• This implementation aims to make offline and online business processes of Ingeteam’s Marine & Industry business unit more effective and efficient.
• “This is the perfect time to introduce technologies to optimise our marketing and sales processes”, says Iñaki Gorostiza, Marketing Director of Ingeteam M&I.

Strategies like Marketing Automation and Inbound Marketing are oriented to business process digitisation, and they are in high demand in industrial and B2B companies. This is the case of the Ingeteam Marine & Industry business unit: they have recently incorporated this work methodology into their commercial strategy, thanks to Weroi’s help, leading supplier in the digital sales-marketing field for over 5 years. The technology selected for implementation was HubSpot, a very popular software capable of combining marketing and sales activities.

“The main goals of the project are to have a technology that makes the sales team’s commercial work more effective and efficient, providing a better service to our current and future clients, improving their perception and experience in dealing with Ingeteam”, highlights Aitor Martínez, Ingeteam M&I Sales Manager.“We have been working on digital marketing for 6 years, with a focus on generating new business opportunities, and now that digital channels have proven capable of generating new offers and sales, we are at the perfect time to introduce technologies that optimise our marketing and sales activities,” adds Iñaki Gorostiza, Ingeteam M&I Marketing Director.

The project was led by Urko De La Torre, Partner and Operations Director, and Iñigo Lekunberri, Inbound Marketing Manager at Weroi.”It has been a very ambitious project due to the massive volume of information to be processed. We wanted to ensure that the tool included database information. We are talking about unifying thousands of contacts, companies and more than a thousand offerings. In addition, the implementation was designed to be used in the cloud by a multitude of sales teams on several continents simultaneously” explains De la Torre.

Marketing Automation will be one of the trends in 2021, according to the Marketing Hot Trends 2020 study by the Spanish Marketing Association. In fact, according to its conclusions, 53% of Spanish companies will increase investment in these tools. “It is the natural growth process for any B2B company that seeks to make its commercial-digital business more professional and result-oriented” says HubSpot Channel Consultant Carlos Munilla de Miguel.

—

INGETEAM, INTERNATIONAL TECHNOLOGY GROUP SPECIALISING IN ENERGY CONVERSION

Ingeteam is an international technology group specialising in energy conversion. Ingeteam’s technological development in power and control electronics (inverters, frequency converters, controllers and protections), rotary electrical machines (motors, generators and Indar motor-pumps), systems (electro-mechanical and automation engineering integration) and operation and maintenance services, makes them capable of providing solutions for the wind, photovoltaic, hydroelectric and fossil fuel generation sectors, the metal transformation and naval industry and railway traction and electric networks (including substations). Transport and distribution are also among their operations, which are always seeking more efficient energy generation and consumption strategies.

The Ingeteam Group operates across the world and has permanent offices in 24 countries, employing more than 4,000 people. Its activity is structured around R&D+i, investing more than 5% of its annual turnover in it.

WEROI, FIRM SPECIALISED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF DIGITAL-BUSINESS STRATEGIES FOR THE INDUSTRIAL AND B2B SECTORS

WEROI is a firm with more than 10 years of experience in the development of digital-business marketing projects, specialised in helping industrial and B2B companies use the Internet as a tool for attracting new business opportunities. We take advantage of the speed and permeability of this channel so that digital investments have a real effect on the income statement. For this purpose, we work very closely with our clients, from the strategic and operational selection of the project to the measurement of the project’s ROI, through the design of the necessary information flow between the marketing and sales departments.

• WEROI succeeded in transferring a total of 9,800 qualified contacts from 43 different countries to its clients’ Sales Departments in 2019, which translated into an average increase in turnover of 6.3% in its income statement
• Since the beginning of the crisis 8 new industrial companies, both national and international, have joined WEROI’s client portfolio, which has led the company to increase its task force.
• ‘Without a business-digital strategy like the one we are developing with WEROI, it would have been impossible to capture these sales opportunities‘, explains Cecilia Dulanto, Marketing Manager at Urola Solutions, a company part of the Mondragon Corporation
• Numerous clusters in the industrial sector have contacted WEROI demanding ‘urgent’ solutions to help their partner companies keep capturing business through unconventional commercial strategies
• ‘We have started to implement the first projects, and we are already obtaining the first sales results‘, explains Jon Ansoleaga, General Manager at Eraikune, Construction Cluster of the Basque Country

When the Spanish government declared a state of alarm on 14 March over the COVID-19 pandemic, WEROI experienced the same feelings as many other Basque and Spanish companies. Uncertainty. Fear. Concern.

Following an initial reflection, the answer became clear: ‘Staying put was not an option. The industry needs us more than ever to help supply its Sales Departments with new business opportunities, as we have been doing for the past 11 years. Telling them they need a nicer website is not enough. The main challenges we are facing are alleviating the damage the cancellation of trade fairs is having on the commercial force of our clients, and helping those companies that highly rely on a particular sector or client diversify‘, explains Maitane Hernández, Founding Member and General Manager at WEROI.

‘Staying put was not an option. The industry needs us more than ever to help supply its Sales Departments with new business opportunities, as we have been doing for the past 11 years. Telling them they need a nicer website is not enough.

The main challenges we are facing are alleviating the damage the cancellation of trade fairs is having on the commercial force of our clients, and helping those companies that highly rely on a particular sector or client diversify‘

Maitane Hernández, Founding Member and General Manager at WEROI.

Urola is a real example of adaptation. The company, part of the Mondragon Corporation and made up of the Urola Solutions and Urola Packaging departments, is specialised in container manufacturing solutions using blow moulding technology. ‘The amount of digital queries (calls and web forms) we get in barely a week shows how interested the international market is in our solutions, and without a business-digital strategy like the one we are developing with WEROI, it would have been impossible to capture these sales opportunities. We are doing our best to manage and resolve them on time,’ explains Cecilia Dulanto, Marketing Manager at Urola Solutions.

‘2019 was one of the best years in the history of WEROI: we transferred 9,800 qualified contacts from 43 different countries to our clients’ sales teams, which translated into an average increase in turnover of 6.3%’, recalls Urko De La Torre, Operations Manager at WEROI.

