How to Engage Engineers: Insights to Help Transform Marketing Strategies

What Engineers Want and Don’t Want: Decision-Making, Preferences, and Pain Points

How Engineers Make Decisions: Autonomy and Self-Service

One of the strongest patterns that has emerged in the focus groups is that engineers prefer to do their research independently. As they do so, they look for technical information and expect it to be readily available online. (It was noted in the focus groups that this preference also held true in the past, when resources such as catalogs and data sheets were available only in print.)

Engineers value self-service tools like downloadable datasheets, CAD models, and case studies to inform their decisions. They avoid reaching out to sales teams unless it’s absolutely necessary, and only after they’ve gathered sufficient technical information. This is especially true of phone calls. Personalities vary, of course, but in general, engineers prefer not to take on the “arduous” task of talking to someone on the phone unless they’ve already determined from their research that the company can help them. Engineers want to solve a problem, not engage with a salesperson who doesn’t have technical knowledge.

What Engineers Expect from Websites: Transparency, Credibility, Simplicity, Practical Content

Engineers have several strong preferences for interacting with the websites of potential suppliers:

• Transparency: Websites that provide detailed technical data sheets, case studies, specifications, examples of successful projects, and clear pricing (if appropriate) build credibility and trust.
• Website Simplicity and Usability: Presentation matters. Engineers prefer well-organized, modern-looking websites with logical navigation, searchable content with easy-to-use filters, and minimal visual distractions or unnecessary marketing content. Downloadable PDFs, rather than HTML, are a preferred format for in-depth content like data sheets.
• Webinars and Whitepapers: Technical webinars and in-depth whitepapers attract engagement from engineers, particularly if these assets offer practical insights or describe new techniques.

Another Strong Preference: Personalized Support and Non-Intrusive Engagement

Gated content deters and frustrates engineers in their quest for information, and they have a specific distaste for aggressive or overly intrusive sales tactics, especially impersonal and obviously automated follow-up communications.

When engineers do engage with sales or support, they want personalized, relevant follow-ups and quick, knowledgeable responses. They don’t want to feel that their form fill or email has “fallen into the abyss.”

Pain Points

Lack of access to comprehensive technical resources is a major pain point for engineers. They are looking for ample, accessible data so that they can learn as much as they can to determine whether a potential supplier can solve their problem.

Another pain point is frustration with the type of information that they sometimes find instead: highly promotional content and generic sales pitches. Engineers would rather have technical data readily available on your website, without a gated form or pop-up that prevents them from accessing the information they actually need to get a better understanding of your offering. Pop-ups asking for contact information before they had a chance to review the content in detail were described as “a massive turnoff.”

Missteps Frequently Taken When Marketing to Engineers

Marketing to engineers can be challenging. Three missteps we often see:

• Misalignment between traditional marketing tactics and engineers’ expectations.
• Over-reliance on gated content or promotional messaging, which leads to lower engagement.
• Lack of substantive content

Traditional consumer marketing techniques don’t work in B2B marketing, and certainly not in marketing to engineers. They want—and need—to see technical data and clearly organized information, rather than less specific, overly promotional content.

Aggressive sales or lead generation tactics, like automated, highly promotional emails or restrictive content gating, can backfire. At least one engineer admitted to using a fake email address to be able to download information, because he wanted to avoid engagement with the vendor until he was ready to talk to them. At the same time, engineers will provide their contact information if they are confident that your company can meet their technical needs. This suggests that some content can remain gated.

In terms of marketing emails, occasional marketing emails with content that shows how a product works, demonstrates how it’s installed, describes what’s new, or includes other relevant technical information, are valued.

Importantly, engineers want to see content that fully explains what your solution can offer and how it solves problems. Case studies are particularly favored. While developing meaningful content can mean juggling a busy marketing team’s priorities, it is an important strategy for driving engagement and lead generation.

Recommendations: Adapting Marketing Strategies to Effectively Reach Engineers

Recommendations for adapting marketing strategies to resonate with engineers fall into three broad categories: content strategies, website optimization, and messaging adjustments. While most marketing is done online, and websites are the resource that engineers use to conduct research, some of these recommendations apply to all forms of B2B industrial sales and marketing.

