Industrial Buyers Say Suppliers Fail to Provide Web-based Product Data.

INTERNET marketing; SUPPLIERS; WEBSITES; COMPUTER-aided design; INTERNET; SURVEYS; STRATIGOS, Anthea C.; BUDGET; MARKETING

The article states that according to a recent survey of more than 900 industrial purchasers and suppliers sponsored by ThomasNet.com and Google, even though industrial buyers favor the Internet as a resource for product information, many suppliers are not keeping pace with buyers' needs. Nine out of ten buyers surveyed turn to the Internet for some aspect of their work, spending an average of 8 hours per week online. Around 70% expect to find detailed information on product applications and uses online. More than 40% were found to seek CAD drawings and plans, but only 13% of sellers offer them online. However, 55% of industrial suppliers said that they spend a major portion of their marketing budget on their company Web site. Anthea C. Stratigos, co-founder and CEO of Outsell, said that industrial buyers will guide sellers to the money if sellers ensure their Web sites think first of their user, the role they're in and the information they require to satisfy that role and put that information at their buyers' fingertips.