As the Web channel widens in marketing scope, manufacturing companies have a growing opportunity to leverage their Web sites to generate more business, build customer loyalty, create brand awareness and gather market intelligence.

Limited marketing budgets can be used much more effectively in this medium than in almost any other, says Komarketing Associates President Andy Komack, so long as you take the time to be strategic about your decisions -- and follow through on them.

According to Komack, the following are three of the most important steps for manufacturers to consider:

1. Use SEO (or Lose SEO)

Since search engines form an essential part of the provider research and procurement toolkit, manufacturers that use search-engine optimization (SEO) effectively can steal away market share from competitors with not much effort, says Komack. "If you search for ‘hydraulic presses' today in Google, the top three results come from Kempler Industries, Phoenix Presses and Beckwood Hydraulic Press Company," he notes. "However, another of the top hydraulic press companies, Greenerd, isn't even in the top 30 results in Google. Greenerd is missing a huge opportunity to generate leads and build its brand online," he says.

2. Content is King

Great content on a Web site is very much aligned with SEO efforts, in terms of adding pages that can be found in search engines and attracting links to that content. Unique and valuable content also provides users new and old with a reason to return to the Web site, which increases brand exposure and loyalty.

Examples of content that can be effective in bringing return visitors include how-to demonstrations, product design tools, productivity calculators, service manuals (including retired model manuals), position papers and market analyses.

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