Content Marketing, Engineered Podcast | TREW Marketing – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Every December, we wrap up Content Marketing, Engineered with a tradition: a trends conversation with TREW Marketing’s own Lee Chapman. This episode focuses on how Industrial Marketers can reckon with with the new age of AI and differentiate themselves among a "sea of sameness" and what marketing strategies to focus on in 2026. 

2025 was a year of massive transformation for industrial marketers. As AI tools matured and generative search became a primary gateway for technical buyers, long-standing content and inbound strategies were forced to evolve. Marketers saw firsthand how important differentiation, depth, and authentic expertise is to stand out and earn trust.

AI Has Leveled the Tactical Playing Field

According to Lee, 2024 and 2025 were years of experimentation. Marketers used AI to produce content faster than ever but this caused everyone to sound alike and create an overwhelming amount of noise. Lee says the biggest trend for 2026 is a differentiated strategy.

With AI providing instant answers to basic queries, surface-level content no longer cuts it. Technical buyers still end up on your website, and when they do, they’re looking for clarity, technical depth, and authenticity. If your content doesn’t communicate a strong value proposition and true expertise, it’s easy for prospects to bounce back to AI or head to a competitor.

Your Website Must Earn Its Keep

Lee highlighted two extremes plaguing engineering websites today:

• The “museum” site: outdated, bloated, and difficult to navigate.
• The “brochure” site: modern and pretty, but shallow, lacking specs, case studies, and proof points.

Both fail to meet the needs of technical buyers. Lee recommends a website and content audit using a keep/kill/create framework, elevating high-value content, and ensuring users can find what they need with minimal clicks.

Trade Shows: Substance Over Swag

Events are booming again, but many companies are “checkboxing” their presence rather than building a strategic plan around them. Lee stressed the importance of:

• Strong booth messaging
• Demos and SMEs
• Pre-event outreach and partner activation
• Thoughtful, timely post-show follow-up

Content: Go Deep, Get Specific, Prove It

Technical audiences still value white papers, webinars, case studies, and research if they contain meaningful depth. Lee emphasized developing more proof-driven assets, including unnamed case studies when needed, and turning high-performing content into webinars or videos. Voice-of-customer research and even closed-lost surveys are underrated tools for uncovering differentiators AI can’t replicate.

Resources

• Connect with Lee on LinkedIn
• Connect with Wendy on LinkedIn
• Learn more TREW's Marketing Strategy services
• Register for the Industrial Marketing Summit

As industrial marketers plan out their 2026 marketing strategies, it's important to take into consideration the difference in research and buying behavior of engineers across generations. EETech's Terra Gledhill in on this week's episode to share what sources these engineers trust, and what strategies marketers should emphasize in 2026. 

In this episode Wendy Covey sat down with Terra Gledhill, Director of Marketing and Research at EETech, to unpack findings from the 2025 Engineering Insights Report (EIR). Now in its ninth year, the EIR captures responses from more than 3,000 engineers across roles, industries, and experience levels, making it a great resource for industrial marketers as they plan their 2026 marketing strategy.

A dominant theme in this year’s report is the rapid rise of AI adoption. Among millennial and Gen Z engineers, usage of AI tools (including LLMs, code generation, and simulation) jumped from 45% to 64% year over year. Even seasoned career professionals saw a significant increase, from 20% to 46%. Terra explained that while younger engineers overwhelmingly see AI as a positive accelerator, seasoned engineers remain more cautious, emphasizing the need for regulation and security.

The report also highlights major generational differences in research behavior. Communities and forums have become the top resource for Millennial and Gen Z  engineers, who seek out peer validation and authentic, real-world solutions. Career pros, however, still rely on manufacturer websites. Across all groups, engineers increasingly expect robust online tools such as CAD models, reference designs, and simulation resources directly on supplier websites.

When it comes to challenges, both groups cite staying on schedule and on budget as their top concerns. But younger engineers struggle more with skill gaps on their teams, often inheriting outdated systems and incomplete documentation. Career pros, conversely, feel the pressure of keeping pace with technology’s rapid evolution.

For marketers planning 2026 strategies, Gledhill’s advice is clear:

• Prioritize technical depth over marketing polish.
• Equip engineers with self-serve digital tools on your website.
• Show up in trusted communities and authoritative third-party publications.
• Encourage SMEs to share their expertise on technical forums like Reddit and Github.
• Market not just to today’s decision-makers, but to the next generation.

