Let’s talk about how to design a good manufacturing SEO strategy.
Here’s the thing about manufacturers:
They’re not all cut from the same cloth.
Some manufacturers are pumping out aerospace parts, chasing contracts with companies that have more lawyers than lunch breaks.
Some manufacturers are building packaging for local food brands, shaking hands at trade shows and making deals over diner coffee.
And some of you? You’re shipping CNC-machined components across three continents and don’t blink unless the client pays in six figures and seven currencies.
Point is, not all manufacturing businesses are built the same.
So why the should your SEO strategy be?
See, the mistake most manufacturers make when they dip their toes into SEO is treating it like a one-size-fits-all boilerplate.
They hire an agency that cranks out a couple blog posts, slaps on some keywords, and calls it a day.
But SEO isn’t a checkbox.
And it needs to point toward the goals that actually matter to your business.
Are you a global player who needs to master international SEO to bring in overseas contracts?
Are you a regional powerhouse looking to dominate the local search results for <insert product name> in <insert city name>?
This guide is going to walk you through that.
We’re going to talk about the types of manufacturing businesses, the goals they tend to have, and the SEO strategies that actually move the needle.
We’ll help you figure out where you stand, and then we’ll show you the road you need to take.
So, roll up your sleeves.
Let’s get to work.
I’m a freelance SEO consultant and content writer with over four years of experience helping manufacturers climb the ranks, pull in better-fit leads, and land the kinds of projects they actually want to work on.
If you’re looking for someone to handle SEO for your manufacturing company, find out more about my services below:
Read on for the rest of the article.
Quickly skip to the section you’re interested in using the Table of Contents below.
Choosing the right manufacturing SEO strategy
Before you touch a single keyword or publish a blog post, you need to answer one critical question:
How do your buyers actually find you?
Your SEO strategy should match your sales model, not fight against it.
Use the questions below to pinpoint your direction.
1. Where are your customers?
This tells you how far your SEO needs to reach.
- Local only?
You mostly work with nearby businesses—contractors, suppliers, or partners within a 50 – 100 mile radius.
👉 You likely need a Local SEO foundation.
- National?
Your products ship across the country, and your buyers don’t care where your facility is based.
👉 Focus on a National SEO strategy with strong product page rankings.
- International?
You sell into multiple countries or are expanding overseas.
👉 You’ll need an International SEO approach with country/language targeting.
2. How do your customers search?
This defines the keywords and content your SEO strategy should be built on.
- Product-led search?
Buyers are Googling technical terms, SKUs, or specific materials—e.g., brcs compliant packaging uk
👉 Build pages that target those exact terms. Don’t generalise.
- Location-led search?
Buyers include city or regional terms — e.g., cnc machining services birmingham or packaging supplier near me
👉 You need localised pages and directory listings.
- Multilingual or international search?
Buyers are in multiple regions and search in different languages.
👉 Create translated content and set up hreflang tags for each market.
3. What's your sales process like?
This determines the type of content and calls-to-action you need.
- Short and spec-driven?
Orders come in based on part numbers, technical drawings, or basic email quotes.
👉 Focus on fast-loading product pages with clear specs, lead times, and enquiry forms.
- Long and relationship-based?
Clients need education, trust, and multiple touchpoints — site visits, samples, or compliance checks.
👉 Build guides, case studies, and FAQ content to support the buyer journey.
✅ What to do next:
Use your answers to narrow down your SEO strategy:
- If your buyers are national, technical, and product-focused → National SEO
- If your leads are local, short-cycle, and service-based → Local SEO
- If you’re scaling exports or operate across borders → International SEO
The goal isn’t to be everywhere.
It’s to be exactly where your buyers are looking — and to meet them with the right content, every time.
The three SEO strategies manufacturers can use
There are three main SEO paths you can take.
Let’s dig into each one in more detail:
1. National SEO strategy for manufacturers
Best for: Manufacturers selling across the country with location-agnostic buyers
This is the go-to manufacturing SEO strategy for businesses that ship nationally, sell niche or technical products, and need to attract buyers who don’t care where your facility is — as long as you can deliver on time and to spec.
In this model, your buyer doesn’t search based on location. They search for exactly what they need:
- uk plastic tray manufacturer
- custom food-safe labels
- copper pipe supplier
- eco-friendly packaging
Their intent is commercial. Their timeline is often 3–6 months.
Your site needs to show up, build trust, and move them closer to contacting you.