According to the results of the survey published by Eraikune (Construction Cluster of the Basque Country) last 20 March, the Sales Department will be the most affected by the pandemic. ‘62.8% of the companies surveyed expect to have a dramatic reduction in their commercial activity’, explains Jon Ansoleaga, General Manager of the cluster. ‘We have relied on WEROI to bring to the companies that make up Eraikune the benefits of the digital channel as a complement to the traditional sales approach. We have started to implement the first projects and, even more importantly, we are already obtaining the first results’, he adds.

‘Since our Sales Departments are currently teleworking and cannot visit their current and potential clients, digital strategies for attracting new business play a key role in helping survive many industrial and B2B companies in our sector,’ explains José Luis Gil, manager at the Business Services Department of the Bilbao Chamber of Commerce.

In addition to Eraikune, many organisations making up a large proportion of the industrial network have contacted WEROI to develop projects and solutions that help their partners counteract the negative effect of COVID-19. The Biscay Federation of Metal Companies (FVEM), the Association of Electronic and Information Technologies in the Basque Country (GAIA) and the Spanish Association for Fluid Handling Solutions & Process Technologies (Fluidex) are some of them.

To yield fruitful results, ‘it is important to follow their instructions and establish regular communication with them’ stated Elena Fernández, Managing Director at Fluidex, last year during her speech at the Opening ceremony of the new WEROI offices.

New projects and forecasts for 2020

Since the beginning of the crisis, 8 new national and international industrial companies have joined WEROI’s client portfolio. As a result, the company had to reinforce its task force by hiring 2 new employees, considering that 4 more could be hired during the next few months.

‘We have postponed the Easter holidays, and we are working hard, even on weekends, in order to help our clients out of this crisis with the least possible damage’, explains De La Torre.

‘The forecasts for 2020 were very good, and for WEROI they are even better. I wish this was happening for other reasons. Watching WEROI grow is a source of pride, although the context overshadows the happiness we feel. That is why our clients can be sure that we are doing everything in our power to help them during this new crisis‘, concludes Hernández.

WEROI, FIRM SPECIALISED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF DIGITAL-BUSINESS STRATEGIES FOR THE INDUSTRIAL AND B2B SECTORS

WEROI is a firm with more than 10 years of experience in the development of digital-business marketing projects, specialised in helping industrial and B2B companies use the Internet as a tool for attracting new business opportunities. We take advantage of the speed and permeability of this channel so that digital investments have a real effect on the income statement. For this purpose, we work very closely with our clients, from the strategic and operational selection of the project to the measurement of the project’s ROI, through the design of the necessary information flow between the marketing and sales departments.

WEROI offers digital sales services to large- and medium-sized B2B companies operating in both local and international markets. Its methodology, already validated in more than 50 companies, is aimed at obtaining results in the short term, during the first months of a project.

It is already working for companies in the 3 largest Basque business groups such as Mondragon, Velatia and Ingeteam, and it opened its new offices in the Bizkaia Science and Technology Park last May.

‘We could be just another digital marketing agency, reporting data from web analytics, developing branding, engagement, and a thousand other buzz words. But we had a different goal. We were certain about this when we started this beautiful adventure 10 years ago. After a lot of hard work, we can proudly say that we have become the company we have always dreamed of. We started with the vocation of being a benchmark in our industry, and we are accomplishing it‘.

Maitane Hernández, WEROI’s General Manager, could not help showing emotion in her voice when pronouncing these words in the speech she gave on May 10 during the inauguration of the company’s new offices at the Bizkaia Science and Technology Park, before many of their clients and providers, as well as Itziar Epalza, Director of the Basque Technology Park Network in Euskadi, and Joseba Urbieta, General Manager of the Bizkaia Park. The digital consultancy firm has experienced great development and growth in the last years and it is already working for companies in the largest Basque business groups such as Mondragon, Velatia and Ingeteam.

So, what distinguishes WEROI from ‘traditional’ digital marketing agencies? The difference lies, on the one hand, on its high level of specialisation in industrial ecosystems. WEROI offers digital sales services to large- and medium-sized B2B companies operating in both local and export-oriented markets. ‘We complement the sales and marketing departments of these companies. We support them in integrating the Internet into their long-standing sales processes. We provide them with tools and methodology that help them optimise, shorten and speed up the processes of identifying business opportunities,’ says Maitane Hernández.

‘We complement the sales and marketing departments of these companies. We support them in integrating the Internet into their long-standing sales processes. We provide them with tools and methodology that help them optimise, shorten and speed up the processes of identifying business opportunities’

MAITANE HERNÁNDEZ
WEROI’S GENERAL MANAGER

WEROI ‘speeds up’ both the commissioning of the defined digital strategies and the generation of qualified ‘leads’. This is another of its strengths and differentiating factors: a methodology -which has been already validated in more than 50 industrial and industry service companies- that is fully aimed at obtaining results in the short term, within the first months of the projects.

‘We do not oblige any company to stick with us in the long run. Of course, we do like long-term relationships, but we never tell a client from the beginning that they have to marry us for life. The length of the relationship will depend on the results we are able to achieve and, therefore, the impact of our work on the bottom line’, says Urko de la Torre, Operations Manager.

Another of WEROI’s strengths is measuring the return of each euro invested on the Internet: the firm provides companies with precise data on the impact of each digital tool activated to attract those business opportunities. To this end, it works in close coordination with the in-house sales and marketing departments of these companies.

Something that is ‘crystal clear‘ for both Maitane Hernández and Urko de la Torre is that, in order for a digital project to be successful, corporate involvement is ‘essential‘. The in-house Sales Manager is, in fact, one of the key players for the success of WEROI’s business-digital projects.

‘We always approach projects as a team effort. In that team, using a football metaphor, the sales department would be the centre forward in charge of finishing off all our passes. We are amazing passers, we know that, but we need the final shot. Management provides the resources and means, we pass them forward, and the sales department scores. If we are to provide figures, we could say that 50% of the project’s success depends on the company’s engagement. When the client collaborates and gets involved, everything flows’, says Urko de la Torre.

‘You also need to consider that the benefits of commercial digitalisation should not be measured only in terms of sales, but there are other associated benefits such as: time saving in management, and costs savings associated with offline sales processes, as well as their optimisation’, adds Maitane Hernández.

WEROI has managed to carve out a niche for itself in the market thanks to, above all, its human capital. The team is young, but all of them are ‘great professionals, with astonishing potential and lots of energy’, states Urko de la Torre. ‘At WEROI we have a clear vocation for service. We love to help; this is something we carry within ourselves. We end up feeling part of the companies we work for, and this helps us to provide them with an excellent service’, says Maitane Hernandez.

