How To Do SEO for Manufacturing Brands

When it comes to SEO, many professionals have mastered optimising websites for eCommerce, B2B services and local businesses. 

However, tackling SEO for manufacturing brandsis a whole different ball game. It presents a unique set of challenges, from longer sales cycles to niche keywords and B2B buyer personas. 

If you’re an SEO professional trying to crack manufacturing SEO, you might be scratching your head about where to start. No worries! 

This guide will break down everything you need to know about SEO for manufacturers, step-by-step, so you can approach it with confidence.

Table of contents

• Why Manufacturing Brands Need SEO?
• The Unique SEO Challenges for Manufacturing Brands
• How to Approach SEO Strategy for Manufacturer Brands
  1. Perform Industry-Specific Keyword Research
  2. Build an SEO-Friendly Website Structure
  3. Create Technical and Educational Content
  4. Optimise for Local SEO (Even for Global Brands)
  5. Build High-Quality Backlinks
  6. Track, Analyse and Optimise Your Strategy
• Final Thoughts
• Frequently Asked Questions

Why Manufacturing Brands Need SEO?

Manufacturers operate in an industry that is often slow to adopt digital marketing strategies. Many still rely on trade shows, word-of-mouth referrals and traditional sales teams to drive leads. However, times are changing. More B2B buyers are turning to the internet to research products and solutions before ever contacting a salesperson.

Around 60% of B2B buyers might rely on digital content to make purchase decisions. This shift makes SEO crucial for manufacturers to stay competitive and attract the right leads with the help of an SEO company.

Manufacturing websites often have a treasure trove of content—product specs, white papers, case studies and technical manuals—yet, they may not be effectively leveraging this content for SEO. Here’s where the opportunity lies.

With a well-planned SEO strategy, you can help manufacturing brands attract qualified leads, increase their visibility in search engines and position them as industry leaders.

Here’s where the opportunity lies. With a well-planned SEO strategy, you can help manufacturing brands attract qualified leads, increase their visibility in search engines and position them as industry leaders.

The Unique SEO Challenges for Manufacturing Brands

Manufacturers face a distinct set of challenges that require a tailored SEO approach:

1. Complex and Technical Products: Unlike other industries, manufacturing products tend to be highly technical, requiring in-depth explanations and longer sales funnels. Keywords must reflect this complexity.
2. Longer Sales Cycles: B2B manufacturing sales cycles are long, often stretching into months or even years. SEO strategies need to accommodate this, focusing on nurturing leads throughout the buyer journey.
3. Niche Audiences: The pool of potential customers is much narrower. You’re not marketing to the masses; you’re targeting decision-makers—procurement teams, engineers and business owners—who need highly specific solutions.
4. Limited Online Presence: Many manufacturers have basic websites with little to no SEO optimisation. This means you may be building their SEO strategy from the ground up, which requires a detailed, methodical approach.

With these challenges in mind, let’s explore how to build an effective SEO strategy for manufacturing brands.

How to Approach SEO Strategy for Manufacturing Brands

You might have been told this before but here’s a reminder — SEO strategy depends a lot on industry. So try to learn about the industry first and then approach the strategy.

Let’s understand how to approach SEO strategy for manufacturer brands.
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1. Perform Industry-Specific Keyword Research

Keyword research is the cornerstone of any successful SEO strategy. However, when it comes to manufacturing brands, you’re not just targeting generic search terms like “best metal supplier” or “engineering services.”

You’re looking for more niche, technical keywords that reflect the specific products and services the manufacturer offers.

Here’s how to perform keyword research for manufacturers:

• Target Long-Tail Keywords: Manufacturing products are often highly specialised, which means you’ll need to focus on long-tail keywords that reflect this specificity. For example, instead of optimising for “industrial valves,” consider targeting more detailed terms like “high-pressure industrial ball valves.”
• Focus on B2B Buyer Intent: Manufacturing buyers search with intent. They’re not casually browsing. They’re looking for a solution to a specific problem. Tools like Ahrefs, Semrush or Google Keyword Planner can help you identify keywords with B2B buying intent, such as “precision CNC machining for automotive parts” or “custom injection moulding services for medical devices.”
• Leverage Industry Jargon: Industry-specific jargon is quite common in the manufacturing industry. While you don’t want to overwhelm your content with overly technical language, it’s important to include the terms your target audience is actually searching for. For example, a potential customer might search for an “OEM parts manufacturer” rather than just a “parts manufacturer.”
• Check Competitor Keywords: Look at what your competitors are ranking for. SEO tools can help you analyse the keywords used by rival manufacturers and give you an idea of where opportunities lie.

2. Build an SEO-Friendly Website Structure

Manufacturers often have extensive product ranges and it’s crucial to have a well-organised website structure to support SEO efforts. The goal here is to make it easy for both users and search engines to navigate and index the site.

Create clear product categories. If a manufacturer offers a wide array of products, organise them into clear categories. This will not only make it easier for users to find what they’re looking for but will also help search engines understand the content hierarchy of the site.

Also, optimise for user experience (UX). Given the technical nature of manufacturing products, a strong user experience is key. Ensure that pages load quickly are mobile-friendly and have easy-to-read navigation. Google prioritises sites that offer a good user experience, so UX directly impacts your rankings.

