TECH TALK
Emergence of Valves in Social Media
Historically , marketing has been the domain of the consumer products industry . However , alongside the advances in valve technology , social media marketing is permeating the valve industry today .
By Bob Donnelly , Vice President - Flo-Tite Valves & Controls
When users attend any significant valve industry trade show , video monitors in almost every exhibit space display sophisticated graphics , demonstrating exploded views of a company ’ s product offering and applications . Flash drives and other devices have replaced the old , heavy binders full of technical literature . Attendees now utilize smartphones to interact with a diverse range of images and hyperlinks , which seamlessly redirects users to the company ’ s official website . Online platforms offer access to videos featuring product applications , demonstrations , solutions , and a wide variety of other online company marketing materials .
Social media platforms such as Constant Contact and LinkedIn are also being used throughout the industry to frequently broadcast news about the company , new valve products , and major accomplishments , such as current projects , new customers , changes in management , and so on .
The constant coverage of news and events about the company and its activities are part of an overall marketing
strategy . This enables the growth of brand equity in the minds of customers and effectively positions the company in the valve market .
Social Selling
Social media marketing has brought a great deal of change to the valve industry , especially in social selling . Historically , valve sales professionals would visit customers and prospects with display cases , presenting valve products to clients in person . Each salesperson would have a unique approach to selling and individual techniques that could vary significantly . Additionally , there was the routine ‘ telephone tag ’ in trying to set up these in-person meetings and presentations , on top of the ongoing travel expenses to meet the customers .
Today , most of the sales activities in the valve industry are happening over the internet via Zoom and other video conferencing mediums . While in-person sales are still taking place , they are becoming less common throughout the industry . The ability to demonstrate the functionality and applications for different valve products is significantly enhanced because of technology .
Now , valve salespeople can run standardized presentations on their laptops and no longer need to personally explain the function of the valves , as the industry once did with sample cases and varying levels of knowledge .
As a matter of fact , many of the valve product presentations can now be accessed on company websites and do not require initial human involvement .
One can Google a valve product and be led to a variety of sophisticated virtual presentations . In many cases , these presentations consist of application examples for specific process control operations . Likewise , the interface and communications with customers have been made more virtually accessible through e-mail and text messages . This nearly eliminates wait times on correspondence and eradicates the frustrating telephone tag of previous years . Now , the selling process is completely managed virtually with minimal human intervention .
Configurators
Another significant development is the innovation of the online ‘ Configurator ’ – a software that enables the customization of a product ’ s features and benefits for specific applications .
Process control engineers are now using configurators to build and buy valves and valve automation packages . These complete valve assemblies , including accessories like solenoid valves , limit switches , and positioners , come with computer aided design ( CAD ) files and data sheets on all the components .
In addition to providing all the technical data on valves and valve automation components , many of the companies offering configurators also provide ‘ live chat ’ options . This is so engineers can instantly access valving experts online to ensure the proper solution for specific applications . Valve companies also provide video tutorials on all products that are offered .
Since technology is advancing faster than ever imagined and most young
14 Valve World Americas | September 2023 • www . valve-world-americas . net