‘Our future lies in continuing to understand our clients’ sales needs, both nationally and internationally, and continuing to offer them customised, innovative and high value-added digital solutions that help them to continue to grow and improve their income statement’

URKO DE LA TORRE
OPERATIONS MANAGER

In the B2B industry, generating business opportunities ‘is based on trust and credibility’. ‘We are talking about selling, for example, a machining centre, a die-sink EDM machine or an industrial paper cutter, costing hundreds of thousands of euros. These sales involve a very surgical process: we have to identify the qualified profiles, those who have the power of decision to execute the purchase; to know how to reach them, by means of which digital tools; to manage to be there at the moment they need to purchase; and to manage to persuade them to do so’ explains WEROI’s General Manager.

This requires professionals who are acutely aware of the peculiarities of the industrial sector in which we operate and its lengthy offer and sale maturity periods.

‘Our future lies in continuing to understand our clients’ sales needs, both nationally and internationally, and to continue to offer them customised, innovative and high value-added digital solutions that help them to continue to grow and improve their income statement’, concludes Urko de la Torre.

On May 10, the company inaugurated its new facilities at the Bizkaia Science and Technology Park. The event was attended by many of its clients and providers, as well as by Itziar Epalza, Manager at the Basque Country Network of Technology Parks.

WEROI divides projects into different phases. As an ice-breaker, companies can opt for a pilot project, more limited in time and scope and focused on one line of business or even a single product or service.

A PROFESSIONAL, COMMITTED AND ENERGETIC TEAM

The Bizkaia-based industrial digital marketing firm expects to achieve a turnover of €750,000 this year, nearly 40% more than last year

‘Weroi is not a traditional digital marketing agency, but an industrial digital marketing consultancy with an outstanding focus on results. We were born with the vocation of being a benchmark in our industry, and we are achieving this’

MAITANE HERNÁNDEZ
MANAGER AT WEROI

Bizkaia-based company Weroi, which specialises in industrial digital marketing for B2B companies, has ended the 2019 financial year with projects for three of the Basque Country’s leading business groups, including Ingeteam, Velatia and Mondragon Corporación. The company, which opened new offices in 2019, expects to achieve a turnover of €750,000 in 2020, compared to €530,000 last year.

Weroi ended 2019 working for companies from the Ingeteam, Velatia and Mondragon Corporación groups on projects that the company, which specialises in industrial digital marketing, describes as ‘success stories’.

‘Weroi is not a traditional digital marketing agency, but an industrial digital marketing consultancy with an outstanding focus on results. We were born with the vocation of being a benchmark in our industry, and we are achieving this‘, says Maitane Hernández, General Manager of Weroi, which in May 2019 opened new offices in the Bizkaia Science and Technology Park. These offices employ 11 professionals, always in the B2B environment, with large and medium-size national and international industrial companies (in their natural markets or in international markets where they want to increase or open business).

Weroi applies its own methodology based on years of learning, validated in more than 50 companies, and is highly focused on achieving business opportunities in the first months of the projects. Its industrial clients also include ONA Electroerosión, Técnicas Hidráulicas, Urola, Ascensores Beltran and Rotobasque. The company is also present in the service industry where it has worked, among others, for the financial institution Bankoa and the Bilbao Chamber of Commerce (Cámarabilbao).

‘The digital marketing we deploy in Weroi enables us to quickly reach a significant number of potential clients with a very controlled investment,’ explains Hernandez. ‘We use numerous tools provided by the channel to achieve qualified contacts, leads, which translate into new business opportunities. Subsequently, it is the task of the companies’ sales departments to manage these contacts and achieve sales,’ she adds.

‘The digital marketing we deploy at Weroi enables us to quickly reach a large number of potential clients with a very controlled investment’

MAITANE HERNÁNDEZ
MANAGER AT WEROI

Digital channel

The Bizkaia-based company, ‘a pioneer in using the term ‘industrial digital marketing’ in Euskadi‘, offers companies, according to its general manager, ‘the implementation of a new commercial channel (digital channel), which leads to new ways of working, encouraging teamwork, collaboration between management and sales and marketing departments’. Regarding the changes experienced in digital marketing over the last decade, Maitane Hernández states that ‘the reality is that everything related to the internet and digital tools is evolving really quickly, so you have to keep your five senses on alert, and continuously update‘.

Mindset change

As Maitane Hernández says, ‘what has really changed is the mindset of industrial companies, or their managers’, who are becoming aware of the great importance of incorporating digital channels into their business strategy; they are assuming that industrial digital marketing is much more than just having a nice website and working a little bit on branding.’ Weroi’s Manager considers ‘this is mainly due to the need for companies to find channels for attracting business that are more effective, have greater capillarity, and are less ‘saturated’ than their traditional counterparts, and also supplement the amount of business opportunities provided by their long-standing business strategies’. In this sense, Hernandez stresses that ‘there is a need for new tools to attract business‘.

The company’s clients include Ascensores Beltran, Rotobasque, Técnicas Hidráulicas, Urola, and institutions such as Bankoa and the Cámarabilbao

We would like to thank the following people for their participation and contributions to the preparation of this article (in order of appearance):

LEIRE GÓMEZ

COMMUNICATIONS AND CORPORATE MARKETING MANAGER AT ONA,
a world leader in the manufacture of EDM machines.

BEGOÑA SEIJAS

PROJECT MANAGER AT THE BASQUE INNOVATION AGENCY, INNOBASQUE.

ITZIAR LÓPEZ DE ARMENTIA

COMMUNICATIONS AND CORPORATE MARKETING MANAGER AT INGETEAM,
an international technology firm specialised in the conversion of electrical energy.

URKO DE LA TORRE

OPERATIONS MANAGER AT WEROI.

ROLF ROCKENMAYER

GENERAL MANAGER AT STEULER TÉCNICA,
manufacturer and installer of anti-acid and corrosion coatings.

MAITANE HERNÁNDEZ

FOUNDER MEMBER AT WEROI.

UGUTZ TXARTERINA

COMMUNICATIONS AND MARKETING MANAGER AT STEULER TÉCNICA.

IAN BLANCO

PROJECT MANAGER AT WEROI.

NORA GUARDIOLA

COMMUNICATIONS AND MARKETING MANAGER AT LOYIC,
a company specialised in SAP for Real Estate.

