We've all said it, whether in reference to a star employee or reliable vendor. And most of us have said this about our customers. Where do we generate more B2B leads that possess the same set of needs for our products and services as do our best customers? We know they are out there, but how do we find them?
It is (and literally can be) the million-dollar question.
Now that the U.S. manufacturing sector is beginning to emerge from the long shutdown period brought on by the pandemic, the headlines are filled with better news for the sector, including a sharp rebound in manufacturing activity and increased hiring.
New plant announcements and news of expansion have accompanied the recovery and have dominated manufacturing headlines in July. In fact, from the looks of all the new manufacturing plant openings and expansions announced this month, you'd think July was the new January. Some new and expanded operations are focused on high-demand pandemic-related items such as PPE or pharmaceuticals, while others run the gambit from electric vehicles; flooring; lumber; plastic injection molding; snack foods and aviation.
This post will explore the many new plants and expansions announced in July on a state-by-state basis. Encompassing 20 states, these are the major new or expanded manufacturing operations announced in July.
You might have a strong sales pitch, a quality product and a competitive price, but sales might elude you until you find the right audience for your message.
Identifying new opportunities for growth is often a matter of figuring out who needs the products or services you're selling.
The forestry and lumber industry is a key element of the U.S. rural economy. In fact, the paper and pulp sector is predicted to reach nearly $680 billion by 2027.
Additionally, the National Association of State Foresters is currently seeking an additional $500 million in the form of a COVID-19 stimulus package to support the forest products supply chain, forest management and job creation in this industry.
The HVAC industry is poised to become a $367.5 billion market by 2030. Although this sector is currently feeling the effects of COVID-19, there is a promising future for refrigeration and heating equipment manufacturers.
Marketing your products and services to these manufacturers is a viable strategy, but it's important to understand the unique opportunities and challenges linked to COVID-19.
If you are searching for a resilient industry to market to, look no further than refrigeration and heating equipment.
Properly storing food and maintaining safe and comfortable temperatures inside buildings are the main responsibilities of this sector.
By creating custom microclimates, it is possible to provide livable structures anywhere in the world. This has had substantial effects on population distribution, health and urban development. The same technology has also drastically reduced food spoilage and associated waste. Because of these factors, this industry is relatively insulated against even the biggest global upheavals.
Despite the overwhelming majority of manufacturing companies being privately held, it does not mean that they are not part of a corporate family. For our purposes, family does not refer to ownership by people who are related to each other. We are referring to parent companies that acquire and retain smaller businesses, usually in a related field.
Understanding company hierarchy can give you an advantage in generating sales in the manufacturing sector.
New data released by the Bureau of Labor statistics shows the U.S. added 4.8 million jobs in June 2020, nearly double the number added in May. The unemployment rate fell to 11.1% after spiking to a record high of 14.70% in April.
The U.S. manufacturing sector recovered another 356,000 jobs in June, adding to the 225,000 industrial positions the sector gained in May.
Another Labor Department report out this week found there are hundreds of thousands of new job openings in manufacturing.
The cleaning chemical industry is one of the sectors that is actually doing well despite the COVID-19-induced recession. In fact, according to an analysis of search trends on the industrial marketplace IndustryNet, chemicals were the second most searched category during the month of May.
Of these, cleaning chemicals were by far the most popular. This comes as no surprise, as businesses look to adopt sterilizing protocols and safer work environments during the economic reopening.
COVID-19 has created an unprecedented situation for manufacturers, and many have seen their priorities shift as they engaged their crisis response plans over the past few months.
These plans might include changes in leadership, so a different person may be making purchase decisions - especially if you're offering a product or service that supports a manufacturers crisis response.
Your research process should explore how COVID-19 impacts leads, how priorities might be changing, whether or not new competitors have emerged and what kind of emergency response plans the manufacturer is likely to adopt.
These are the challenges executives are currently facing, so understanding their situation is crucial in order to empathize with and sell to them effectively.
Search trends often reveal interesting patterns for specific industries. Category searches have been increasing on the industrial marketplace IndustryNet, reflecting a larger number of manufacturers looking for domestic supplies.
In fact, the month of May saw a surge of 47% in searches for the agricultural chemicals category compared to May of 2019.
2020 started out strong for U.S. manufacturing, with a number of new plants announced at the start of the year, and the ISM's manufacturing activity index rocketing back into expansion territory.
Then the coronavirus hit, shaking up the supply chain and hitting pause for all but the most essential operations.
The manufacturing sector shed hundreds of thousands of jobs at the height of the pandemic and industrial production hit lows not seen since the Great Depression.
Now, at 2020's halfway mark, there are new signs of life in the sector, with factories recovering 225,000 jobs in May.
The ISM's manufacturing activity index eased off historic lows, contracting at a slower rate, and we've even seen signs of domestic sourcing as manufacturers look to secure supply chains closer to home.
This post will cover some of the U.S. manufacturing expansions and new plant announcements for June 2020.
The reopening of the domestic economy has unleashed a backlog of delayed infrastructure, industrial and special projects.
Crucial to these projects are various liquids, gases and bulk goods. Everything from fuel to paint to water is required.
These substances must be stored someplace prior to use. Perhaps this is why industrial storage tanks has become one of the most-searched industrial categories on the industrial marketplace IndustryNet.
As the coronavirus infection rates begin to fall in many regions of the United States, multiple states are forming plans to reopen their economies and restarting their manufacturing sectors. For those who do business with U.S. manufacturing companies, this represents both a source of confusion and opportunity. This article provides a running list of some major manufacturing states that have opened or are planning to reopen their industrial sectors.
