How to reach out to international markets through PR
Over the last 12 months we have been approached by an increasing number of manufacturing companies seeking international PR campaigns. It is a service that we have been providing our clients for many years as they look to grow sales in new markets and territories. The recent slide in the pound versus the dollar is likely to drive this demand even further as UK manufactured products provide overseas customer with even better value – and we are already seeing this with those clients that have had a jump start to their international PR campaigns.
PR and digital marketing is one of the most effective ways of generating awareness and sales leads from both domestic UK and international markets because it is viewed as up to nine times more trustworthy than advertising. It is one of the reasons why a number of our clients have already asked us to increase activity to target overseas markets. The other great factor to consider with PR and digital content is that, unlike advertising, once it is online, it remains there indefinitely, providing valuable SEO and backlink benefits.
The key territories that we target with our white papers, thought leadership articles, case studies and press releases are Europe, USA, South America and the Far East. It helps that we work closely with translation partners, to ensure we can maximise coverage in each chosen territory.
Case study: International PR for B2B manufacturer
Our client Industrial Physics provides testing and inspection services to manufacturers around the world. They recently completed research with 255 international customers that identified a range of challenges they face when looking to move to more sustainable packaging. A number of these revolve around difficulties of testing sustainable materials when testing standards for these new materials don’t currently exist. Industrial Physics provides testing and inspection equipment solutions.
Our brief was to share the research finding in the territories in which our client has a presence: UK, USA, Germany, Netherlands, USA and the Far East. Our approach was to create written and digital content that asks the questions: Is the world ready for sustainable packaging? A suitably thought-provoking campaign title that also works in translated form (German and Dutch). The results speak for themselves, with total B2B readership for the initial press release distribution and generic magazine and online articles, which was distributed on a global basis, reaching 1,385,276 people.
Notable success included opinion pieces and magazine features in USA based Packaging Gateway and Germany’s VerpakkingsManagement, Recyling magazin and Prozess Techik.
Generating sales leads from international PR and digital marketing also involves our team seeking our speaking opportunities in overseas territories. This is another effective way of your key people being seen and heard by potential new customers.
For our client Industrial Physics, we secured speaking slots at three international shows. These include a speaking slot: Is the World ready for Sustainable Packaging, by Sean Kohl, Product Director at Industrial Physics, at Pack Expo in Chicago, Tuesday 25th October. The slot is during the Innovation Hub and will allow Sean to share how Industrial Physics is there to support manufacturers as they move to sustainable packaging.
We hear a lot about the challenges in the UK economy, particularly in the last few weeks. However, there is a silver lining; a weaker pound can make it more advantageous for UK manufacturers to grow overseas sales. PR and digital marketing, as we have shown with Industrial Physics, is a very effective and persuasive method of targeting these overseas marketing.
As a B2B PR agency based in Sheffield – at the heart of UK advanced manufacturing – we specialise in industrial sectors especially within international markets. We have a track record of generating sales leads for manufacturers from international markets.
We offer a full range of services including PR, SEO and digital marketing. That means we can use high quality content generated by our team of copywriters for both traditional and digital printed media. It ensures that you get a consistent message to potential customers.
If you are looking to maximise your brand presence in overseas markets through either PR, digital marketing or speaking opportunities, call us today on: 0114 349 5344. Alternatively, email us at john@dragonflypr.co.uk
Dragonfly PR is a South Yorkshire-based business-to-business PR agency with expertise in the manufacturing and construction sector.