping to build a future workforce.
- Community Engagement: Engaging with the local community can improve the perception of manufacturing and help build stronger relationships. Manufacturers can demonstrate their commitment to sustainable practices, job creation, and economic growth, thus fostering a positive image within the community.
- Networking Opportunities: Manufacturing Day events often bring together manufacturers, suppliers, educators, and community leaders. This provides a platform for networking, collaboration, and knowledge sharing, which can lead to valuable partnerships, resource sharing, and business growth.
- Encouraging entrepreneurship: Manufacturing Day not only celebrates established manufacturers but also encourages entrepreneurship and innovation in the manufacturing sector. It inspires individuals to explore opportunities for starting their own manufacturing businesses, contributing to the growth and competitiveness of the industry.
Overall, Manufacturing Day plays a crucial role in promoting the manufacturing industry, educating the public, inspiring students, and fostering collaboration. It helps create a positive perception of manufacturing, ensuring its continued growth and contribution to the American economy and future generations.
Social Media Tips for the Manufacturing Day Event: 11 tips
As a small to medium-sized manufacturer, you want to make sure your Manufacturing Day event goes off without a hitch using social media.
Here are 11 social media marketing tips to help you get the most out of Manufacturing Day in October:
1. Set Clear Goals
Before diving into social media promotion, it’s essential to set clear goals for your Manufacturing Day event. What do you hope to achieve?
Are you looking to:
2. Type of event
Alright, so we’ve established the importance of setting goals for your manufacturing company’s marketing efforts. Great job!
Now, let’s dive into the nitty-gritty and think about the specific actions you need to take in order to achieve these goals. Get ready to roll up your sleeves and get planning!
Hosting Manufacturing Day Events: Real or Virtual?
One effective way to promote your company’s advanced manufacturing solutions is by hosting manufacturing day events. These events can take the form of factory tours or even virtual events that showcase your company’s capabilities.
Plant tours allow potential customers and partners to see firsthand how your products are made and the high level of quality and precision that goes into the manufacturing process. This can help build trust and credibility for your manufacturing company.
Virtual events offer a unique opportunity to reach a wider audience. With the advancements in technology, virtual events have become more interactive and engaging, allowing participants to have a similar experience as they would in person. This can be especially beneficial for manufacturing companies that have a global customer base and may not be able to physically host events at their facilities. Virtual events can include live streams of factory tours, interactive product demonstrations, and even Q&A sessions or hosting a Twitter chat, with industry experts.
No matter which type of event you choose, it’s important to carefully consider your goals and target audience. If your main aim is to attract new customers, a factory tour may be the best option, as it allows potential buyers to see your products up close and personal. If your goal is to increase brand awareness and reach a wider audience, a virtual event may be more effective.
Regardless, such event is great social media content for your team to share.
3. Audience for your manufacturing day event
When planning your manufacturing day event, it’s essential to think about who you want to attend so you can design your social media message appropriately. Consider your target audience and what their interests and needs are.
Are you aiming to attract potential customers, recruit employees and interns, or industry professionals? It’s important to know your audience when planning your manufacturing day event. Who do you want to attend?
Thinking about this will help you design the type of post appropriate for social channels and ensure that you’re reaching the right people.
4. Choose the Right Social Platforms
In promoting your manufacturing day event, choosing the right social media platforms is crucial. You want to make sure you’re reaching your target audience effectively and efficiently.
Take a moment to think about the demographics of your desired attendees. Are they younger and more active on platforms like Instagram? Are you looking at specific demographic groups on Facebook? Or are they professionals who frequent LinkedIn? Maybe they’re a mix.
Let’s have a look at the strengths and weaknesses of the following platforms.
| LinkedIn Strengths | LinkedIn Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| Manufacturers can connect with professionals specifically interested in the industry. | LinkedIn’s user base is smaller compared to other social media platforms. |
| The platform offers opportunities to connect with industry peers, potential partners, and customers. | While effective, advertising on LinkedIn can be costly for smaller to medium manufacturing businesses. |
| LinkedIn posts tend to have a longer lifespan in users’ feeds, providing prolonged visibility. | Managing professional connections and content can be time-intensive. |
| Promote Manufacturing Day events through personal and company pages. | Fewer users compared to platforms like Facebook or Instagram. |
| Facebook Strengths | Facebook Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| Manufacturers can showcase Manufacturing Day, their products, processes, and behind-the-scenes content through photos and videos. | Facebook’s algorithm changes can reduce organic reach, making it harder to reach audiences without paid advertising. |
| Manufacturers can engage directly with the audience through comments and messages. | Many businesses are vying for attention, making it challenging to stand out among the noise. |
| With its diverse audience, manufacturers can target specific demographics, interests, and locations reaching not just employees but employers too. | Managing a Facebook page requires time and effort, especially responding to comments and messages. |
| Insights can guide manufacturers in refining their strategies for better results as they track their page performance and audience engagement. | Boosting visibility through ads requires a budget, adding to costs. |
X (formerly Twitter)
| X (formerly Twitter) Strengths | X (formerly Twitter) Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| Share real-time updates of your Manufacturing event, tours and workshops. You can live-tweet event. | The character limit can hinder in-depth explanations or complex information. |
| Utilize industry- or event specific hashtags to increase discoverability and reach of your event. | X (formerly called tweets) have a short lifespan in users’ feeds, requiring frequent posting. |
| Interact directly with target audience through replies and mentions. | High volume of X posts may result in your content being lost in the noise. |
| Connect with industry peers, partners, and potential clients and other Manufacturing event stakeholders on the platform. | X has both B2B and B2C users, which might affect targeting. |
| Instagram Strengths | Instagram Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| Showcase products, processes, and behind-the-scenes visuals. | Instagram’s consumer-oriented nature might not align well with B2B focus. |
| Strong presence among younger demographics, fostering future interest in manufacturing. | Directly tracking conversions from links can be challenging. |
| Utilize relevant hashtags to expand reach within the manufacturing niche. | Not as suitable for detailed industry discussions or B2B interactions. |
| Utilize Reels for time-sensitive updates and interactive polls. | Emphasis on aesthetics might overshadow substance. |
When choosing a platform for Manufacturing Day, consider your target audience, the type of social media posts you wish to share, and your engagement strategy.