Manufacturers are going through significant changes as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. While some struggle to stay in businesses, others are shifting production to focus on essential products.
Proper research is more important now more than ever before when reaching out to prospects. Executive contacts might change as manufacturers restructure existing processes, and you need to understand how the current situation is affecting a prospect to identify relevant pain points and explain how your products or services can help.
New data released today by the Bureau of Labor statistics shows the U.S. recovered an astounding 2.5 million jobs, after shedding an equally astounding 20.5 million jobs at the height of the COVID-19 fallout in April.
The unemployment rate fell to 13.3% after spiking to a record high of 14.70% in April.
Manufacturing, which was among the hardest-hit sectors, losing 1.3 million jobs in April, recovered 225,000 jobs or about 17.3% of jobs lost in April. This hopeful trend is expected to continue, as more states begin to fully reopen their economies.
Though manufacturing job gains were seen across most sectors, some industries fared better than others. This article will take a closer look at the report's manufacturing job numbers, providing details on gains and losses in specific manufacturing sub-sectors.
Category searches on IndustryNet increased 42% in April 2020. This surge is connected to COVID-19 disrupting supply chains. In consequence, manufacturers have to adapt and seek new solutions to acquire the supplies they need.
The most-searched category for April 2020 was tools, with steel pipes and tubes coming in second.
The most popular searches included steel tubing, carbon steel tubing and welded steel tubing.
With the influx of searches for this industry, it is likely that these manufacturers will be looking to scale up.
As a sales and marketing professional, you can use this spike in demand as selling points to help manufacturers achieve their goals and solve problems.
Businesses are facing an increasingly intricate vendor ecosystem. Products like IT solutions, tools and machinery, and even business services are undergoing significant changes as new digital features appear, making these products more complex to research.
In fact, the process is so complex that for 80% of businesses, the B2B buying process takes more time than it used to. As a result, the B2B buying process is starting to prioritizing research.
Salespeople can help by adopting an approach known as prescriptive selling.
Our April 2020 search trends revealed that an increasing number of manufacturers are looking for domestic supplies. Compared to April 2019, category searches have increased by 42%, with tools being the most searched category.
This increase in search reflects new opportunities that exist for tool manufacturers.
Reaching out to these potential customers to promote solutions that support growth will help them keep up with this increase in demand.
We've all had similar experiences -- email or call a customer or prospect only to be met with a bounced email or wrong number voice message.
Obviously something has changed, and the question becomes not only where he/she went, but what else has changed?
If you were working from your company's database or an outside list, the thought might also have crossed your mind: Hmm, wonder how many of these records are also wrong?
COVID-19 has forced businesses to practice remote working and telecommuting. In many states, economies are reigniting, which means that some employees will be allowed to go back to the office for at least part-time work. However, many companies are maintaining work-from-home policies out of caution.
Remote working may be practical for some occupations, but for sales teams it is exceedingly difficult to be deprived of face-to-face interaction.
Power transmission equipment manufacturers fulfill an essential role by providing different types of parts that create motion. These parts have a wide range of applications in areas like vehicles, industrial and agricultural machinery, and assembly lines.
While COVID-19 shutdowns are affecting many manufacturers, power transmission equipment plants are still open and continue to produce these essential parts.
The following trends are representative of the power transmission equipment sector and the challenges these manufacturers are currently facing, which can help you better communicate with and appropriately sell to this industry.
As the progression of COVID-19 slows down, more than 30 states are looking into reopening their economy progressively. However, reopening will create a unique set of challenges for businesses that need to keep employees safe and keep up with official guidelines and regulations that might change in the near future.
As such, cleaning is going to be a top priority. If you offer sanitizing services or provide sanitizing products, the U.S. manufacturing sector is an industry to focus on.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced last week that Michigan manufacturers were allowed to reopen on Monday, May 11th, following the recent stay-at-home order that shuttered all but the most critical manufacturers in the state.
For those who are ready to get in touch with Michigan companies as they slowly get back to work, we're sharing some essential insights on the state's industrial sector and providing a list of the state's top manufacturers.
New data released today by the Bureau of Labor statistics shows the U.S. lost a staggering 20.5 million jobs in April, the height of the COVID-19 outbreak. This comes as no surprise as states effectively shut down their economies to wait out the worse of the crisis and businesses across the U.S. temporarily closed.
This article will look at manufacturing job losses for the month by sector.
Power transmission equipment manufacturers are highly-specialized businesses that produce moving parts used in machinery and vehicles.
Most of these manufacturers create parts that support critical industrial production, so they are deemed "essential" and are thus still up and running amid the COVID-19 crisis.
The coronavirus crisis has created a new status quo almost overnight. As a marketer, being reactive is more important now than ever, and there is a dire need to find a new communication style that suits your brand and audience as well as the current situation we're facing.
Email marketing is still a relevant and reliable way to connect with your audience, but you need to rethink your content strategy, find the right tone to discuss current events, connect with leads in meaningful ways and avoid cliches.
As the nation slowly begins to reopen from coronavirus lockdown, the state of Ohio is among the first to reopen its manufacturing sector. Governor Matt DeWine has laid out a structured reopening plan called "Responsible Restart Ohio," allowing manufacturing companies to reopen, provided they follow strict measures to ensure staff safety.
Having a deep understanding of your market is an essential facet of a successful sales strategy. For those looking to do business with Ohio manufacturers, IndustrySelect's database of 40,000 U.S. manufacturers contains a vast amount of hand-verified data to help users understand their market and drill down to a list of prospects.
Today, we're taking a closer look at Ohio's manufacturing sector and sharing some essential insights provided to us by the state's manufacturing companies.
Thursday, August 6, 2020 
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