Resources

• Connect with Terra on LinkedIn
• Connect with Wendy on LinkedIn
• Learn more about EETech
• Related Episode: Comparing Content Preferences of Engineers in Europe and the US
• Related Episode: Your Top Questions Answered from the 2025 State of Marketing to Engineers Webinar
• Register for the Industrial Marketing Summit

In this episode, Morgan Norris speaks with Susan Poeton, Publisher, Owner and CEO of Industry Today Media. They discus the evolution of publishing and strategies for technical companies to effectively communicate their news. They explore the importance of understanding the audience, the role of press releases, and the current trends in manufacturing and technology. Additionally, they talk through advertising strategies, paid media opportunities, and the significance of building brand awareness in a competitive market. 

Key Takeaways

• Smaller companies can still tell valuable stories despite budget constraints.
• Brand awareness is key in a competitive market.
• Paid media opportunities should be part of a broader campaign strategy.
• Building long-term relationships with media platforms enhances exposure.

Resources

• Connect with Susan on LinkedIn
• Connect with Morgan on LinkedIn
• Learn more about Industry Today Magazine
• Listen to Industry Today's Industry Insights Podcast
• Submit news to Industry Today
• Learn more about TREW's Brand Marketing Services

 Hear the latest updates on generative AI for marketing, including tools we're kicking around, features we love, and prompting best practices for creating AI-assisted technical content. 

Morgan Norris, TREW Brand and Content Strategist, is on top of how AI tools can enhance our technical content writing process (not derail it). She's been researching and piloting various tools and staying abreast of the ever-evolving legal and cultural implications of generative AI.

In this episode we cover:

• Marketing AI news, including a statement and guidance from the U.S. Copywrite Office
• Generative AI tools we are trying out (see full list below)
• Generative AI functionality that benefits us most as technical marketers
• Best practices for prompting AI tools during ideation, research and writing
• How to create a company policy on generative AI

Morgan will host a webinar in May to take a deeper dive into many of these topics. If you have questions or topics you'd like her to cover, drop her a line on LinkedIn. 

Resources

• Past podcast episode: Generative AI for Industrial Content Development - A ChatGPT, Writer and Jasper Showdown
• An Industrial Marketers' Guide to Generative AI
• U.S. Copywrite Office - Generative AI Resource Page
• Writer
• Jasper
• ChatGPT
• Demandwell
• Canva
• GlossAI
• Marketing AI Institute
• Morgan on LinkedIn

Connect with TREW Marketing

•  Learn About TREW Marketing 
• Order the book! Content Marketing, Engineered
• Connect with Wendy

TREW Marketing is a strategy-first content marketing agency serving industrial companies that target highly technical buyers. With deep experience in electronics, test and automation, software, and engineering services, TREW Marketing helps clients build trust and generate demand.

 Learn the differences between Google Analytics 4 (GA4) and Universal Analytics and find out how to transition to GA4. 

If you've logged into your Google Universal Analytics (UA) account on or after March 1, 2023, you've realized that you have a new tool: Google Analytics (GA4). In this episode, Kasey Tyring, Senior Inbound Marketing Specialist at TREW Marketing, walks through the major differences between the two tools and how to get up-to-speed on GA4.

A few key points you'll hear during the episode:

• Web visits (and a few other key metrics) are counted differently in GA4, so don't try to compare with UA data
• Greater emphasis and deeper data are provided on-site engagement 
• Bounces and clicks take on a different meaning in GA4
• One of the most insightful tools is events - check this out first and get excited about this new way to view the buyer's journey!
• After you have a handle on the changes, be sure to educate leadership about the change 

If you have a busy spring schedule and/or not super excited about learning a new Google Analytics tool, well, tough. In July 2023 UA will go away forever. So let's all embrace the change and give GA4 a big welcome hug. Happy measuring!

Resources

• Webinar on April 12th: Measuring Marketing Success with GA4
• Blog Post: Preparing for GA4 -- The Next Generation of Analytics
• CME Podcast Episode from July 2022: Moving to GA4 with Keith Mooring
• Kasey Tyring on LinkedIn

Connect with TREW Marketing

•  Learn About TREW Marketing 
• Order the book! Content Marketing, Engineered
• Connect with Wendy

TREW Marketing is a strategy-first content marketing agency serving industrial companies that target highly technical buyers. With deep experience in electronics, test and automation, software, and engineering services, TREW Marketing helps clients build trust and generate demand.

Learn how a leading optics manufacturer uses daily videos and other content marketing tools to differentiate from their competitors.

Cory Boone, Technical Marketing Manager at Edmund Optics, is a big believer in content marketing for engineering companies, as you'll hear in this episode. He has found that through content, the company builds trust and credibility and stays top-of-mind with prospects and customers. 

