What is Transportation Marketing?

Transportation marketing is the art and science of marketing, specifically within the transportation and logistics industry. Transportation, shipping, trucking logistics, warehousing and fulfillment companies are often considered to be part of the transportation industry. 

Transportation companies have unique industry challenges, and marketing within this industry has specific nuances that can dictate success or failure.

The key components of transportation marketing are:

1. Value Proposition and Corporate Messaging: Effectively communicating the unique value your company provides to its customers is a key aspect in generating new business and keeping existing customers. 
2. Integrated Sales and Marketing Efforts: Synchronizing sales and marketing strategies and tactics are a must in today’s digital world. 
3. Inbound Marketing: Casting a wide net to attract new customers with educational content and thought leadership is now a staple for successful marketing.
4. Outbound Marketing: Leveraging marketing outreach solutions such as email marketing, advertising, sponsorships and social media are very effective in the transportation industry.
5. Account-Based Marketing (ABM): Targeting key accounts and building relationships with specific individuals at these accounts has proven to be very effective. 

To learn more about transportation marketing, contact us today to get started.

What Is Logistics Marketing?

Logistics marketing is the art and science of marketing, specifically for logistics companies within the supply chain management arena. Logistics companies such as third-party logistics (3PLs) have unique industry challenges, and marketing within this industry has specific nuances that can dictate success or failure. 

Marketing for this industry focuses on business-to-business (B2B) lead generation, customer acquisition and customer retention and growth.

The key components of logistics marketing are:

1. Value Proposition and Corporate Messaging: Effectively communicating the unique value your company provides to its customers is a key aspect in generating new business and keeping existing customers. 
2. Integrated Sales and Marketing Efforts: Synchronizing sales and marketing strategies and tactics are a must in today’s digital world. 
3. Inbound Marketing: Casting a wide net to attract new customers with educational content and thought leadership is now a staple for successful marketing.
4. Outbound Marketing: Leveraging marketing outreach solutions such as email marketing, advertising, sponsorships and social media are very effective in the transportation industry.
5. ABM: Targeting key accounts and building relationships with specific individuals at these accounts has proven to be very effective. 

To learn more about logistics marketing, schedule a discovery call or fill out the contact us form to get started.

How Can I Promote My Transportation & Logistics Company?

Transportation and logistics businesses face significant challenges in garnering brand recognition and awareness in today’s highly competitive environment. With most companies operating under tight budgets and a high expectation for results, choosing the right marketing and promotion strategy is paramount. 

Spending time and money on marketing that doesn’t work is frustrating. Provided below are some recommendations and considerations when developing a marketing and promotional strategy.

Don’t Jump Right Into Tactics

When the pressure is on to get results fast, many people will jump right into the execution of the tactical aspects of marketing. While you may get lucky, chances are these tactics will not provide the results you’re looking for, leading to wasted time and money. When we start working with companies, this is the biggest mistake we see.

Develop a Customized Strategy Based on Your Specific Goals

Your objectives in comparison to your unique market position can greatly affect your future success. What may work for one company may not work for another simply based on geography, buyer type, market niche, etc.

1. Start by defining your goals, target market, ideal customer profile and how you solve their problems. 
   
   
2. Establish your current baseline: What data do you have to support your current state vs. your future desired state? Website traffic? Number of qualified leads? Average order value? Average customer value? There are dozens of data points to consider. Whatever you choose, make sure your key performance indicators (KPIs) match your objectives.
   
   
3. Build a marketing and promotion strategy: Your strategy should include attraction strategies, engagement strategies, conversion strategies and retention strategies. This is where tactical marketers fail. If you spend all of your time and budget on attraction but fail to engage or convert prospects, your marketing dollars will be wasted.

• Attraction strategies: Paid advertising, search engine optimization (SEO), sponsorships, outreach, social media, speaking, etc.
• Engagement strategies: Once you have effectively promoted your brand, effectively engaging your audience is key. Establish a strong value proposition, messaging and content strategy to engage prospective customers and illustrate that your company has the strongest solution to their problems.
• Conversion strategies: Not all engaged prospects will pick up the phone and contact you. They need a path to follow. Establish a clear path on how to do business with you in all marketing channels and collateral. 
• Retention strategies: Many marketers stop marketing to people as soon as they become customers. Defining a retention strategy can help to improve customer lifetime value via educational content and providing value throughout the customer journey.
  
  

Build a Game Plan for Implementation

With your strategy complete, you can now develop your game plan for the tactical implementation of your program. 

• Develop a 12-month marketing calendar: This includes:
• Key milestones for larger projects
• Start/stop dates for specific tactics
• Reporting cadence (monthly, quarterly)

• Consider how you will measure the success of each tactic: If it can’t be measured, reconsider your inclusion of the tactic in your plan.

Consider how your tactics interrelate with each other: Oftentimes, marketing tactics overlap and, when properly executed, can create a snowball effect for greater results.

Launch Your Plan and Enjoy Your Success

If you follow the steps above, you will be well on your way to attaining the results you desire. 

SyncShow Transportation Marketing specializes in helping transportation, logistics, warehousing, distribution and shipping companies to craft highly customized and strategic marketing programs for business growth. For more information on how to fast-track your transportation marketing, let’s talk!