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Everyone expects content about refrigerated products to be boring.
That’s why the marketing team at Heatcraft Refrigeration Products wanted to set new standards in B2B marketing.
The Lennox International division manufactures and sells refrigeration products such as walk-in refrigerators, freezers and storage refrigerators to restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations and warehouses.
Therefore, the marketing team creates engaging, unexpected and personable content that helps Heatcraft stand out from the competition.
Pete Grasso, Content Marketing Director at Heatcraft, and Tim Fletcher, Digital Marketing Director, detailed the experience in their presentation at Content Marketing World. Let's take a look at their approach and learn more about the business results they achieved.
Create compelling videos
Before getting to the B2B part, Tim shares a B2C example. Recently he bought furniture that needed to be assembled. Instead of reading the printed instruction manual, he scanned a QR code from the manufacturer and watched a step-by-step assembly video.
In the B2B space, Heatcraft follows a similar strategy, creating short, compelling and educational videos on how to install its cooling products.
“Like Reels and TikTok, we break our videos down into shorter, consumable videos,” says Tim.
Experienced technologists don't need the content, but newcomers do. “It's about making it relevant to the audience you're trying to reach,” says Pete.
Tim and Pete explained how to create relevant content:
- Solve your audience’s problemsHeatcraft imagines scenarios and challenges that contractors face on site, thinks about what junior installers need to learn and creates videos on these topics.
- Speak the language of your audience. For example, Heatcraft makes a product called a “unit cooler,” but contractors refer to it as an “evaporator.” So Heatcraft uses “evaporator” on its website, blog posts, and videos. “If we called it anything else, it wouldn't be authentic to the contractor,” says Tim.
- Avoid corporate jargon. B2B content usually mimics corporate language. That's to be expected. But Tim says, “Spend the 90% on being fun, engaging and persuasive, and you still have that 10% left to get into corporate language and make your boss happy.”
- Take a new approach. Pete says, “We don't want to be like the others. What's better? A black and white technical PDF document with lots of jargon or an animated video with voiceover that can explain the same thing much more convincingly?”
Start an internal video operation
You don't need a studio, high-end cameras, or a six-figure budget to create the unexpected with video. Pete and Tim use a do-it-yourself model with the help of a freelance designer to create 20 to 30 videos a year. They write the scripts, create the storyboards, shoot the videos, and distribute them.
“We started with a $500 Lumix camera, a couple of cheap microphones and no external lighting,” says Pete. “As we became more independent and started producing really great content, management got on board.”
Pete and Tim now work in a studio at Heatcraft's headquarters. They have purchased a Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K, the kind used on reality TV shows, and have also purchased drones.
Now, company management turns to her when they have requests beyond marketing videos. “It's nice that they've joined in. They see the results and know the value of creating great videos,” says Pete.
In the first two years of video publishing, Heatcraft generated over 1 million views. “For a B2C company, that might not be a lot, but for a B2B production company, that’s huge for us,” says Tim.
Apply B2C social media strategies
Heatcraft also takes a more typical B2C approach to its social media marketing. Visit any of its social media profiles and you'll notice that only 25% of its posts are about Heatcraft products.
Three-quarters of the content is probably videos, photos and posts from team members and customers. Showing the people behind the products creates a stronger connection with customers and prospects, and that's something the competition isn't doing.
“We also thought it was a great way to connect with audiences and gain market share by highlighting diversity, our family culture and showing the different ways we work together,” says Tim.
Example: Family is always important
Heatcraft has a manufacturing initiative called “Quality Always Matters.” The name is also used in a hashtag. Pete and Tim reworded this initiative to promote the Heatcraft team – #PeopleAlwaysMatter – and created this accompanying video called “Families Always Matter,” which features snippets of the Johnson family at work in the factory, showing viewers the people behind the products.
Since adopting the B2C mentality a year ago, Heatcraft has seen its LinkedIn and Facebook followers increase by 34% and engagement increase from 3.1% to 5.4%. In addition, Heatcraft has ten times more followers than its closest competitors.
Use niche influencers
At Content Marketing World, Ashley Zeckman of Onalytica covered the six types of influencers in her presentation – one of which is the niche expert. These influencers have a smaller audience but highly relevant content.
Pete and Tim recommend investing time in researching niche experts in your industry. “It will take a lot of time up front to make sure it's the right fit. Don't go with the first influencer with a large audience you find,” says Tim.
They researched potential influencers to ensure their audience matched Heatcraft's target audience and observed how well the influencers interacted with their audience.
To reach the contractor audience, they partnered with Chris Stephens of HVACR VIDEOS.
Chris Stephens of HVACR VIDEOS has partnered with Heatcraft Brands as part of his influencer marketing.
Pete says Chris didn't plan on becoming an influencer, but started filming service calls to teach the technicians at his company how to do things right. “He put his YouTube channel live and it just exploded because now refrigeration technicians from all over are watching it,” says Pete.
Chris creates educational videos about Heatcraft products. “He has made a lot of videos spreading our message, but they come from someone who is authentic and speaking to his peers,” says Pete.
In the first year, Chris' videos generated 400,000 views and 250 to 300 comments per video. While the high view count is impressive, Heatcraft finds the interaction with the audience more engaging.
Chris also gathers input in his work. “We learn about problems in the field, about products, which we can then present to our engineers, our quality teams and our product managers to actually improve the products based on these conversations,” says Tim.
Are you ready to rewrite the boring script?
Pete and Tim found a way to make content engaging and unexpected for the refrigeration product maker. They pivoted to video content and collaborated with niche influencers, all by focusing less on the products and more on the people who make and use those products.
So, as you adopt a B2C approach to your B2B brand, keep Tim’s advice in mind: “Focus on your customers, not your own size.”
Register to attend Content Marketing World in San Diego. Use code BLOG100 to save $100. Can't attend in person this year? Check out the Digital Pass for access to on-demand session recordings of the live event until the end of the year.
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Cover photo by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute
Create your very own Auto Publish News/Blog Site and Earn Passive Income in Just 4 Easy Steps