✅ Optimising product and category pages for commercial keywords
These are your money pages. They need to:
- Target terms with high buying intent (learn more about search intent in this guide)
- Include technical specs, uses, certifications, and downloadable datasheets
- Be structured for conversions (quote form, “request a callback,” or “download spec sheet” CTAs)
- Load fast and work well on mobile
Think of each product page as a landing page for someone who’s ready to solve a problem — they’re not browsing, they’re deciding.
✅ Creating content to support long buying cycles
Buyers rarely convert on their first visit.
Your job is to:
- Educate with comparison guides (e.g. “Glass vs. PET: Which material extends shelf life?”)
- Address compliance questions (e.g. “What does BRCGS packaging compliance involve?”)
- Share case studies (e.g. “How we helped a national bakery reduce packaging costs by 18%”)
- Build trust with FAQs, testimonials, and downloadable guides
✅ Building topical authority in your niche
Google doesn’t just rank single pages anymore — it ranks expertise.
To show up consistently, you need to cover your topic in depth.
Example:
If you manufacture sustainable packaging, build a mini content hub around it:
- “What is compostable packaging?”
- “UK legislation on single-use plastics”
- “Biodegradable vs. recyclable: What’s the difference?”
- “Sustainable packaging design ideas for frozen food”
Link these pages together.
Make your site the go-to resource in your industry.
✅ Earning backlinks from credible industry sources
You don’t need hundreds of links.
You need the right ones.
Focus on:
- Trade directories (e.g. Packaging News, Made in Britain)
- Industry blogs
- Supplier networks
- Local manufacturing associations
- Press releases around certifications, awards, product launches
✅ Bottom line:
Most manufacturers should start with national SEO.
It’s the most scalable, most direct way to reach ready-to-buy decision makers.
Unless your business is highly regional — or you’re already exporting aggressively — this is your most realistic growth path.
Side note: read this SEO for manufacturers guide to build a good foundation on your national SEO strategy.
2. International SEO strategy for manufacturers
Best for: Exporters and manufacturers targeting overseas markets
If you’re selling into Europe, North America, Asia — or anywhere outside your home country — international SEO helps you get discovered before the trade show, before the sales call, and before your buyer even knows your name.
It’s not just about translating your website into French or German.
It’s about making sure you show up in the right country’s search engine results, in the right language, for the exact terms your overseas buyers are Googling.
International buyers have different expectations, terminology, compliance requirements, and decision-making processes.
✅ Using hreflang tags and country-specific site structure
Search engines need clear signals about which pages are for which countries and languages. That’s where hreflang tags come in.
They tell Google:
“This page is for English speakers in the UK.”
“This one is for German speakers in Germany.”
“This one is for French speakers in Canada.”
If you don’t set this up correctly, your pages can either:
- Compete against each other (hurting rankings)
- Show the wrong version to the wrong audience (hurting conversions)
Best practice:
Use subfolders for each market (e.g. yourdomain.com/de/ for Germany, yourdomain.com/fr/ for France) and implement hreflang across all alternate language pages.
✅ Translating pages for native search behaviour
International SEO is not about using Google Translate. It’s about localisation.
That means:
- Using native phrasing that buyers actually search (e.g. lebensmittelverpackung etiketten herstellerustom instead of food label company)
- Adjusting product names, materials, measurements, and certifications to fit local expectations
- Accounting for cultural context (e.g. formality, urgency, tone)
Work with translators who understand both the language and the industry.
One word out of place in a technical document or product page can undermine trust immediately.
✅ Building international landing pages with local proof
Buyers trust suppliers who look familiar.
That’s why you should create market-specific landing pages that speak directly to each region.
Include:
- Market-specific case studies and client logos
- Certifications that matter in that country (e.g. CE for the EU, FDA for the US)
- Local distributor or partner contact info
- Translated brochures or downloadable spec sheets
- Currency and shipping info, where relevant
These pages help you close.
✅ Hosting and performance optimisation for global load speeds
If your site loads slowly in Germany, it won’t rank well in Germany.
Page speed, uptime, and mobile usability matter just as much overseas as they do at home.
Make sure your website:
- Loads fast in your target countries (use CDN if needed)
- Is mobile-responsive
- Passes Core Web Vitals across locations
- Is easy to navigate, regardless of language or layout direction
You may only have 10 seconds to impress a new buyer. Don’t let your site cost you the opportunity.
✅ Bottom line:
If export is part of your growth plan, international SEO isn’t optional — it’s how you get found before you ever shake hands.
Side note: If you want to learn more about international SEO, read this international SEO for manufacturers guide to build a good foundation.
3. Local SEO strategy for manufacturers
Best for: Regionally focused manufacturers or job shops serving nearby industries
Local SEO is more niche — but when it’s the right fit, it delivers results fast.