A well-thought-out approach that combines the strengths of these social channels can help you effectively connect with your audience and convey the essence of Manufacturing Day.
Mixing it Up
While it’s important to understand the demographics of your desired attendees and tailor your message accordingly, don’t limit yourself to just one platform. Instead, consider using a combination of social media platforms to maximize your reach and effectiveness. By maximizing the unique features and strengths of each platform, you can create a well-rounded and comprehensive social media strategy for promoting your manufacturing day event.
5. Build a Content Calendar
Creating a content calendar for your manufacturing day event is crucial for staying organized and ensuring you consistently post engaging and relevant content leading up to the big day.
Start by mapping out the timeline of your event, including any pre-event activities such as registration deadlines or speaker announcements. This will help you determine when to schedule specific social media content and ensure you don’t miss any important milestones.
Consider creating a mix of different types of content to keep your audience engaged. This can include blog posts, videos, infographics, and even live streams or behind-the-scenes sneak peeks. The key is to vary your content to cater to different preferences and to keep things interesting for your audience.
When planning your content calendar, it’s also important to consider the frequency of your posts. You want to maintain a consistent presence on social media leading up to Manufacturing Day, but you don’t want to overwhelm your audience with too many posts.
Find a balance that works for you and your target demographic. Some platforms, like Twitter, may require more frequent posting due to the fast-paced nature of the platform, while others, like Facebook or LinkedIn, may be better suited for less frequent but more substantial updates.
6. Create Engaging and Relevant Content Appropriate to Manufacturing Day
Now that you have your content calendar all mapped out, it’s time to start brainstorming some ideas for engaging and relevant content. Remember, the goal is to generate excitement and anticipation for your Manufacturing Day event, so think about what kind of content will resonate with your audience.
Think about creating content that resonates with the “Made in USA” theme of Manufacturing Day. Showcase the stories and successes of U.S. manufacturers and highlight how their products are making a difference in people’s lives. You can also share the innovative technologies used by U.S. manufacturers, or provide an inside look at the manufacturing process behind a certain product or service.
For more traditional posts, use compelling visuals, and compelling copy to draw attention to your event. Consider using a hashtag such as #MFGDay to help promote the event and make it easier for people to find your content. Be sure to include a link to your registration page so people can easily sign up for the event.
From gears to GIFs, every element in manufacturing has its purpose. The same goes for crafting an online presence that captivates.
7. Use the right hashtags
Hashtags have become an essential part of any successful social media marketing strategy, and they are especially important for Manufacturing Day events. They are a great way to increase the visibility of your content and reach a wider audience.
When creating hashtags for your event, make sure they are relevant to your industry and the topics you plan to discuss.
For example, if you plan on focusing on the importance of U.S. manufacturing during your event, consider using the hashtag #MadeInUSA or #AmericanMade. Additionally, you can use hashtags such as #MFGDay, #ManufacturingDay, #USAMfg, and #SmalltoMediumEnterprise (SME) to help spread awareness about Manufacturing Day and encourage people to attend your event.
Let’s not forget one thing you may opt to create a unique hashtag specific to your event or organization.
8. Take Advantage of Targeted Advertising and Paid Content
Another great way to promote your Manufacturing Day event is through targeted advertising and paid content. That is, if you want to increase volume.
Social media platforms, such as Facebook and LinkedIn, allow businesses to create highly targeted campaigns that reach specific demographics or interests.
This allows you to reach a larger audience with more relevant content that resonates with your target market.
Also, consider boosting posts on platforms such as Twitter and Instagram to reach an even larger audience. Boosting posts is a great way to ensure your content reaches the right people at the right time.