Some of our industrial and B2B clients reflect on this matter:

‘Traffic to a website can be attracted by activating different tools, but closing new business opportunities, which is what really matters to us all, requires strategy’, says LEIRE GÓMEZ, COMMUNICATIONS AND CORPORATE MARKETING MANAGER AT ONA ELECTROEROSIÓN.

‘Traffic to a website can be attracted by activating different tools, but closing new business opportunities, which is what really matters to us all, requires strategy’

LEIRE GÓMEZ
MARKETING MANAGER AT ONA ELECTROEROSIÓN

At WEROI we consider it essential to start all projects with a comprehensive analysis and to use the conclusions obtained for the development of a coherent action plan, in which the activation of each digital tool is justified and integrated into a whole.

On the contrary, activating tools in an individual and uncoordinated way rarely generates results, and means that our goal, the development of a new commercial channel, remains well out of reach.

When a new opportunity arises, like an industrial or B2B company interested in working with digital marketing with a commercial approach, we usually encounter three circumstances:

01

They may have never worked in digital marketing before.

02

They may have already experimented with some kind of digital marketing project (with greater or lesser success).

03

They may already be working on digital marketing with an annual budget allocation, but are not very clear about the effect these investments are having on their income statement.

The result? There is a high probability that they are devoting efforts to a series of unconnected actions and tools.

Basque companies still place marketing on a secondary plane, and have a fundamentally operational vision when it comes to innovating in their businesses, as revealed by the analysis on the innovation scene that we have carried out on a representative sample of nearly 200 of our partner SMEs. In fact, although they consider marketing strategy to be one of their main challenges, only 9.84% of the companies analysed mentioned marketing among their motivations for innovation’, explains BEGOÑA SEIJAS, PROJECT MANAGER AT THE BASQUE INNOVATION AGENCY, INNOBASQUE.

ITZIAR LÓPEZ DE ARMENTIA, COMMUNICATIONS AND CORPORATE MARKETING MANAGER AT INGETEAM, an international technology firm specialising in the conversion of electrical energy, also reflects on this and points out: ‘When we talk about strategy, we are just trying to understand the company’s digital market in depth, understand its business model well (very well) and establish a digital plan consistent with its objectives, in which each active tool has a clear justification (a ‘why’ and a ‘what for’ supported by data), and is integrated into a whole’.

‘When we talk about strategy, we are just trying to understand the company’s digital market in depth, understand its business model well (very well) and establish a digital plan consistent with its objectives, in which each active tool has a clear justification (a ‘why’ and a ‘what for’ supported by data), and is integrated into a whole’

ITZIAR LÓPEZ DE ARMENTIA
COMMUNICATIONS AND CORPORATE MARKETING MANAGER AT INGETEAM

This is the difference between operational digital marketing and strategic digital marketing. At WEROI we advocate the latter.

‘Operations must always be a consequence of strategy. Always. If what the company asks for (or what the digital provider proposes) as of the outset of the service offer is an approach or a work proposal based exclusively on tools, that means that things are going to develop with no strategic direction. It’s easy to foresee the outcome of that’, says URKO DE LA TORRE, OPERATIONS MANAGER AT WEROI.

ROLF ROCKENMAYER, GENERAL MANAGER AT STEULER TÉCNICA, manufacturer and installer of anti-acid and corrosion coatings, had a clear idea, as of the very beginning, of the logical process of what the digital-commercial project should be: ‘Analyse and reflect first; and act, measure and optimise later’.

An idea shared by LEIRE GÓMEZ, COMMUNICATIONS AND CORPORATE MARKETING MANAGER AT ONA, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of EDM machines: ‘Traffic to a website can be attracted by activating different digital tools, but closing new digital business opportunities, which is what really matters to us all, requires strategy’, she warns.

As a consequence of frequently neglecting strategy, we tend to wake up to articles such as this one: ‘The CEO has no liking for the marketing guy’, where we find some answers to this problem. RAFA CERA, the author, reflects on why the CEO does not trust the Marketing guy, and one of the reasons he gives is that Marketing is usually ‘very far away’ from the Management.

If effective and efficient marketing is a business philosophy, but it does not have a great influence or is far from the decision centre, its influence is null or lacks the capacity to design strategies. If it can’t make business decisions, the Marketing Department becomes an extension of Sales’, says CERA, who was nominated as the World’s Best Management Professor by THE ECONOMIST.

A strategy is to start the house from its foundations, not the roof.

A strategy is, first of all, to analyse and know the existing digital market’s potential on the Internet (by country, by sector, by tool, etc.), as well as its behaviour and context: demand trends, seasonality, competition, etc.

And, of course, ‘Strategy is to determine, within those target companies, who are the profiles we are interested in reaching (those with real decision-making power); as well as to investigate how to reach them, through which platforms, channels or digital tools, and with what kind of messages. Strategy, lastly, is also about making it easy for them to find us when they need us’, says MAITANE HERNANDEZ, FOUNDER AT WEROI.

This is strategy, the only way we know at WEROI, a successful digital-commercial marketing Project with the ultimate goal of providing the Sales Department with constant new commercial opportunities to manage.

‘Strategy is to determine, within those target companies, who are the profiles we are interested in reaching (those with real decision-making power); as well as to investigate how to reach them, through which platforms, channels or digital tools, and with what kind of messages. Strategy, lastly, is also about making it easy for them to find us when they need us’

MAITANE HERNÁNDEZ
FOUNDER AT WEROI.

Many industrial companies are already using digital tools, but rather few of them take a chance on the development of a complete digital marketing project. Defining a strategic digital plan is certainly the longest way to go, but at least for us, it is proving to be the best way of all,’ claims UGUTZ TXARTERINA, COMMUNICATIONS AND MARKETING MANAGER AT STEULER TÉCNICA

Because that’s where the value is, in how the work done in the digital channel impacts the income statement. If a real salesperson is not only rated for the number of meetings they hold, but also for the offers and sales they close, Marketing should not be rated for the number of visits to the website thanks to, say, SEO; but for the leads it can generate. And generating leads requires a previous strategy and detailed planning’, says IAN BLANCO, PROJECT MANAGER AT WEROI.

At LOYIC, a leading company in the implementation of SAP for Real Estate, they are also certain that results must always come first.

