Whether you manufacture auto parts or plastic toys, above all your manufacturing business is just that—a business. Every business is going through significant changes in the digital age, all driven by technological and societal developments. However, manufacturing businesses face their own set of changes and problems, unique to their individual industry. What will set your company apart, though, is how they face this changing world. In many cases, it all depends on two things: communication and innovation.
Here we lay out some of the business trends your manufacturing will or already has faced, and what you can do about them.
Changing consumer demands
You’re nothing without your customers, and as such, you need to make sure you’re meeting their demands and expectations. Consumer demands can change quickly, often due to the events happening around us. For example, with rising concerns over climate change, more and more consumers are switching to sustainable products and services. This can spell trouble for manufacturing businesses that are either using less sustainable practices, or whose entire product is unsustainable in of itself (think oil or plastic). However, by listening to consumer demands, your company can take steps to mitigate any adverse effects of changing opinions.
Nonetheless, you have to know what those demands are before you can meet them, and the key to this is to listen to your consumers and compile your data. Using technologies such as call recording can provide you with a full database of consumer thoughts and opinions that you can use to stay up-to-date on their demands.
Rising importance of customer experience
With an increasingly competitive business world, manufacturing companies have to make themselves stand apart. The only way to do that, really, is by working on customer experience. Customers expect to be treated with high-quality service, which means that even in a business-to-business industry, you should be acting more like a business-to-consumer industry. Plus, roughly one-fifth of consumers are going straight to the manufacturer for their products, so you’re likely dealing with more consumers than you were ten years ago. As such, improving customer experience will go a long way in gaining, and keeping, customers. The best way to go about this is to invest in technologies such as speech analytics that can assess sales tactics, improve your customer service, and pinpoint problem areas for employees.
Increase prevalence of mobile technology
8 in 10 CEOs see mobile technologies as critically important for their businesses. The manufacturing industry is not an exception. Mobile technology not only makes your business run more efficiently, it’s also necessary in keeping in contact with customers, employees, and consumers who are all expecting you to be on-call 24/7. A softphone will help you meet this constant demand, ensuring that your business calls can always be directed to your smartphone at all times. It functions essentially the same as your desk phone, all the while giving you the freedom of movement and flexibility that a modern workspace requires.
Globalization
Manufacturing businesses in Asian nations such as China, Malaysia, India, Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam are rapidly growing. As a result, no matter how good US businesses are, they are nonetheless going up against very competitive businesses overseas. These businesses utilize low-cost labor, increasing demographics, and other trends to compete against US businesses. As such, your manufacturing business needs to find ways to keep up. The best way to do this is to find ways to increase productivity and efficiency. Auto attendant, for example, can automatically direct your calls to the proper recipient, while software integrations will ensure that your CRM can work seamlessly with your phones and other technologies.
At Vaspian, we want to make sure that your manufacturing business can keep up with the changing times. That’s why we offer all of these services and more to make your business competitive in the digital age. Give us a call at 1-855-827-7426 to learn more!
