Best way to market services?

[mrburnzie]

Hi!

I have been doing pcb and firmware design as a service for a while now. I have around 10 clients under my belt, but I’m ready to up my game and move into larger projects.

What are the best marketing strategies that you have seen that work to reach potential clients?

LinkedIn is my biggest guess to getting traction. Opinions on LI?

Thanks

[Electro Fan]

LI is useful.  That plus your web site plus developing your marketing and sales plan (and an overall business plan) plus referrals and references from happy clients could lead to more business.

[T3sl4co1l]

LI is mostly recruiters hunting for employees, but it can help.

I've had surprisingly little direct through my website.  Whether that's due to its relative obscurity, my fault for misunderstanding what kind of content I should have on it (always open to suggestions!), or just flat out luck on where it's positioned relative to other keywords in search engines, I don't know.  (I have a feeling it's a bit of everything; evidently my Thevenin calculator is one of the best on the 'net, but nothing else garners more than baseline attention.)

This forum has been one of the better ones for me, oddly enough; I... certainly post enough here, but that alone isn't it.  Even my signature doesn't seem to be it, oddly.  But it never hurts to ask.  This being an English language forum with mostly US readership, I guess I don't know how well the same may help you -- but it's free, and doesn't hurt to ask.

Tim

[AndyC_772]

I've found the same. I get regular contacts via LinkedIn from recruiters who seem completely unable to grasp the fact that I'm looking for new customers, not an employer who will expect me to close down my business and work for them exclusively.

I used to politely respond, explaining this fact. I never once received the courtesy of a reply, so now I don't even bother.

My web site (which includes a number of testimonials and example projects from happy customers) hasn't been particularly effective either - though it does lend a touch of credibility. As a business, you do really need to have one.

(As an aside, my company's slogan is "reliable electronics"... google that particular phrase and I'm right near the first page of results, which you might think would mean I get useful site traffic from people looking for a designer of high quality stuff that won't break. It doesn't.)

[Electro Fan]

A web site by itself won't "find" or "attract" potential customers.  Effectively implemented SEO (generally built into fields on the web site) can help with attracting and the process of being found.  Once a potential customer becomes aware of your business from whatever initial stimulus (SEO, word of mouth, etc.), then the web site can potentially keep your business in the running or possibly get your business ruled out.  Probably best to look at the web site as an ante to get in the game and remain competitively in the game.  It's possible a business could win some customers without a web site but it would seem harder to win business without a web site in this day and age.  The other thing a web site does is that it helps people see not only what your company offers, and why it might be good at what it does, but it can also help potential customers who are in the shopping stage get a sense for what the company doesn't offer - which can keep people from contacting you about things your business doesn't do or doesn't want to do. 

LI on the other hand is how people find about you as an individual, manager, owner - which can lead them to your business, or sometimes it works the other way around (potential customers find your business first and then look you up second).  LI can definitely attract recruiters in addition to potential customers but like the web site, LI can help establish credibility for relevant capabilities.

[Whales]

I've had surprisingly little direct through my website.  Whether that's due to its relative obscurity, my fault for misunderstanding what kind of content I should have on it (always open to suggestions!), or just flat out luck on where it's positioned relative to other keywords in search engines, I don't know.  (I have a feeling it's a bit of everything; evidently my Thevenin calculator is one of the best on the 'net, but nothing else garners more than baseline attention.)

This forum has been one of the better ones for me, oddly enough; I... certainly post enough here, but that alone isn't it.  Even my signature doesn't seem to be it, oddly.  But it never hurts to ask.  This being an English language forum with mostly US readership, I guess I don't know how well the same may help you -- but it's free, and doesn't hurt to ask.

Tim

One data point: I do electronics repair and design across a couple of jobs, one for a GP (chain of doctors' practices) and the other for a malaria research group (internationally funded).  Your website & forum posts make you look like an expert in a lot of areas (wild guess: $200-$400/hr?), ie way above my head to even consider suggesting to my research group's admin (who are currently looking for electronics designers).  That and, of course, you're overseas, which sucks for us esp under lockdown.

Make of that what you will.  Probably isn't useful info at all. 

[rfclown]

I don't have experience to answer your question since my preference is not having to chase the next job (therefore I have to put up with the downsides of a 9-5 job). But I do sometimes entertain contract projects that I can do on the side. If there's anything that you've done that is out of the ordinary make sure the keywords are on some web page (LinkedIn or whatever). I worked on neurostimulators for a few years (not my field of expertise) but I just got a solicitation to participate in something for that. I have a web page that is total crap, just a few lines of text. I've been contacted about wireless power (again not my field of expertise) because I did that as part of a job, and it's on my resume which is on the web. If you just say you do firmware and PCB you won't stand out. But if you did work that was for a "high efficiency solar power" project, or "whatever", then you might get a search hit from the "whatever".

[rfclown]

I've had surprisingly little direct through my website.  Whether that's due to its relative obscurity, my fault for misunderstanding what kind of content I should have on it (always open to suggestions!), or just flat out luck on where it's positioned relative to other keywords in search engines, I don't know.  (I have a feeling it's a bit of everything; evidently my Thevenin calculator is one of the best on the 'net, but nothing else garners more than baseline attention.)