‘Even when discussing branding, if that objective is accompanied by a good strategy, results (leads) are achieved in the end. And if it is not the case, we should wonder if this branding is being promoted among our potential clients’, claims NORA GUARDIOLA, COMMUNICATIONS AND MARKETING MANAGER of the Catalan technology company.

7 Questions you should answer before designing your digital business strategy

01

WHAT IS THE POTENTIAL DIGITAL MARKET IN YOUR TARGET COUNTRIES?

02

WHAT IS THE DIGITAL BEHAVIOUR OF YOUR POTENTIAL CLIENTS?

03

WHICH OF YOUR TARGET SECTORS ARE MOST SUITABLE TO BE APPROACHED THROUGH THE DIGITAL CHANNEL?

04

WHO ARE THE MOST INFLUENTIAL BUYER PERSONAS WITHIN YOUR TARGET COMPANIES, AND WHICH OF THEM ARE ON THE INTERNET?

05

WHAT DO YOUR TARGET CLIENTS NEED IN ORDER TO CONTACT YOU OR FILL OUT A CONTACT FORM?

06

WHAT IS THE MOST ADEQUATE TOOL TO GO AFTER EACH COUNTRY AND INDUSTRY, AND PROMOTE EACH BUSINESS LINE?

07

HOW ARE YOU GOING TO MEASURE THE ROI OF EACH INVESTMENT YOU MAKE AT THE DIGITAL LEVEL?

Despite its proven potential to enhance results, many industrial SMEs have not included the Internet in their business strategy yet

We all know how advertising is. It constantly reinvents itself, but it is as old as retail. Like the voices with which sellers have always attracted clients in markets, forums, or bazaars. Nowadays, the marketplace is on the Internet so, in this umpteenth life, advertising achieves its best results through digital marketing, whose tools enhance the scope of campaigns while making them much more controllable. These are unquestionable advantages. However, many SMEs are still turning their backs on them. This is particularly striking in the industrial sector, an industry that is so keenly aware of technical innovations that digitalisation brings about. Their companies are fully involved in the 4.0 revolution, but, commercially speaking, many of them seem to have stayed back in web 1.0.

‘Industrial companies are becoming increasingly aware that their success or failure depends on their capacity to develop a digital culture within the organisation, but many of them believe that digital marketing is only for those who target the end consumer, the so-called B2C. However, this is not true. The Internet also offers a number of possibilities for industrial companies. The first thing that must be explained is that anyone can integrate the Internet into traditional sales processes, that there are tools for everyone, and that the challenge is to activate those that really help them to meet sales goals,’ says Urko de la Torre, Operations Manager at Weroi, a Biscayan firm that specialises in industrial digital marketing and whose clients include important groups such as Velatia, Ingeteam, and Mondragon. ‘In three years, a company can achieve 10% of its annual turnover from the digital channel’, he emphasises.

More than just a nice website

The second thing SMEs should understand is that digital marketing implies much more than just having a nice website. It goes beyond the visits that it may receive. Even more than providing a website with updated and high-quality content. And more than just managing social networks because industrial products seldom fit in them.

‘Any good digital strategy should start with a good potential market research, analysing each business unit of the company and identifying the tools that best fit established sales goals. It is essential to know in detail the target audience profiles on which we want to focus’

URKO DE LA TORRE
OPERATIONS MANAGER AT WEROI

In fact, since we strive to have a good blog about the news of the company or the industry, it is their job to ensure that we reach our target audience. This is one of the keys to digital marketing; on the Internet, the target audience is clearly identified (‘you have to know how to look for it and find it, that’s for sure’) and the actions can go especially directed to it more than ever in advertising. Almost remote-controlled.

And to reach it, it is not enough to be well-positioned in search engines. SEM and SEO are not everything. Digital marketing, ‘if well-focused’, should be proactive when finding potential clients: ‘Every good digital strategy should start with good potential market research, analysing each business unit of the company and identifying the tools that best fit established sales goals. It is essential to know in detail the target audience profiles we want to focus on,’ explains De la Torre, allowing us to better define the mix of digital tools used in the project and, therefore, optimise the budget.

This digital approach to business strategy could be an update of the classic ‘cold-calling’. That is, to introduce yourself to someone who does not know you to offer that person something that he or she has not (yet) asked for. But this time, shooting the target. There are tools that, for example, allow for knowing if an email is opened more than once. Therefore, it is possible to know which recipients show curiosity about its content to insist on them either with a new message, a call, or even a visit. You can also throw small baits. If the download of any interesting manual or guide is offered upon request of an e-mail, a handful of addresses can be added to the database for sending future e-mails with sales information.

‘Almost all (if not all) industrial companies can develop digital projects aimed at attracting new business opportunities. However, to achieve good results, the participation and collaboration between in-house profiles, such as the sales manager, the marketing director, and the management department, is essential. The sales department will still be a key player in this new sales process because these professionals will be the ones who turn opportunities into sales,’ explains De la Torre.

Search for qualified contacts

Identifying opportunities, those decision-makers (‘qualified leads’ in the jargon), requires accuracy in the choice of contact channels and tools as well as in the messages that are transmitted, resulting in a clear return on investment. Just think of the costs of attending a trade fair and returning without a single interesting new contact.

To clear up any doubt about its efficiency, the only obstacle might be spending money or time. Digital marketing can do a lot for a company, but it requires commitment. ‘It is true that any action must be tracked and that new tools or updates always appear. You can’t rest on your laurels, but these are things you learn. You can hire an external consultant to work with the sales team, but you can also train your own staff to make the most of these opportunities,’ says Weroi’s operations manager.

• The Biscayan firm, which already works for companies from the three major Basque business groups (Mondragon, Velatia, and Ingeteam), will open new offices in the Bizkaia Science and Technology Park
• Weroi applies its own methodology based on years of learning, validated in more than 50 companies, and focused on achieving business opportunities during the first months of the projects

Itziar Epalza, the director of the Network of Technology Parks in Euskadi, attended the opening ceremony of the new Weroi offices in the Bizkaia Science and Technology Park on Friday and highlighted the enthusiasm and professionalism of the company’s team.

