Today, EBTM launched ‘Interviewing the experts of your industry series – what works?’
This new podcast series hosted by Elaine Ball, CEO of EBTM is all about what is working within your industry and what does not. Find out how marketers, business owerns and Industry Guru’s promote their companies and learn from their tried and tested techniques.
EBTM have brough you this podcast as we would like to share valuable knowledge and help boost great marketing.
Our first podcast welcomes Kelly Friend (pictured) of Sonardyne International Ltd.
Kelly is the PR and Communications Coordinator at Sonardyne.
The podcast talks about the launch of the free Dynamic Positiong (DP) workshop series. Are they really worth it? How has it impacted Sonardyne, Veripos and Guidance Marine brands? Elaine Ball talks to Kelly about launching the free workshops.
For more details on these workshops, you can contact marketing@sonardyne.com. Sonardyne’s next workshop will be held on 22nd May 2014 in Norway.
Here the postcast here:
Launched in early April, EBTM have set up dedicated Marketing Support Pages for the Offshore, Geospatial and Mining & Quarry Industries.
The pages are there to provide tips and tools to business owners, managers and marketers. They are also a great support for junior staff wanting to understand the marketing world without jargon! (we all do!)
As well as providing consultancy services and helping with technical marketing planning and implementation, EBTM also know the executive is a busy person. By providing a one-stop-shop via LinkedIn, executives can keep up to date with the latest trends and Marketing information.
EBTM pride themselves on being a straight talking marketing consultancy, dedicated to boosting clients revenue and streamlining the company in order to take it to the next level.
As always, EBTM welcome feedback in order to provide you with the best and latest information.
For Mining & Quarry click here
EBTM go from growth to growth
England, Elaine Ball Technical Marketing (EBTM) Ltd
Young technical marketing solutions company, EBTM, are continuing to invest and grow. Their No.1 goal is to be known as the top Marketing Consultancy for the Geospatial, Offshore and Mining Industries.
(Left to right: Sarah, Elaine and Amanda)
The company is coming into its first full year of trading as of 21st May 2014. Elaine Ball, CEO and owner of EBTM has invested in top people, hiring Laser Surveying Marketing Expert; Amanda Finn. Amanda started with the company on 2nd January 2014 to head up client marketing implementation and provide support to existing marketing teams.
On Monday 14th May, EBTM hired executive, Sarah Rogerson, to run the back office and build a strong foundation for the growing company. Her support role will free up Elaine and Amanda to concentrate 100% on client needs. Sarah has a wealth of experience with strong expertise within event management.
Two key differentiators of EBTM, they understand the industries they are pitching to, and heavily invest in top training for its people.
Elaine Ball comments: “Amanda and I have just returned from the Social Media Marketing World Conference in San Diego. It is very important to us and our clients to ensure we are at the forefront of the latest techniques. The Geospatial, Offshore and Mining Industries don’t want second best, they want the best people and expertise to grow their companies. So, its very important we keep growing and investing in our own development!”
The company has a clear strategy for the next 3 years, with new things still to come in 2014.
By Elaine Ball, CEO of EBTM
Growing a brand in Africa? How easy?
Building up a brand within a foreign country can be extremely difficult for any business from a different country. Building a brand generally is hard work. Below are 6 tops tips to share when building your brand in Africa:
1. Find a medium that works!
Statistics in Africa – Social Media, Facebook
How? I can hear you say! Try and test! For example; StatCounter.com. This cool .com measures Internet usage trends. They track the browsers that are being used the most and go on page views not ‘unique’ visits. So, for Africa; almost 95% of people on the internet are using Facebook as their main social media medium.
“But I’m an engineering company selling into Mining, how do I benefit?”
Yes, I hear you but try, be consistent and see what happens. There is no right or wrong answer here. Your audience in Africa are accessing Facebook and this is a way to share your content that is inspiring? Remember, everyone has a Social Media face, just find out which one!
Social Media is not instant, you have to grow your following and BE CONSISTENT! So, to grow your brand in Africa, be consistent!
Finding the right medium will have a bigger effect and remember to measure!
2. What are the competition doing?
Who is using Facebook in Africa
Have a sniff around and find out what your nearest and dearest are doing! Again, do your research. Like it or not, we all leak information about the market, so keep an eye on what your competition are doing. See how they are growing their brand in Africa! And don’t forget the ‘substitute products!’