Content Strategies

• An Ample Amount of Ungated Content: To build trust, provide free access to as many critical resources like datasheets and case studies as possible. Some content can remain gated, but avoid intrusive pop-ups or gating actual product information.
• Technical Depth: Ensure content includes detailed specifications and real-world applications. Engineers want to know that your company is technically capable.
• Success Stories: Use case studies to show how your company has solved problems for customers in the industries that you’re targeting. While the practical, technical value of your solutions is paramount, also demonstrating ROI, cost savings, or greater efficiency may help to sell your solution up the chain.

Website Optimization

• User-Centric Design: Create clean, intuitive layouts that prioritize technical resources. A good user experience suggests that the customer experience will also be good. If it looks like your website hasn’t been updated in 10 years, it’s a red flag, and engineers may move on to a competitor’s site.
• Searchability: Implement effective search tools and navigation systems. Parametric search appealed to many engineers in the focus groups.
• Interactive Features: Videos, especially those that demonstrate complex products or processes, are considered valuable, unless they load slowly and interfere with user experience. Many of our clients are conflicted about sharing ungated 3D models on their website, but engineers will generally want to be able to pull it into their own model to see whether the solution will fit, or to start building around it—before contacting you. Opinions on chatbots were divided.

Messaging Adjustments

• Solve Pain Points: If your website is guilty of a focus on promotional fluff, shift to messaging that focuses on how your product or solution solves problems. In an ideal world, engineers would prefer to see enough technical information that they could practically become suppliers themselves.
• Connect the Dots: Highlight how your solutions solve problems or improve efficiency. Explain whether you are a high volume/low mix company or a low volume/high mix company. An idea of your solution’s pricing is also helpful, even if it doesn’t make sense to provide specific numbers; it should never seem that your website is trying to hide pricing. Tools such as ROI calculators are valued by engineers.

After engineers have researched your product to their satisfaction, they’re ready to launch into a relationship by reaching out and eventually expanding the circle to include their company’s purchasing team.

An Additional Insight: Customization v. Commodity

In discussing how they evaluate vendors, engineers made a distinction between those that supply a commodity and those that supply a customized part or solution. Responsiveness and technical support are critical for custom or specialized items, while price and availability are key for commodities. Depending on which category your offering falls into, you can prioritize certain types of content and communication.

Actionable Insights: What Can Marketing Teams Do Next?

B2B industrial marketing teams are often short on time as they juggle many responsibilities. Three areas of focus can help to maximize the impact of time spent adjusting your marketing to better reach an engineering audience.

• Optimize Resources: Audit your content to ensure it aligns with engineers’ preferences for self-service and transparency. Are there simple changes you can make to existing content? What are the gaps that need to be filled with new content? For in-depth guidance on auditing content, read How To Perform A Content Audit for a B2B Website Redesign.
• Highlight Solutions and Benefits: Make it clear that there are valid business reasons for engaging with your company. Messaging should highlight problems and challenges that engineers are likely to face, how your solutions solve them, and what benefits result. Much of this valuable information might already exist on your website, but perhaps it is being overlooked because headers are too vague or results are buried in text. To get started, read How to Improve Content Performance with Quick Wins that Add Up Over Time.
• Revamp Your Website: Evaluate and improve navigation, searchability, and resource availability. Is it easy to find data-rich technical resources on your website? A consolidated resource hub might be a solution. Can you remove gating on certain content? Improving navigation and searchability may be a bigger project, but engineers appreciate the ability to narrow down your offerings to determine whether you offer precisely what they need. The look should be clean and modern.

Conclusion

Engineers value transparency, technical depth, and self-service resources. Marketing strategies that cater to these preferences foster trust and boost conversions. Once engineers have done their research and are ready to talk to you, they will reach out, resulting in a high-quality lead for your sales team.

Schedule a Consultation

How can your marketing strategies better engage technical audiences? Schedule a consultation with Windmill Strategy to explore the opportunities. Let’s talk