And please don’t forget internal linking. Internal links help search engines crawl your website and also guide users to relevant content.

For example, linking from a product page to a related blog post on how the product can solve a particular issue is a great way to improve SEO while helping potential leads move further down the sales funnel.

3. Create Technical and Educational Content

The manufacturing audience needs content that educates, informs and addresses their pain points. Here’s how to craft a winning content strategy:

1. Product Pages Optimisation: Manufacturing websites often underutilise product pages. These pages should not only provide detailed technical specifications but also be optimised with SEO in mind. Ensure each product page includes:
   • Descriptive meta titles and meta descriptions
   • Detailed product descriptions with relevant keywords
   • High-quality images and videos (if applicable)
   • Clear call-to-action buttons (e.g., “Request a Quote” or “Download Spec Sheet”)
2. Write In-Depth Blog Posts: Manufacturers’ customers are looking for solutions to specific problems. Writing in-depth blog posts that address these pain points is a great way to attract qualified leads. For instance, if a manufacturer makes industrial HVAC systems, a blog post titled “How to Choose the Right HVAC System for Your Manufacturing Facility” could provide immense value to potential buyers.
3. Create Case Studies and White Papers: Manufacturing buyers love data and real-world examples. Case studies and white papers are fantastic content assets that showcase your client’s expertise and can be optimised for SEO. For instance, a case study on how your client’s industrial automation systems helped reduce production time for a major automotive supplier can not only attract potential buyers but also give you a chance to rank for industry-related keywords.
4. Educational Videos: In addition to written content, manufacturers should consider creating educational videos. Many B2B buyers prefer visual content and videos that explain how a product works or highlight its benefits can significantly enhance SEO efforts.

4. Optimise for Local SEO (Even for Global Brands)

Even though many manufacturing companies operate on a global scale, local SEO is still vital. Many B2B buyers look for nearby suppliers to reduce shipping costs and ensure faster delivery times.

Here’s how to optimise for local SEO:

Claim and Optimise Google Business Profile
Ensure your client’s Google Business Profile is claimed, verified and fully optimised. This includes adding up-to-date contact information, business hours and high-quality images of the manufacturing facility.

Target Local Keywords
In addition to global keywords, incorporate location-based terms like “metal fabricator in Birmingham” or “precision machining services in Manchester.” These can help attract customers looking for nearby suppliers.

Build Local Citations
Ensure your client’s business is listed in relevant local and industry directories. This not only helps with local SEO but also builds backlinks, which are crucial for boosting domain authority.

Encourage Reviews
Customer reviews play a big role in local SEO. Encourage satisfied customers to leave reviews on Google and other platforms. Positive reviews not only improve local rankings but also enhance credibility.

5. Build High-Quality Backlinks

Building high-quality backlinks is essential for increasing a site’s authority in search engines. However, for manufacturing brands, this requires a more targeted approach.

Many industries have their own directories and databases. Ensure that your client’s manufacturing business is listed in relevant directories. These are great places to build high-quality, niche-relevant backlinks.

If your client works with other manufacturers or distributors, ask for backlinks from their websites. Often, partners are more than happy to link back to your site if they’ve worked with you on a successful project.

Lastly, create linkable assets. Linkable assets could be anything from technical resources to in-depth guides and case studies. Promote these assets to relevant blogs, forums and industry websites to attract backlinks.

6. Track, Analyse and Optimise Your Strategy

Finally, no SEO strategy is complete without regular monitoring and optimisation. Use tools like Google Analytics, Semrush or Moz to track keyword rankings, organic traffic and user behaviour. Look out for the following key metrics:

• Organic Traffic: Keep an eye on how much traffic is coming from search engines. If organic traffic is increasing, it’s a good sign that your SEO efforts are paying off.
• Keyword Rankings: Track the rankings of your target keywords to ensure that your content is climbing the SERPs.
• Bounce Rate and Time on Site: These metrics give insight into how users are engaging with your content. A high bounce rate or low time on site may indicate that your content isn’t meeting user expectations.
• Conversion Rate: Finally, track how many visitors are converting into leads by filling out forms, requesting quotes or contacting the sales team. This will help you determine the ROI of your SEO efforts.

Final Thoughts

SEO for manufacturing brands requires a long-term, strategic approach. By understanding the unique challenges faced by manufacturers and developing a tailored SEO strategy that incorporates technical content, targeted keywords and high-quality backlinks, you’ll be well on your way to driving qualified leads and increasing visibility for your clients.

Remember, in the manufacturing industry, SEO isn’t just about increasing traffic—it’s about attracting the right kind of traffic.

With the right mix of keyword research, content creation, local SEO and backlinks, you can build a sustainable SEO strategy that delivers results for years to come.

And if you ever need help refining your SEO strategy or executing a comprehensive digital marketing campaign, reach out to professionals working at the digital marketing agency on LinkedIn and pick their brains.

Good Luck!

Frequently Asked Questions

Shefali Pandey

The founder and partner of Flora Fountain, Shefali leads the Content and Technology divisions. A one-time engineer who started her career writing front-end code, she took a detour sometime during her 9 years in New York, studied journalism and started writing prose, poetry and sometimes jokes. She now has 15...