9. Use Influencers in Your Campaigns
Influencers can be extremely valuable in social media marketing, as they have a dedicated following and a strong influence over their audience’s purchasing decisions. When it comes to promoting Manufacturing Day, reaching out to influencers in the manufacturing industry can help generate significant buzz and increase awareness about the event.
How to do influencer outreach
One way to leverage influencers is through sponsored posts on their social media accounts. By partnering with influencers who have a strong presence on platforms like Instagram, YouTube, or LinkedIn, businesses can tap into their large and engaged audience.
These influencers can create content that highlights the importance of Manufacturing Day, showcases the benefits of attending the event, and encourages their followers to participate. By sponsoring these posts, businesses can reach a wider audience and gain credibility through the influencer’s endorsement.
Another approach is to invite influencers to attend the event as guest speakers or panelists. This not only adds credibility and prestige to the event but also provides an opportunity for the influencers to share their knowledge and expertise with attendees.
By having influencers speak at Manufacturing Day, businesses can attract more attendees and increase the overall value of the event. Influencers may also share their experience on their social media accounts, further amplifying the reach and impact of the event.
ProTip when inviting influencers: When reaching out to influencers, it is important to establish a mutually beneficial partnership. Offer value to the influencers, such as exposure to your target audience, networking opportunities, or exclusive access to industry insights. By building a strong relationship with influencers and providing them with valuable incentives, businesses can increase the likelihood of their support and maximize the impact of their social media marketing efforts for Manufacturing Day.
10. Promote Customer Stories and Testimonials
Customer stories and testimonials can be an extremely powerful marketing tool during Manufacturing Day. By highlighting the success stories of customers who have benefited from your products or services, you can showcase the value that your business provides and build trust with potential customers. Sharing customer stories and testimonials on social media is also a great way to connect with your audience and humanize your brand.
Reach out to your loyal customers and ask if they would be willing to share their stories or provide a testimonial about their experience with your business. You can do this through email, social media, or even by offering incentives such as discounts or exclusive access to events or products. Once you gather these stories and testimonials, create engaging and visually appealing content to share on your social media platforms and website.
Don’t be afraid to get creative with your approach and showcase these customer stories. Consider creating videos, blog posts, or even hosting live Q&A sessions with your satisfied customers. Giving your audience an opportunity to hear directly from your customers is a great way to building not only building trust but also creating a sense of community around your brand.
11. Monitor Your Social Media Campaigns
Track with purpose. Monitoring your Manufacturing Day social media campaigns is vital, not just an afterthought. This meticulous observation gives you the power to dissect the nuances of your campaign’s influence, refining your strategies into finely tuned tools that connect with your desired audience.
Once you have launched your campaigns and are actively engaging with influencers, customers, and other businesses in the industry, it is important to monitor how these campaigns are performing. Track key metrics, such as engagement rate, reach, impressions, website clicks, and more.
This data can give you insights into what’s working and what isn’t so that you can make adjustments accordingly. Track the conversations happening around your brand and take note of any customer feedback. This will help you identify potential opportunities or areas for improvement.
Creating a successful social media campaign takes time and effort, but with the right strategy and tools, businesses can maximize their reach and impact on Manufacturing Day. By leveraging influencers, telling customer stories, and monitoring their campaigns, small to medium manufacturers have the potential to generate a great deal of attention and increase their visibility on this special day.
We have worked with Social Success Marketing on a variety of projects to support our Marketing team. Not only is the team at Social Success Marketing professional and timely, the quality of their work is outstanding. Highly recommend!
~ Radwell International
Want to Amplify Manufacturing Day Awareness?
Social media is a dynamic tool for amplifying the message of Manufacturing Day and driving awareness of U.S. manufacturing. From engaging influencers to telling customer stories and monitoring campaigns, businesses can create effective social media marketing strategies that will help them increase their reach and impact on this special day.
By taking advantage of the various platforms available, small to medium manufacturers can leverage the power of digital marketing to connect with their customers, build trust, and generate greater visibility for their business on Manufacturing Day.
Beyond Manufacturing Day: Social Success Marketing
While mastering the art of Manufacturing Day marketing is crucial, maintaining a consistent online presence requires ongoing expertise. That’s where Social Success Marketing steps in.
In a world where digital resonance drives business success, the collaboration with Social Success Marketing extends the impact of your brand far beyond the realms of individual events.
As seasoned B2B social media specialists, we offer manufacturers a comprehensive solution for their day-to-day social media needs. From content creation to engagement strategies, we ensure your brand resonates with your audience long after Manufacturing Day concludes.
So, as October approaches and your manufacturing enterprise gears up to shine on Manufacturing Day, remember that the journey doesn’t end there. By embracing these tips and partnering with experts, you’re paving the way for a future where your brand’s resonance and influence continue to flourish in the ever-evolving landscape of social media.
Sources:
- Thatte, Dileep. [Blog] Manufacturing Day – Its Genesis and Evolution. September 22, 2020, accessed August 20, 2023. https://www.nist.gov/blogs/manufacturing-innovation-blog/manufacturing-day-its-genesis-and-evolution
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