If your business depends on local relationships, on-site service, or fast turnaround times, this is where you should start.
Think:
- Fabricators working with builders in a 50-mile radius
- Signage companies doing installs for local shops
- Subcontract CNC machining providers supporting nearby manufacturers and engineering firms
In these cases, buyers aren’t comparing dozens of suppliers across the UK.
They’re typing in location-based keywords like cnc machining services manchester.
They want someone nearby who can deliver without the hassle.
✅ Optimising your Google Business Profile
This is one of the biggest ranking factors in local search.
Make sure your profile includes:
- Correct business name, address, and phone number (NAP)
- Opening hours, categories, services, and photos
- A keyword-rich business description
- Regular updates (use the “Posts” feature to share news or offers)
✅ Collecting and showcasing customer reviews
Local buyers often rely on social proof before they reach out.
Reviews not only help you rank—they help you close.
You should:
- Request reviews shortly after project completion
- Respond to all reviews — positive and negative
- Showcase them on your website (especially location pages)
- Use quotes from real clients, ideally with business names, industries, and specifics:
“Great turnaround on our custom freezer labels—delivered within 48 hours. Highly recommend to any food producer in Yorkshire.”
That kind of detail builds instant trust.
✅ Creating location-specific landing pages
If you serve multiple nearby cities or counties, create pages for each one:
- /metal-fabrication-leeds/
- /signage-installation-nottingham/
- /cnc-machining-birmingham/
These pages should:
- Speak directly to clients in that area
- Include local case studies, testimonials, or named clients
- Feature your NAP details, embedded Google Maps, and internal links to your services
✅ Building citations across local directories
You should be listed on:
- Yell.com
- Yelp
- FreeIndex
- Local Chamber of Commerce or B2B directories
- Industry-specific listings (e.g. subcontractmanufacturingdirectory.co.uk)
Ensure your NAP is identical across all platforms.
Local SEO gets you on the radar, on the map, and in the inbox.
Find out more in my local SEO for manufacturers guide.
Can you combine manufacturing SEO strategies?
Yes — you can combine SEO strategies.
But do it with intent. Not all at once.
Think of SEO like production capacity:
If you try to run every machine on full power from day one, you’ll overload the system, burn out your team, and produce inconsistent results.
Start with one clear objective — then build out once that line is running smoothly.
Here’s how a smart, staged rollout might look:
National + international
You manufacture a product that sells well across the UK, and you’ve started building relationships in Europe or North America.
Start with national SEO:
- Rank for non-location keywords
- Optimise product pages, add lead generation forms, and create technical content
- Build authority in directories, trade publications, and supplier networks
Then expand into international SEO:
- Add country-specific landing pages (e.g. /de/, /fr/, /us/)
- Translate content properly (not literally), using local terminology and buyer intent
- Implement hreflang tags, local backlinks, and international directories
📌 This is ideal for manufacturers already shipping to a few countries — or those targeting export-heavy industries like food, aerospace, pharma, or automotive.
I used this exact approach for one of our previous clients in the copper industry. You can find out more about that campaign in this case study.
Local + national
You’re a small manufacturer that’s built a reputation regionally.
You’ve nailed the local contracts — but now you’re eyeing bigger, national buyers.
Start with local SEO:
- Get found in the Map Pack for local keywords
- Optimise your Google Business Profile and collect customer reviews
- Create localised pages with testimonials, photos, and case studies from clients in your region
Then scale into national SEO.
📌 This is perfect for manufacturers growing from local contract work into larger-scale, long-term partnerships.
Start small, scale wide
Trying to “do SEO” across every product line, buyer persona, and market at once is a quick way to waste time and money.
Instead, choose one profitable niche, prove success, then expand.
Let’s say you manufacture all kinds of packaging — but your printed box sleeves are gaining traction with subscription food brands.
Start with that:
- Create a landing page that targets custom box sleeves uk.
- Write content about labelling regulations, food-safe inks, and shelf-life optimisation
- Optimise for the right commercial keywords, add CTAs, and promote case studies
Once that starts to generate leads, replicate the model:
- Move into another product (e.g. tamper-evident labels)
- Add a new market segment (e.g. drinks, health & beauty, ecommerce)
- Layer in international targeting if exports start to rise
📌 You’ll rank faster, convert better, and build a stronger technical foundation if you go deep before you go wide.
The best manufacturing SEO strategy is the one built around how your business actually works.
Don’t chase traffic. Chase relevance.
Figure out how your buyers search.
Show up with answers.
Make it easy to take the next step.
Do that consistently, and your website becomes your best salesperson.