3. Blanket test
Hire an agency within Africa and do some research; getting involved at a local level is massively beneficial. The culture is so different compared to say US or France, go there and do a blanket test.
Visiting key exhibitions and talking to companies is also beneficial. I have just returned from Mining Indaba in Cape Town, a brilliant Mining exhibition and conference.
4. Network
Yes, its that simple! A great way to research Africa and network is through LinkedIn. Find groups on LinkedIn who work in Africa, interact with them and find out what works? LinkedIn have some amazing groups for Africa.
Check out:
Joining groups can be hugely rewarding.
NOTE: Don’t overwhelm yourself, join one or two key groups and remember; be consistent!
5. Know your benefits
Show off your product benefits through pictures
Yes, know your benefits. I work with many companies who don’t actually know what the benefits are to the end user. Ask yourself these questions: • Why do I need it? • What will it do for me? Put yourself in your client’s shoes.
Check out this great Infographic on ‘unplanned downtime’ – how simple to show off your benefits through pictures! Pictures tell 1000 words!
6. What’s your roadmap?
Don’t go blind into a new venture without giving you some key goals and working back; how do I get to x!
Hear Elaine Ball talk about improving your marketing with pictures. Gold Nugget Series 002
Elaine Ball provides some usefull tips on how to get the most out of LinkedIn business pages. Hear her Podcast:
Elaine Ball, EBTM’s CEO has had a busy few weeks, starting with the Mining Indaba Conference in Cape Town, South Africa, from 3rd to 6th February then closely followed by the ISEE Blasting Conference in Denver, Co, USA from 9th to 12th February.
Attending the Mining Indaba Conference on behalf of Moore Equipment Sales (MES) LLC and Telplus Zambia Ltd, Elaine visited key companies such as VALE, Rio Tinto, ARM and Newmont Mining to discuss how they can support companies with their requirement for satellite equipment and accessories.
Elaine visited clients and potential clients on behalf of MES as their Marketing Director. The conference was a key show for MES to meet with customers and put a face to the growing brand.
Elaine comments: “The Conference was very rewarding, even though I was just visiting. MES are slowly building a solid African Brand and seeing it develop is very exciting. The mining industry is a key market esp with the growth in Africa and EBTM’’s contacts”
After Mining Indaba, Elaine jetted off to Denver, CO, USA for the ISEE blasting exhibition. (9th to 12th Feb). The Conference concentrates on the latest blasting techniques. Elaine attend on behalf of Canadian Client; WipWare. Elaine met up with the extended WipWare family of dealers to talk strategy and marketing.
The WipWare team (including the dealers) are a passionate bunch, making growth and development of the WipWare brand a pleasure to implement.
(PIX: WipWare Dealer get together at ISEE, Denver, CO, USA – 9th to 12th February 2014)
It’s very important to plan when expanding a company and EBTM’s remit is to do this.
Back holding the fort, ebtm’s Marketing Communications Director; Amanda Finn was working on key accounts. As the company expands, ebtm have got to make sure their visiion is clear and they continue to support their clients 101%.
Amanda comments: “ebtm is very unique as we offer industry knowledge backed by marketing skills, we get involved like we are your marketing team. As the company expands, we have to make sure we continue to support 101%. I am very passionate about what i do and I care very much about our clients and their needs”
ebtm have a hectic few weeks with the Mining Indaba Conference in Cape Town, representing MES.
We will be meeting mining companies to talk about the benefits of Satellite Communications and promoting Apparel. MES are the main importers for Tru-SPEC clothing, Thuraya and InmarsatSatellite Communications equipment into Africa.
PLUS meeting up with WipWare‘s African dealer, Micron Scientific to talk about fragmentation analysis in mines and quarries.
“Its all about brand awarness and ebtm’s task it to develop this for all companies it represents. If you are not seen, you are not heard!” Comments Elaine Ball, CEO of ebtm and Marketing Director for both MES and WipWare.
By elaine ball, ceo, ebtm
Challenging the way you do things, its all about change.
Change is hard. Business is becoming more and more challenging. Company directors have to think differently in order to grow their businesses. This is no exception to marketing and what I mean by marketing is the way you ‘market’ yourself. How do you do business? How do you get your product and service to market that stands out from everyone else? How do you gain customers and retain them? Why you, over anyone else?
