ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING is the magazine devoted to industrial applications of 3D printing and digital layering technology. We cover the promise and the challenges of this technology for making functional tooling and end-use production parts.
Issue link: https://am.epubxp.com/i/921188
JANUARY 2018 Additive Manufacturing 20 MFG ADVOCATE CATEGORY: I Industry Insight To read more on AMT Advocacy, visit www.amtonline.org/Advocacy/ It's no secret that manufacturing struggles with its public image, but one way individual companies can improve industry perception is through efforts in digital marketing and public relations (PR). At AMT's 2017 GFMC event in Atlanta, I gave a workshop along with Mike McCloud of MMA Creative on ways to improve marketing through PR and social media. It was exciting to see how many AMT members are keenly interested in this topic. But since many other members weren't with us that afternoon, here are a few takeaways you can implement to improve your messaging game. Think different for different channels. Each social channel has its own flavor, its own audience and its own purpose. As Mike mentioned, Facebook is the king of crowd, Instagram is the king of wow, Twitter is the king of now and LinkedIn is the king of know-how. Facebook is great for telling stories and creating posts that are share-worthy, with a fun tone or emotional pull. Instagram is all about the images—and manufacturing is the perfect visual industry. Search #instamachinist for some fast inspiration. Twitter is a place for "breaking news" and an excel- lent platform for pitching to journalists. Use hashtags and handles to reach the right audience. LinkedIn is all business. Use it to show your company's thought leadership and expertise. If you've got a corporate blog, repurpose your posts here to grow your audience. In your PR efforts, be human and be helpful. Rather than blasting out press releases to a big list of journalists without anoth- er word, build relationships. Send a pitch through a one-on-one email, and include a story angle you'd like the journalist to consider. One step further, let those journalists know when you liked something that they wrote. Share their articles that aren't related to your company through your own social posts (be sure to tag them and/or their publication), and send them other relevant articles related to topics they cover. Finally, if a reporter calls you, return the call right away. It's likely they are working on a deadline, and if you aren't prompt in your response, they're going to quickly move on to find another source. When you write a press release, think like a journalist. Are your releases filled with acronyms and industry jargon? Do you include made-up quotes that don't sound like how someone talks in real life? This is a sure way to get a journalist to hit "delete" (and probably never read another of your releases again). Instead, think of a release as a print-ready news story—with a clear news hook at the top. Holding an event or releasing a new product isn't news, but inviting local students to your facility or developing a product that can do something that's never been done before is closer to the mark. Want to keep this conversation going? AMT has a new LinkedIn group dedicated to best prac- tices in marketing, PR and communications for the manufacturing technology industry. Search for AMT Digital Marketing Group on LinkedIn to join. By Penelope Brown Director – Marketing & Communications AMT—The Association For Manufacturing Technology Adding Focus to Your PR and Marketing Efforts