The Value of Marketing for Third-Party Logistics Companies
A few weeks ago, my husband and I packed up our two kids and headed East for our annual family beach vacation in Delaware. We made our way through Chicago traffic, on to Indiana toward the Rust Belt and the Ohio and Pennsylvania turnpikes. We drove in the mountains of West Virginia, then made our way outside the beltway in DC before making it to our destination on the Eastern seaboard.
Usually when we make this trip, I pass the time by counting the number of Cracker Barrel billboards, which rack up awards year after year for the chain’s outdoor advertising campaigns.
This year, though, I did something different: I decided to count the number of logistics companies we encountered on the road. I spotted UPS, Amazon, and XPO Logistics everywhere, but I also was busy studying the branding of smaller freight companies and wondering what they were doing to grow their businesses.
In 2019, the global third-party logistics (3PL) market was valued at $1 billion and is projected to reach $1.7 billion by 2027, according to Allied Market Research. The need for businesses to utilize logistics services has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has brought on disruptions to the workplace and movement of goods. Additionally, consumers’ reliance on e-commerce and their expectation of fast deliveries has put pressure on distributors to perform. Help is out there for manufacturers in the form of 3PL to manage the movement of goods, storage and warehousing, the labor market, and fluctuations in the real estate market.
If you’re running a third-party logistics company, you can save another business time and money. But are you communicating that effectively? While companies often rely on traditional B2B marketing techniques, there are other digital strategies that could help your company grow in what’s becoming a growing and competitive industry, including:
- Strategizing tactics to improve your website’s search engine optimization
- Developing new content for your website in the form of blogs, partner spotlights, and testimonials
- Sending targeted eblasts to the managers and executive suites for manufacturing companies
- Taking advantage of social media channels, especially LinkedIn.
Third-party logistics services are a key to businesses keeping pace in a volatile supply chain. They bring value to businesses by saving time and money and mitigating risks. Do you need help communicating that effectively? If so, connect with us today to learn more about how Chartwell’s expertise in economic development and financial marketing strategies can help you reach your audience and grow your own 3PL business.