There are 196,523 industrial companies in Spain, according to the latest e-SMEs report. 81.2% of these SMEs and large companies have a corporate website. However, the main (and sometimes only) reason for using this tool is to present the company and allow access to catalogues and/or prices. Nothing more. This is usually their entire digital marketing background, despite the undeniable sales possibilities of the channel and the warnings of gurus on the subject:

1. ‘The success or failure of industrial companies depends on their capacity to develop a rich digital culture in the entire organisation’. 2020 Ametic Digital Plan.
2. ‘Businesses that do not add digitalisation to their value proposal and business model will encounter clear limitations in terms of competitiveness and will put their survival at risk’. Direction challenges of digital transformation.

Weroi has been helping important Basque industrial companies to commercially exploit the Internet for almost a decade, and, although there is still a long way to go, ‘a mindset shift’ is taking place. ‘It’s not like it was years ago. Companies are gradually becoming aware of the great importance of incorporating the digital channel into their business strategy,’ states Maitane Hernández, General Manager of the Biscayan firm.

Weroi is not a typical digital marketing agency. Its methodology is far different from the one followed by the majority of companies in the industry. In its case, the ‘key’ has been the specialisation in the industrial field and the development of work processes focused ‘one hundred percent’ on seizing business opportunities in the short term, during the first months of the project.

This vision that is fully oriented to results has been at the base of its growth in recent years. The firm already works for companies from the three large Basque business groups (Mondragon, Velatia, and Ingeteam) and, next Friday, on 10 May, it will open new offices at the Bizkaia Science and Technology Park.

Measuring the return of each euro invested

‘We provide companies with professionalism and methodology, as well as with very precise guidelines for work processes. To also measure the return of each euro invested on the internet. Investments in digital marketing must be measured in terms of ROI (Return on Investment), also in the industrial sector. This action requires close coordination with the in-house Marketing and Sales departments of companies. The internet and traditional sales channels complement each other. In fact, the in-house Sales Manager is usually one of the key players in the success of any business-digital project of Weroi’

URKO DE LA TORRE
DIRECTOR AT WEROI

Weroi’s projects are divided into different phases, including the analysis of digital potential in local and international markets, the implementation of tools, and their activation to achieve results. Disbelieving companies may choose a pilot project that is shorter and focused on one line of business or even a single product or service.

‘We provide companies with professionalism and methodology, as well as very precise guidelines for work processes to also measure the return of each euro invested on the Internet. The investments in digital marketing must be measured in terms of ROI (Return on Investment), also in the industrial sector. This action requires close coordination with the in-house Marketing and Sales departments of companies. The Internet and traditional sales channels complement each other. In fact, the in-house Sales Manager is usually one of the key players in the success of any business-digital project of Weroi’, says Urko De la Torre, the company’s Director.

‘Mind you, the benefits of commercial digitalisation should not be measured only in terms of sale, but also in terms of associated performance benefits: saving time in management and saving costs associated with offline sale processes’, states Maitane Hernández.

The B2B industrial digital marketing (companies that sell to other companies) is here to stay. According to the 2020 Ametic Digital Plan, the industrial Internet will contribute 15 trillion dollars to the world economy over the next 20 years, an amount that is equal to the approximate calculation of the entire current American economy.

In the B2B digital marketing, – unlike the B2C one, in which recipients are end consumers – generating business opportunities is based much more on trust and credibility. It is a very surgical process: It is important to be present when clients have a need and know by which digital tools one can ‘chase’ and persuade them. For example, purchase managers that need a new machining centre or a new industrial paper cutter costing hundreds of thousands of euros.

‘Weroi helps companies in lead localisation processes, but it is a person from the Sales Department of the company who manages this business opportunity. It is a team effort. The Management Department provides the resources and means, we pass the ball, and the Sales Department scores the goal‘, explains Urko de la Torre.

• 100 students and professors of the Advertising and Public Relations degree participate in the training course named ‘Strategies and tools for digital transformation in the B2B industry’ taught by Urko de la Torre, Operations Manager at WEROI
• During the training course, participants could see first-hand the results obtained in three Basque industrial companies with which we work: Ingeteam, Stemtek, and Ascensores Beltran

‘Are you sure you can sell such big and expensive machines on the Internet?’

‘Are you sure you can sell such big and expensive machines on the Internet?’

‘Of course I am’. ‘What’s the difference between a person who uses the Internet to find out the features of a laptop and one who uses it to find an electric car charger supplier?’

URKO DE LA TORRE

This has been one of the recurring questions asked in the training course taught by Urko de la Torre, Operations Manager at WEROI, over the past two months to the students and faculty members of the Department of Social and Communication Sciences, UPV/EHU, specifically, of the Advertising and Public Relations degree.

And his answer has always been clear and convincing: ‘Of course I am’. ‘What’s the difference between a person who uses the Internet to find out the features of a laptop and one who uses it to find an electric car charger supplier?’, he would reply.

The main goal of the WEROI training course has been just that one: to tell students that there is a world beyond marketing and communication oriented to the B2C industry, that is, companies that sell to the end consumer (Nike, Adidas, Coca-Cola, Apple, or Samsung).

It is true that the B2B industrial digital marketing (companies that sell to other companies) has become increasingly important in recent years. Besides, companies that ignore this kind of marketing are missing out on a great channel for attracting sales opportunities.

Some data to illustrate this point: by 2020, more than 25% of global B2B retail is expected to be conducted through digital channels, and online marketing investment is expected to reach $120 billion only in the US market by 2021.

Companies presence

During the two training months, the students and faculty members at the UPV/EHU have been able to know the reality and daily life of three Basque companies from different sectors that work with WEROI, all of which are characterised by their B2B approach: Ingeteam, Stemtek Therapeutics and Ascensores Beltran.

Throughout the training course, the direct participation of the marketing and communication managers of these companies has allowed students to know first-hand the real application of what they have learned, as well as to make a quick but intense strategic and operational tour of the entire digital marketing plan implemented in each of them.

Digital marketing plans that allow them to obtain ‘relevant results on the internet’ as speakers stated in their speeches.

‘Can an industrial company really sell on the Internet?’

This type of enquiries are popping into the heads of students that are just a step away from finishing their studies and knocking on the door of the job market for the first time. A ‘knock-knock’ for which, unfortunately, it seems difficult to get an answer at least in the short term. Among the under-25s, the unemployment rate in Spain is 40.5%, the second highest rate in the eurozone after Greece.

However, not all is bad news. Technology and digital marketing and communication are bringing about a proliferation of new professional profiles with a clear tendency towards hyper-specialisation.

Nowadays, the most in-demand professionals in marketing at companies are Head of Digital Marketing, Ecommerce Manager, Chief Digital Officer, SEO Manager, and Data Scientist, among others.