This forum has been one of the better ones for me, oddly enough; I... certainly post enough here, but that alone isn't it.  Even my signature doesn't seem to be it, oddly.  But it never hurts to ask.  This being an English language forum with mostly US readership, I guess I don't know how well the same may help you -- but it's free, and doesn't hurt to ask.

Tim

One data point: I do electronics repair and design across a couple of jobs, one for a GP (chain of doctors' practices) and the other for a malaria research group (internationally funded).  Your website & forum posts make you look like an expert in a lot of areas (wild guess: $200-$400/hr?), ie way above my head to even consider suggesting to my research group's admin (who are currently looking for electronics designers).  That and, of course, you're overseas, which sucks for us esp under lockdown.

Make of that what you will.  Probably isn't useful info at all.

Don't not reach out based on an assumption. Tim's forum posts show that he knows his stuff as far as analog electronics. If you think he would be an asset reach out. I've worked at places where firmware and layout people were remote and we never met face to face. Wasn't a problem. Analog design isn't the same, but it can be done. I had a former employer reach out to revive something I had worked on years before. They had moved to California and I'm in Florida (opposite sides of the US). We mailed the circuits back and forth. I initially offered an hourly rate (less than the numbers you show) and they replied with two fixed payments (one mid project and one at end) based of meeting certain milestones. I agreed and we got it done.

[T3sl4co1l]

That much, and you think I have time to spend in a po-dunk place like this?

Ironically, most people seem to be looking for as much of a discount versus my usual opening rate, as that number is above it... (based on sources ranging from in-person, to random postings on Upwork, even excluding the obvious ).

As professional services go, engineering is probably one of if not the cheapest?  Not that you can really tell what an MD is worth in the US, because.. *gestures vaguely*; lawyers I think are generally in that price range (makes sense given individual to modest size teams, huge stacks of precedent to study and search, and working to court deadlines).  AFAIK engineering only gets into prices like that for similar reasons; big teams, short deadlines and/or big projects, professional engineering (read: state licensed PE; typically civil related things, fairly uncommon in EE, at least in the US?), court testimony (e.g. patent litigation), etc.

I do wonder if putting up more details (on website) would be useful.  I could go into more detail on the legal side (e.g. show example NDA, contract); but it feels like giving direct numbers would be, at least, inappropriate.  Too high will scare off too many who would otherwise negotiate for something more equitable; and a low figure is no place to start for negotiation.  And a range would probably just be misunderstood, "you said your range starts at $50/hr, I want $50/hr!" "yes but that was for basic X service, but you're asking start-to-finish..."

Tim

[tszaboo]

I've used Fiverr before to hire experts to do work that I couldn't do myself, like drafting mechanical drawings. The other one is Freelancer. Just be prepared that people from India, Malaysia and other countries will undercut you in prices, so instead try to compete with quality, and be prepared that getting a lead might not actually mean a job.
Ah and have a github with references.

[mrburnzie]

Yepp, I have been doing that till now, but as you said, your price is undercut, but you can land clients that know how to filter it.

[mrburnzie]

Totally agree with the website thing. As other have mentioned as well, you just need it to be “a business”.

I guess posting content and getting known is the only way, or to go into groups that are related to this kind of business. I also thought of joining IEEE, but people on the forum said that it’s a waste of time and money.

[thm_w]

(As an aside, my company's slogan is "reliable electronics"... google that particular phrase and I'm right near the first page of results, which you might think would mean I get useful site traffic from people looking for a designer of high quality stuff that won't break. It doesn't.)

Must be based on location and context, if I search for that your website was not listed in the first 10 pages.

[T3sl4co1l]

I found it on page 6, which.... isn't very "near", but out of the "2 billion" results (more likely 1/1000th of that, if even), I suppose it's relative.

Tim

[AndyC_772]

Thanks for checking!

For me it's the 2nd result on the first page. I wonder how else the search results we all see are skewed? (PhD thesis right there...!)

[AndyC_772]

Odd question. Has anyone said they "need" an advertising company? Why would the size really matter?

[jonpaul]

Hello: Linkedin is unlikey to get any paying jobs.

Most such work is already long ago offshored to China or is now in East Europe eg Latvia, Estonia at cost ~ 5..10% USA rates.

Best method is NOT website, as takes years to gain traction and very few refs lead to work, as 99.9% are robots or scams, or spam.

Suggest to network, personal contact  at  trade shows, tech conferences, existing client referrals.

Bon Chance


Jon

[jonpaul]

your location?

j

[tom66]

Thanks for checking!

For me it's the 2nd result on the first page. I wonder how else the search results we all see are skewed? (PhD thesis right there...!)

You've probably searched for terms related to your company before, and possibly even clicked on that link, which influences results.  You have to check from Incognito or similar, ideally via a VPN, to get a 'clean' view of what A.N.Other Google user will see, but since you're marketing towards engineers, MDs, inventors etc. it may not be all that useful anyway to know.