Gardner Business Media Helps Manufacturing Marketers Better Reach Buyers with New Data and Insights on Industrial Buying

Gardner Business Media, Inc., today released Industrial Buying Influence 2020, the fifth installment of a research series that examines behaviors and influencers impacting the industrial manufacturing technology purchase process.

First published in 2011 as “Media Usage in Manufacturing Facilities”, the Industrial Buying Influence (IBI) series offers a comprehensive analysis of how media and marketing impact the industrial buying cycle in discrete parts manufacturing. Specifically, the pace and the process by which buying teams evaluate, research and decide on purchases; and, the media types and messaging strategies that inform each stage of that purchase process.

The survey, conducted from October 21 – November 4, 2019, includes the insights of 884 respondents comprised mainly of executives, managers and engineers at companies engaged in durable goods manufacturing.

The survey results include observations and raw data investigating primary trends in business-to-business industrial marketing and media usage. Specific topics include:

• Buying team attributes – size, duration, title, age, motivation
• Industrial buying cycle – discovery, research, evaluation, decision
• Media usage – most accessed and preferred media channels
• Influencers – content, messaging, environment, triggers

Commenting on the survey results, Dave Necessary, Director of Strategic Engagement, noted “We want to help industrial marketers make the best possible marketing decisions. Our hope is that by offering better data and better insights on the industrial purchase process – marketers can make more informed decisions on content, creative, platforms and partnerships to help them connect to current and prospective buyers.”

Key findings:

• Motivation: 45% of purchases are initiated by a new project or new customer need
• Duration: Nearly half (48%) of purchase processes require at least 6 months.
• Size: More than 80% of buying teams consists of at least 3
• Media Types: 90% of industrial buyers use a minimum of 3 different media types during the purchase process
• Evaluation: Nearly 97% of purchase processes involve the evaluation of  at least one alternative vendor
• Website: Vendor website is the most commonly accessed channel throughout the industrial purchase process
• Sources: Only 5 media types appeared in at least 50% of responses – vendor website, search, industry website, industry event, magazine

The complete Industrial Buying Influence 2020 report is available at: collections.gardnerweb.com/ibi.  In addition to Industrial Buying Influence, Gardner Business Media and Gardner Intelligence produce a volume of market intelligence for the durable goods manufacturing market including the annual Capital Spending Surveys and the monthly Gardner Business Index. For a complete list of Gardner Intelligence reports, visit: gardnerintelligence.com

About Gardner Business Media

Gardner Business Media is the premier publisher for the heart of manufacturing in North America – providing unique, one-of-a-kind, relevant information of keen interest to the people who power plants, shops, and factories. Gardner Business Media was founded in 1928 (as Gardner Publications, Inc.) in Cincinnati, Ohio, with the introduction of Modern Machine Shop magazine.