Therefore, digital marketing is a world full of opportunities for young people, as Urko has emphasised throughout the training.

And the best example of this is himself. Only two years after getting his degree, he became Operations Manager at WEROI, bearing much of the weight and responsibility of a growing company.

Yet, the best for him (and hopefully for WEROI) is not what he has already achieved, but what he still has to achieve.

During the training course, there were also questions related to the apparent need for every digital marketing project to have a ‘shopping cart’ on its website, in the style of Zara, in order to carry out successful and effective strategies.

‘How do you sell a million-euro machine on the Internet? Do you pay by card?’

‘Obviously not. Or at least not yet’, Urko replied quickly.

These are logical enquiries: they are girls and boys whose references in marketing and communication have always been related to products for mass consumption. How do you explain to them that marketing doesn’t start or end with Zara, Coca-Cola, or Nike?

This is one of the main reasons why this training course motivated us.

Urko, a former student of the Degree in Advertising and Public Relations at the UPV/EHU, has made an effort to explain to students that wit, lucidity, sharpness, and brilliance not only add up but are absolutely essential in digital marketing applied to the industrial sector.

WEROI knows this well. The regulated type of training in this field is scarce, which forces us to be, in many cases, self-taught. To investigate and explore, to try tools and methodologies, to make mistakes, to fall down, to get up, and to continue insisting until we find the best way to achieve the sales results that clients desire (and for what they pay us, of course).

WEROI is deeply grateful for the confidence that the UPV/EHU  has given us to provide this training, bringing the daily life of the company and our clients closer to students that we hope will shine when getting into the job market. We’d like to be part, even a little part, of that shine.

If we have conveyed just a little bit of the enthusiasm with which we work, we are satisfied.

Until next year UPV/EHU!

Maitane Hernandez, CEO of Weroi, and Urko de La Torre, Operations Manager, visited Hubspot’s offices in Dublin. The purpose of the meeting: to analyse the advantages of this platform to continue providing clients of the B2B and industrial sector with value.

Hubspot is our reliable software for the automation of marketing and sales processes of projects by which we demonstrate that the Internet is an additional channel (that is also efficient and cost-effective) for the generation of new business opportunities.

Thank you, Carlos Munilla and Anna Otalora for inviting and hosting us! It was a very rich experience that we’ll, undoubtedly, repeat soon.

We would like to thank the following people for their participation and contributions to the preparation of this article (in order of appearance):

MAITANE HERNÁNDEZ
GENERAL MANAGER AT WEROI

URKO DE LA TORRE
OPERATIONS MANAGER AT WEROI

IGONE PÉREZ
DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS,
AAF INTERNATIONAL

JOSÉ LUIS GIL
DIRECTOR OF THE CORPORATE SERVICES AREA
AT THE BILBAO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

JAVIER GONZÁLEZ BARAJAS
GENERAL MANAGER AT ONA

PEDRO BASTERRECHEA
GENERAL MANAGER AT SAFETECH

LEIRE DE OLABARRIA
SALES MANAGER AT INGETEAM
AUTOMATION DEVICES

CARLOS MUNILLA DE MIGUEL
HUBSPOT CHANNEL CONSULTANT

PATXI DOBLAS
VICE DEAN OF PROFESSIONAL INSERTION
AT UPV/EHU

Though many industrial and B2B companies already carry out specific online marketing actions (website, social networks, advertising, etc.), few have defined a proper digital strategy, and even fewer have integrated this strategy into their traditional sales processes, which is key to achieving new business opportunities.

The firm WEROI, which works for companies in the Velatia, Ingeteam and Mondragon groups, considers that ‘there is still a lot of mindset shifting work to be done’. ‘We are talking about implementing a new sales channel, a digital one’.

Important players in the Basque industrial environment that are applying this new digital philosophy to their organisations explain the ‘great’ possibilities it offers to swiftly reach a relevant number of potential clients, through controlled investment.

In Spain there are 204,377 industrial companies

According to the latest e-Pyme report, which tracks the evolution of the main indicators of the digital transformation impact on the different sectors of the economy.

Most of these industrial companies, many of which are B2B (which sell exclusively to other companies), are micro- enterprises, with between 0 and 9 employees (84.6%). Next in number are small businesses, 10 to 49 employees (12.5%); medium-sized businesses, 50 to 199 employees (2.2%); and finally large businesses of 200 or more employees (1%).

As e-Pyme reveals, most of these industrial firms have access to the Internet, a corporate website and use some kind of social network. However, apart from this type of specific digital marketing actions, are these companies making a real effort to define digital strategies? And then, are they integrating those strategies into their traditional sales processes, to capture new business opportunities that will enable them to increase turnover and, in addition, improve their competitiveness?

Or to put it another way: have they set off along the road of commercial-digital transformation , which, according to the experts, is so crucial when it comes to adapting to the new times and avoid jeopardising their survival?

WEROI argues that ‘we are moving forward’, though there still is ‘a lot of mindset shifting work to be done’. The Basque company, which specialises in industrial digital marketing, knows the drill: over the last 10 years it has worked for over 50 industrial and B2B companies, from both Spain and abroad, which it has helped to focus their digital investments on generating new business opportunities.

MAITANE HERNÁNDEZ, GENERAL MANAGER AT WEROI, and URKO DE LA TORRE, HEAD OF OPERATIONS, both graduates of the EMBA (Executive Master in Business Administration) at ESIC, highlight that good industrial digital marketing requires ‘very clear procedures and well-defined responsibilities within the companies’. ‘Only in this way can they achieve the objectives previously set’, DE LA TORRE points out. ‘It is much more than having a website or being on a social network and doing a little advertising. We are talking about implementing a new sales channel, the digital channel, which leads to new approaches. This is done by promoting close collaboration between the digital provider and the different leadership positions in the company, which are usually Management, Marketing and Sales’, HERNÁNDEZ adds.

BILL GATES once said: ‘In the 21st century there will be two kinds of businesses: those that are online, and those that no longer exist’. It is all about being online, of course, ‘not just anyhow, but rather in a way that ensures results’, explains DE LA TORRE.

Authoritative voices in the industrial sector

WEROI started the year working for important industrial companies, several of which are integrated in the three large Basque business groups: Mondragon, Velatia and Ingeteam.

