In this episode of The Kula Ring, we delve into the challenges and opportunities surrounding trade show marketing for manufacturers. Joined by Jim Beretta, founder of Customer Attraction Inc., they explore the importance of developing effective trade show strategies and measuring ROI. Jim shares insights from his own experiences, highlighting the need for a data-driven approach while balancing the often emotional responses to trade show outcomes. The discussion emphasizes how manufacturers can create long-term value through strategic planning and understanding the broader, non-transactional benefits of trade events.

This week The Kula Ring is sitting down with Allison Myers from Fives Intralogistics, she shares her unique insights on transforming complex challenges into clear, actionable strategies. Discover the nuances of modern B2B manufacturing marketing and how you can still use some of the methods marketers used before social media overran our lives.

This week The Kula Ring is all about Thought Leadership. We are sitting down with Sean O’Brien who has successfully integrated a thought leadership-backed marketing strategy at his highly specialized industrial manufacturing company. We discuss a myriad of ways to distribute this type of work and how to develop the key people within your firm to be excellent examples of thought leaders.

Andy Jensen of Sunstone Engineering joins the show this week to talk about a really interesting marketing case study. Sunstone marketed to almost exclusively engineers in verticals like aerospace and electronics. Then, a couple of years ago, an unheard-of order for small light-duty welders came through from one of their dealers, then another, and another. Overnight Sunstone was thrust into an emerging market. Production and marketing at Sunstone had to pivot and pivot fast. Andy walks us through the changes that have taken place at Sunstone and how they have managed this rapid, unexpected growth.

Many aspects of our lives changed in the COVID era. B2B marketing was no different. This week we sat down with Nick Baranowski from Keystone Technologies to discuss how the pandemic era solutions have fueled huge success with mobile showrooms that now tour the US all year. This is a super cool idea and Nick shares some of the successes and pitfalls to avoid.

The Kula Ring has discussed staffing issues in B2B manufacturing quite a few times now. However, this week we are sitting down with Hallie Haupt from IQ Manufacturing, she walks us through what it really looks and feels like to be a young person in the B2B manufacturing space. She shares some insight on how IQ has been able to catch some fresh, young talent on their shop floor and some of the difficulties of dealing with some of that older workforce that is so prevalent in the manufacturing space.