As most of you will see, the way we market is seriously changing. I can hear you saying now “we have always done it this way and its works, so why do I have to change”, while I’m not one for changing things if they are not broken, I am up for experimenting and keeping up to date with the latest trends. I am also up for getting my message across that will excite, educate and enthral customers in a different way. The world does not stand still and nor should you.
The majority of the companies out there including the geospatial businesses are, what I class as ‘sheep’. Charming, I hear you say. They copy each other, do the same things, advertise the same way and even use the same terminology! “get your own ideas!” I can’t stand it, be different and challenge how you do things. Being the same as everyone else, following that flock of sheep just isn’t me, nor should it be you! It’s also boring and doesn’t make you tons of money.
Ok rant over but think about it.
I am always up for picking on companies marketing techniques (good and bad) however, without offending anyone we will stick with the great things companies are embracing and experiment with their creativeness.
Who stands out from the crowd, who do you look up to and think ‘wow they got it right!’ Who is challenging the way we do things in the geospatial industry?
Smaller companies are more agile and can be very creative with challenging the way they do things but it’s a double edged sword. Cash is king and smaller businesses don’t always have enough to be creative therefore side with the ‘tried and tested’ methods. The other side of the coin is they don’t have the cost structure to support, looking after a giant marshmallow, which could wobble over at any moment?
Companies who challenge the way they do things
Over the years I’ve been in the geospatial market, little ‘gems’ have stuck in my mind, which I would like to share with you. Exhibiting at Conexpo in Vegas, Topcon’s machine control division did something different. They had a walk in theatre showing GPS satellites within the claws of the tent. This was unique and a very different way of showing off their product through educating the customer. Nice one! It challenged the way they promoted their product line through educating the customer instead of bombarding them with sales speak!
Trimble comes at change in a very different way. Trimble embraces change in the companies it buys. Trimble buys the ‘spark’ and leaves the companies with the ‘spark’. Many companies strip it away. To me, Trimble is not afraid of buying the unknown and this is the challenge! And this is how you need to think.
I call it the Trimble ‘no fear’ philosophy in buying smart little companies and keeping them smart! Good move Trimble!
Faro on the other hand has been very different and challenged the way they do business noting the trendy launch of the faro focus. Apart from the size and cost of the product itself, I was more impressed with the “fingers with faces!” adverts. How different is that! Their marketing team changed the way they traditionally did things in order to get a reaction from the user base and capture more of the market. And boy, does it stick in ones mind. Something different can make you stand out a mile from the crowd.
Changing habits
Without this being a lecture on creativity marketing, I want to put the point across about changing habits. It’s about stepping out of your comfort zone and trying something different. I want you to think differently about your offering. How can you promote your product in a different light, which will make it stand out and not the same way as others?
Changing the way you do things! This article is focused on marketing however it relates to your entire business. From answering the phone, shipping your product overseas, how your get your message across to how you buy companies. Change comes in many forms.
The marketing field
The marketing landscape has changed significantly over the past 10 years and marketing companies are always trying to find new ways to boost their client’s bottom line. Some succeed and some don’t, I like to put myself in the ‘succeed’ category. Now, being a technical marketer, I have to stay on top of what the marketing industry is doing. For example, video marketing is up 46% year on year. People don’t have the time to read lots of different articles. Watching a quick 2-minute video, is far easier for the busy executive. Maybe they will turn my article into a video clip! Mobile is also changing the world with countries like Africa bypassing infrastructure and picking up mobile phones. Crop farmers in Sudan are checking prices via mobile. The use of Apps has significantly increased.
So, how can you change and challenge?
Think, write and discuss the way you come across now. What has worked and what could you do to improve? Ask your customers. Even do a secret shopper who can find out lots about you from the outside. You don’t have to break the bank. Test new ways of getting your product out there, record your results and see what happens. If you don’t test, you will never know!
One little golden nugget I will share is to keep your eye on the marketing industry through your marketing team, consultant or via twitter, blogging or by Harvard Business Review. Why? If you want to keep going, and you want to grow or become more profitable you must adopt a change attitude. The world is changing and changing fast! Be that company in 50 years that is still going strong, challenging the way they do business. The above may give you the odd one or two key ideas in order for you to test a different path and that path could be very successful indeed.
Another piece of good advice is to keep an eye on what the best marketers are doing? Think Apply, Hiscox, Virgin and even Faro! Or even smaller organizations. Keep you eyes on e-cognition, a truly inspiring little business. E-cognition has changed the way their customers can truly make more effective decisions through real time data extraction.
