When your customer is a young engineer...

Engineers are committed to solving problems by transcending imaginative innovations. They have a unique set of skills that are nitpicking with precision, with almost obsessive focus and joking intuition; therefore they can make a generation think Maybe, it will become the normal thing of the next generation.
Part of the reason why engineers become engineers is their persistence. No matter what others say, they will work hard to achieve their goals; but the other side of this trait means that engineers may not follow the trend. In this ever-changing world, this can be a challenge for companies with engineers as a customer group because they have to constantly adjust their marketing strategies to cater to today's engineers.

For example, Analog Arts, the author of the measurement equipment supplier, is still learning marketing strategies, especially for the younger generation of engineers; this article will share some of our experience, but it may be just the tip of the iceberg.

Understand "digital world"

The 20- and 30-year-old engineers grew up in a digital age; there are 3 billion people online in the world, and an additional 1 billion in five years. "Millennial" (Editor: also known as "Y generation" usually refers to people born between 1981 and 2000, and in Taiwan is "7th grade") Engineers are active groups, they will rely on the Internet As the main source of information.

According to a survey, engineers in this group are “continuously connected”, whether through personal computers or smart phones. To reach this group of young engineers, you must maintain high visibility in the online world and update your website regularly. And make the content friendly to the mobile device, use keyword optimization (SEO) techniques and strategically arranged images/images, and choose attractive titles.

In short, all online content presentations absolutely need to study keywords first; it is also important to quickly grasp the focus of this group focus - according to statistics, they usually only take 15 seconds to browse a web page content and exit.



Make good use of social media

Thirty years ago, engineers had to read hundreds of printed articles, or get awesome product specifications/user manuals from suppliers; in order to stay in the front line of professional fields, they often collected several Technical documentation for the bookshelf. For today's young engineers, finding a suitable article or product information from countless web pages is a challenge.

So many people will turn to the social media expert community to find information, such as the ancient Greek and Roman scientists will go to the public bath to discuss the latest law; this generation of engineers will use Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. online platform Get information or exchange ideas.

It takes time to stay active on those online social platforms. Larger companies usually have a department that specializes in social media, and small businesses sometimes have to be more creative or focused in this area. Pay more attention. Regardless of your social media business strategy, the key is to provide valuable, interesting content that appeals to your target audience.

The transformation of engineers' information consumption patterns

The engineers of the previous generation used to "read and speak", that is, they would read articles or press releases themselves, and then discuss key ideas together; but the younger generation of engineers began to find alternatives - "seeing and communicating online."

The so-called "look" refers to more and more common technical video content; and the online communication platform allows them to choose which ones they want to participate in, or more suitable for, and interact with more peers. Producing good technical online video can easily attract thousands of viewers in a short period of time; but it is not easy to create interesting original content that conveys messages and attracts viewers.

In short, what you need to pay attention to is the change of your target customer group in the consumption information model; for the author's company, our target customers include college students, amateur electronic design players and professional engineers. The text version of the product technical information, there are also video versions.

Thinking about jumping off the frame

It’s a cliché to attract customers in a unique way, but it’s a cliché that still applies to today’s engineers; you need to fully understand your target customer base and find ways that are not common and useful to you. market. You can provide rewards for a certain group, understand customer needs by investigating their needs, or respond positively to their questions, using diagrams and other visual language tools that appeal to young people to communicate with engineers.

At the same time, young engineers don't like to see flashy advertisements like their predecessors; they are more resistant to traditional marketing techniques. So when you develop marketing strategies for young client communities, don't be afraid to use thinking patterns that break away from the framework. Young engineers are mostly highly educated and must be marketed. You must have a clear understanding of this group.

Engineers are usually not procurement experts, and often have limited time and limited budgets, so it is important to provide insurance for their purchasing decisions. A very frustrating situation today is that engineers usually do not contact the actual equipment or component manufacturers, but sign a purchase contract with the distributor; in any case, we find that the inquiry can provide sufficient communication, fast and thoughtful. Reply, you can win customers.

All in all, the best marketing strategy is to provide excellent products and services that can earn a reputation among the engineering community; therefore you need to ensure that the product is the best before marketing and that this message can be widely disseminated in digital worlds.