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April 2014 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 33 Exclusive Report Social Media: Somewhat Effective In the AED/EDA Marketing Study, social media was utilized by 69 percent of respondents – far lower than the 87 percent of B2B marketers who said they used it in a recent Content Marketing Institute (CMI) study. Sixteen percent of dealers who use it find it "very effective," while 55 percent find it "some- what effective." "Social media is not effective unless you are constantly updating it and keeping it fresh and interesting," said Humphries. "We haven't had the resources for that." Now that their market is recovering, JCB of Georgia is planning a new Facebook initiative. Facebook (69%) and LinkedIn (60%) lead in usage among dealers. Content Marketing: A Source of Confusion Only 55 percent of dealers said they utilized content marketing, a fact that surprised some of the marketing agencies with whom we shared study results. In the CMI Study, 91 percent of all B2B marketers had adopted some form of content market- ing. "Content is the most effective online marketing tactic there is," said Christine Julka, managing partner with ADI Agency. "What the search engines and potential customers look for is content." ADI advocates blogs as a way to boost site traffic and engage customers. "The reality is, if you have a website, if you advertise online, if your business has a Facebook page, you are doing content marketing," added Tran. "How? All of those marketing tactics require your business to tell its story." "There has been a paradigm shift in marketing," said EDA's Ross Conroy. "The mentality of pushing out messages and making statements to your customers is no longer as effective as it once was. Today, it is much more of a pull effect. Publish content that is valuable to your customer. When they are ready – if you have done your job – they will come to you informed and ready to buy." The Digital Shift The degree to which dealers have shifted to online marketing varies considerably. At one end of the spec- trum are 9 percent of the dealer respondents who have shifted more than 50 percent of the budget to digital. At the other end are 10 percent of dealers who haven't shifted their budget at all. Chicago Machinery Company in Linwood, Ill., falls in the middle with 35-50 percent of their budget shifting to digi- tal. To take advantage of a resurgence of business activity in Indiana, they recently consulted with Purdue University Business School on their website, plan to increase market- ing spending, and will add to their sales team. "The old playbook – you can use it as a fireplace starter," said Joe Thoesen, president. "Nothing is the same. I have recognized that. We now have completely reinvented ourselves one more time. I am open to new market- ing methods." A lack of time and expertise were key marketing chal- lenges uncovered by the research. Forty-three percent of dealers reported that a lack of time presented a challenge, while 35 percent cited a lack of expertise in marketing. "The problem with trying to accomplish marketing in-house is that you need a lot of different skill sets to do it thoroughly and well – a graphic designer, a writer, a programmer, a videographer, an editor, an SEO special- ist, and someone who understands social media," said Winsby's Frakes. "Then, someone needs to manage their efforts and point them in the right direction, which is why I think it makes a lot of sense to work with an agency." The majority of dealers use an agency for less than 25 percent of their marketing activities. Whether using digital or traditional marketing methods, The AED/EDA Marketing Study provides a great starting point to finding out what works and what doesn't. Dealer- ships still need to do their due diligence to find the right marketing mix for their business. There's More… Both the dealership marketing study and end-user study are available for download at www.edadata.com. n Joanne Costin is a freelance writer and marketing consultant focusing on the construction industry. She can be reached at (847) 358-1413 or jcostin@costincustom.com. 30_Marketing_feature_KP.indd 33 3/27/14 4:30 PM