Aqueous Digital

How do you market a small manufacturing business?

Interested in learning about the most effective marketing for manufacturing companies?

You’ve come to the right place. At Aqueous Digital, our professional team has supported countless manufacturing businesses of all sizes to achieve their digital marketing goals.

Below, we explain why marketing is important for manufacturing companies, and which marketing methods they should prioritise to increase their odds of success.

How do you define a 'small' manufacturing business?

The definition of a ‘small’ manufacturing business varies between countries, but they tend to be ones that produce significantly lower volumes of goods than large-scale factories.

As a result, they also typically have fewer employees, less automated processing, and can cater to changes in production more easily.

In the UK, a private limited company is considered small by the government if it has two of the following:

  • A £10.2 million turnover or less
  • £5.1 million or less on its balance sheet
  • Either 50 or fewer employees

Why marketing is important for small manufacturing businesses

While these businesses might be small, they’re certainly mighty!

According to business population estimates published by the government, there were 5.51 million small businesses in the UK at the start of 2023.

Of these millions of small businesses, the Office for National Statistics reports that there are thousands of manufacturing businesses working away to produce their goods, but how can they stand out in this competitive industry? One word, marketing.

Effective marketing for manufacturing companies primarily revolves around creating a demand for the goods they produce, accurately advertising their products, and building strong relationships with their customers.

Which areas of marketing should small manufacturing businesses prioritise?

While not all small manufacturing businesses are the same, they tend to share certain similarities.

This often includes their budget (which subsequently means a smaller marketing budget), their key marketing objectives, and the typical problems they face.

To help you determine which marketing avenues your small manufacturing business should explore, we highlight some of the most popular marketing activities for companies operating within this industry.

SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)

From increased organic traffic to their website to more impressions and conversions, small manufacturing companies can benefit in many ways from a comprehensive SEO strategy.

This is because good SEO involves a combination of technical changes, the creation of keyword-driven content, and a focus on improving the overall user experience to help drive organic online visibility.

As a result, effective SEO increases the number of people finding the goods your company produces.

With very basic SEO services from third-party agencies often costing hundreds instead of thousands a month, this marketing activity is also an affordable option for small manufacturing businesses.

Social media

When it comes to marketing for manufacturing companies, social media shouldn’t be overlooked.

Platforms like Facebook and Instagram can help businesses to run targeted ads towards specific demographics that are more likely to buy the goods they produce.

Not to mention, other social media platforms such as LinkedIn can be essential for connecting and building strong relationships with other businesses – especially if you’re a B2B manufacturer!

Regardless of which social media platforms you utilise for professional purposes, these affordable marketing channels can also be used to share a wide range of written content, as well as eye-catching imagery and videos to help boost engagement, increase brand awareness, and improve product recognition.

PPC (Pay-Per-Click)

Both SEO and social media marketing can deliver long-term results with sustained effort.

PPC, on the other hand, is focused on driving short-term results in the form of immediate product visibility, targeted customer reach, and easily measurable results.

It works by charging companies a fee every time an online user clicks their ad, helping to deliver a positive return on investment (ROI).

This generally cost-effective marketing channel can also help you to keep control of advertising costs – a must-have for small manufacturing businesses with a limited marketing budget!

Seeking expert SEO and PPC support for your manufacturing business?

As award-winning digital marketing professionals with invaluable experience in the manufacturing industry, you can trust the Aqueous Digital team to put the best interests of your small manufacturing business first.

We’ll take the time to really understand your company’s core values, budget, products, services, and marketing objectives to help you achieve your wider business aims.

Whether you want to start receiving more online enquiries, build a reliable and professional brand image, or start appearing for more relevant, business-critical keywords in the SERPs, why not reach out to our helpful team today?

To discuss your requirements with a friendly member of our team, simply give us a call on 0800 285 1424.

Alternatively, we also welcome email enquiries sent to hello@aqueous-digital.co.uk and queries submitted using our online contact form.

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