Next Generation
Next, you need to think about the next generation of surveyors. They will buy and sell differently to you! I read an article the other day saying 3% of children under 5 are using iPhone! What will the world of ‘selling & marketing’ be like in another 10 years?
As well as keeping up to date with marketing industry news, the latest thought leaders, get your team including your marketers out there visiting key exhibitions and clients. Why? Let them pick up new ways of doing things, especially if they are truly creative individuals. Try it! Give them the scope to test out different methods.
A great example of how things have changed is with the gaming industry. When I used to play Mario Bothers on Nintendo it was between me and the other player in the room! Now you can compete online with someone from the other side of the world! Its taken.. what.. 10 years to change or less on how to play a game with someone?
Challenge the way you do things
I remember when I became marketing manager at MDL. We did a traffic exhibition in Amsterdam and I went over the top with great vibrant colour. (even though some of the team were not too keen at the beginning, I did win them over). I even rented a bright red sofa and carpet in order for us to stand out from the crowd.
Small things can make a huge impact. Bumbling along doing the same old thing will give you the same old results. Make YOU stand out. Test an area and measure it. You change with an impact and people will stand up and notice especially if you haven’t changed significantly before!
Riegl’s Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart quotes “be silent, if you choose; but when it is necessary, speak and speak in such a way that people will remember it” – wow! What a quote! And you know what, he’s right. This relates to change! “Change the way you get your product out there in such a way that people will remember it.”
Now, how many companies at Intergeo do you actually remember? A handful? For those who remembered MDL at SPAR 2012 will note the over the top stand; it was in your face. Several people made comments of “who is MDL?!” A perfect example! We were lucky to reap the benefits of the show but I wanted to highlight the step we took in order to
make an impact. In order to challenge the way we did things.
Riegl do things differently, lets measure the unexpected! Riegl love to measure objects that are hard to measure, like the Pyramids of Egypt. Riegl is different, doing things in a different light so people go ‘wow’ and you know what, they remember.
Conclusion
Find out who is pushing the boundaries of change. Look at how you currently do business and challenge the way it works for you. Think about the next 10 years were the market is going, where it could go and how you will fit in.
A NEW full-service technical marketing business to help global manufacturers expand and increase exports has been launched by a Yorkshire entrepreneur.
Former laser measurement technology entrepreneur, Elaine Ball, a chartered marketer and member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, has launched Elaine Ball Technical Marketing to support the UK’s technical manufacturing sector as part of moves to re-balance the UK economy and boost exports.
The new company, which is initially focusing on the global surveying, geospatial, satellite, oil & gas, marine, quarrying and mining sectors, has been launched after Elaine Ball sold her share in York-based global laser measurement technology company, Measurement Devices Ltd (MDL), where she rose from marketing manager to managing director, to global manufacturing giant Renishaw as part of a multi-million pound deal.
The sale followed 60 per cent annual sales growth at MDL which used a network of international agents to sell the technology which allowed the business to break into the traffic and aviation sectors with laser distance meters. Resulting sales saw the company almost triple turnover and staff grow from 26 in 2005 to 120 in 2012 as the company’s laser measurement devices, also used in quarrying, mining, civil engineering and marine GPS, were taken up worldwide.
Elaine Ball Technical Marketing (ebtm), Harrogate, which has already attracted clients in New York, Toronto, Zambia, Leeds and Aberdeen, will apply Elaine Ball’s international marketing and sales expertise to enable UK manufacturers to identify new UK and overseas markets and for international companies to break into new markets, including the UK, with support from a wide range of business-to-business marketing techniques.
Elaine Ball, a member of the Institute of Directors and of the Yorkshire Council for the CBI, says: “Globalisation, developments in e-commerce and the need to stimulate exporting are creating new opportunities for engineering and technical businesses worldwide.
“Elaine Ball Technical Marketing is a full-service marketing and communications business to help support these developments internationally, including helping more technical international businesses find partners in the UK and Europe. Ultimately I believe that these changes will also see more young people seek careers in engineering, manufacturing and technology because this is where sustainable GDP growth can be created.”
Elaine Ball Technical Marketing applies global marketing expertise backed by individual specialist businesses in graphic design, website construction, social media, PR, copywriting and photography all delivered through as single team.
Release issued for Elaine Ball Technical marketing by Mike Clarke Communications/Elaine Ball Technical Marketing. Press contact: Mike Clarke, tel: +44 7985-252251