Directors at several of these firms, authoritative voices in the industrial sector who have already become the benchmark when it comes to the implementation of digital services, wanted to share their opinions and views in this article.

One example is IGONE PÉREZ, DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS AT AAF INTERNATIONAL, a multinational manufacturer of equipment for filtering and capturing dust, smoke or particles in the industrial environment. PÉREZ recalls the impact of becoming involved with a methodology like the one applied by WEROI.

‘I was struck by the way in which projects were launched, with a thorough analysis of the potential of the digital market in the target markets. This provides valuable information on interest in those markets and also on client behaviour’, she describes, then reflects: ‘And if you think about it a little, it makes perfect sense, because in the offline world, the non-virtual world, would a company risk going international without a solid previous market study, or clear evidence of the existing sales potential in the target country?’.

Esta base científica debe sustentar toda la estrategia posterior que se despliegue en los proyectos, activando las herramientas digitales necesarias y sirviéndose de la capilaridad, velocidad y posibilidades de segmentación que ofrece la red para captar nuevas oportunidades de negocio. Un enfoque cien por cien a resultados que valoran las empresas, tal y como confirma DIRECTOR OF THE CORPORATE SERVICES AREA AT THE BILBAO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.

‘B2B companies are starting to understand that digital marketing is much more than what they had heard or been told. They understand that it is something more serious than having a website or attractive catalogues; it is about incorporating the internet into the day-to-day sales strategy’, explains this professional with deep knowledge of the Basque industry.

Integrating the digital channel into the traditional sales process requires an effort on the side of the companies that translates into providing the project with financial and human resources. Digital suppliers such as WEROI provide the technical and methodological knowledge to get leads, i.e. new business opportunities. Turning those into quotes and sales, however, will depend on the ability of the sales manager of each organisation, market saturation, and the technical characteristics of the product or service involved.

‘The key is teamwork, to be able to combine our traditional sales processes with the full potential of the digital channel. It is about taking advantage of this new commercial muscle to complement and improve everything what has been done up to now, and ensure that those efforts show in turnover. We are discussing the addition of new processes to our sales methods and it is clear to us that this requires a long-term approach’, explains JAVIER GONZÁLEZ BARAJAS, GENERAL MANAGER AT ONA, the world leader in the manufacture of die-sink and wire EDM machines.

This is a thought shared by PEDRO BASTERRECHEA, GENERAL MANAGER AT SAFETECH. The company specialises in rubber, metal and textile expansion joints, with clients in over 50 countries. He adds another conviction: ‘the importance’ that the management of the company highlight ‘emphatically’ to the rest of the team involved, and in particular the Sales and Marketing Departments, the strategic relevance of the digital project.

‘If this is not clear as of day one, the risk of tension between the various players will increase and the success of the project will be seriously jeopardised’, he warns.

This situation has been managed very effectively by LEIRE DE OLABARRIA, MANAGER AT INGETEAM AUTOMATION DEVICES, whose work has been ‘key’, according to the WEROI team, to ensure that all the leads obtained through the digital channel advance in the sales process towards the quote and sale stages.

‘We have discovered the potential of the channel: how it allows us to rapidly reach a considerable number of clients all over the world, through controlled investment. Then it is up to us, at the Sales Department, to manage those contacts and close the sale’, sums up DE OLABARRIA.

Automation tools

Industrial digital marketing —just as almost everything else related to the Internet—is evolving very quickly, therefore all professionals within this sector are constantly updating their knowledge.

The near future will see marketing automation tools such as HubSpot, WEROI’s strategic partner, become more and more necessary. ‘It is the logical growth process for any B2B company that wants to further professionalise its results-oriented digital business activity’, argues CARLOS MUNILLA DE MIGUEL, CHANNEL CONSULTANT AT HUBSPOT.

One of the greatest difficulties faced by industrial companies is the lack of specialised digital profiles in this sector. WEROI has spent years providing training at the Universidad del País Vasco (UPV/ EHU) and Chambers of Commerce, among others, bringing future professionals—and many others who are already active—closer to the new job opportunities emerging at the dawn of these new digital times.

Profiles such as Digital Marketing Manager, Content Manager, SEO Specialist and UX Designer are increasingly in demand. In this regard, there has been remarkable work done by professionals such as PATXI DOBLAS, VICE-DEAN OF PROFESSIONAL INSERTION AT UPV-EHU, who is deeply involved in working closely with companies to determine their real needs, and in training students to meet the new demands of the market.

List of best practices in industrial digital marketing

01

DIGITAL MARKET RESEARCH.

Exhaustive analysis of the digital potential of the company’s target market(s) and products, client online behaviour and market saturation, prior to the rollout or activation of any digital plan or tool.

02

DEFINITION OF THE DIGITAL STRATEGY

Designing the specific digital sales action plan: tools to be activated, objectives for each action, deadlines, etc. Always supported and argued in the analysis mentioned in the previous point.

03

INTEGRATION OF THE DIGITAL STRATEGY INTO THE TRADITIONAL SALES CHANNEL

All the internal profiles involved in the project—generally Management, Marketing and Sales—must be aligned with the digital strategy outlined. Much of the success of the project will depend on the degree of involvement of these key figures.

04

ESTABLISHING RESPONSIBILITIES AND WORKFLOWS

Clarifying the responsibilities of each player involved through training, creating manuals on how to proceed in each phase of the project, and other documentation that have been developed on the basis of past experiences with other companies.

05

MANAGEMENT

Highly relevant in the initial stage of the project. In addition to allocating the necessary financial and human resources, the strategic importance of the digital channel must be communicated effectively to the rest of the internal team involved in the project.

06

MARKETING

Regular contact between the company and the digital supplier. It is the main support for the successful rollout of operations.

07

SALES

Responsible for managing the leads captured through the digital strategy, as well as reporting their status: calls, visits, quotes and sales closed. This will make it possible to accurately assess the status of the project. Essential for ROI (Return On Investment) analysis.

08

DIGITAL SUPPLIER.

Ensures that each party fulfils their share of responsibility in due time and manner, manages the various digital tools the strategy entails, clarifies methodological doubts among all parties involved, and accurately measures the return generated by the project.

09

MEASUREMENT

Impact of each digital tool on capturing new business opportunities. How much is being invested and the effect of this expenditure on the company’s income statement.

10

OPTIMISATION

Identification of weak points and boosting of actions generating the higher returns.