Edmund Optics' multi-faceted content strategy includes daily videos which range from broad and basic, such as how optics are used in the world around us, to technical challenges where optics and photonics can be applied. Videos are leveraged across multiple platforms including TikTok, LinkedIn and YouTube. TikTok is not where the company expects to find and convert near-term leads, rather it supports long-term awareness and branding goals. 

In Cory's role as a Technical Marketing Manager, he acts as a bridge between engineering and marketing communications, which he finds helps to lend greater credibility to marketing as a whole. He also writes technical content where he draws from his optical engineering education and seeks time from deep subject-matter experts within the company. Cory oversees the Edmund Optics Knowledge Center, where visitors can search or filter by topic.

Cory and his team have experimented with generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, and have found their best use to be for brainstorming and outlining. Cory advises taking great caution when using data sourced by these tools. It is important to determine and cite the source of the data to make sure it is accurate, recent, and not from your competition. This is a big challenge for niche technical subjects.  

Resources

• Cory Boone on LinkedIn
• Edmund Optics on TikTok
• Edmund Optics Knowledge Center

Connect with TREW Marketing

•  Learn About TREW Marketing 
• Order the book! Content Marketing, Engineered
• Connect with Wendy

TREW Marketing is a strategy-first content marketing agency serving industrial companies that target highly technical buyers. With deep experience in electronics, test and automation, software, and engineering services, TREW Marketing helps clients build trust and generate demand.

Hear the latest electronic components industry and marketing trends presented at the 2023 ERA conference. 

TREW Marketing Senior Brand and Content Strategist, Morgan Norris joined me for the 2023 Electronics Representatives Association (ERA) conference, held in TREW's hometown of Austin, Texas. In this episode, we share some of the trending topics we heard in keynotes and sessions as well as share highlights from our presentation, Transforming Your Brand Into a Trusted Resource.

Some of our marketing takeaways include:

• Many of the rep firms are lacking differentiated messaging and their websites don't portray them as a knowledgeable technical resource for design engineers
• Video is very popular with design engineers; sales reps can use video to share their expertise and build credibility; brands can use video to add interest to (potentially dry) electronic component content topics
• Don't overthink social sharing; use content created by your marketing department, your partners or your network and add your point of view
• Generative AI and ChatGPT are great content brainstorming tools, but when it comes to creating highly technical content, they won't do the heavy lifting for you
• Enewsletters are still quite popular with design engineers; one sales rep firm consistently achieves a 70% open rate through hyper-personalization 
• Sales rep firms and distributors can leverage and extend a manufacturer's marketing campaign, creating a channel win-win-win amplifier
• Manufacturers are open to collaborative marketing campaigns and offering co-op funding, but sales reps need to first have a strategic approach to marketing and pitch thoughtful campaign ideas

Some of our industry takeaways from a fascinating closing keynote by Michael Knight, President and CEO of Endries International, include:

• As more sensors are added to our cars (and other parts of our daily lives), the demand for data storage will be massive
• Look for more household and work tasks to be automated through robotics and applied AI; examples include robots delivering food to your table at a restaurant, picking strawberries in the field on a farm, and assisting with diagnosis and surgery 
• Renewable, unlimited energy from solar will be more attainable with battery storage technology advances
• The commercialization of space will continue, especially to mine precious minerals 
• The demand for electronics will continue to be strong!

Resources

• Electronics Representatives Association (ERA)
• An Industrial Marketer's Guide to Generative AI
• An Engineer's Guide to B2B Content Marketing
• Morgan Norris on LinkedIn
• Michael Knight on LinkedIn

Connect with TREW Marketing

•  Learn About TREW Marketing 
• Order the book! Content Marketing, Engineered
• Connect with Wendy

TREW Marketing is a strategy-first content marketing agency serving industrial companies that target highly technical buyers. With deep experience in electronics, test and automation, software, and engineering services, TREW Marketing helps clients build trust and generate demand.

 Can AI tools help to develop content targeted to engineers and technical buyers? 

The landscape is exploding with generative AI tools for content marketing. But when it comes to creating B2B marketing content, especially pieces targeted to engineers and technical buyers, are these tools actually helpful? This is what TREW Marketing set out to find through research and writing experiments.

The episode kicked off with Morgan Norris, TREW Sr. Brand and Content Strategist, walking us through the variety of tools that aim to help marketers across content strategy, SEO, and content development. As we honed in specifically on content development, the team narrowed their focus to two primary tools, Writer and Jasper. They also explained instances when ChatGPT might helpful, and made mention of other content tools which you'll note in the resources section below.

Jamie Tokarz, TREW Sr. Content Manager, and Hannah Schulze, TREW Content Specialist, walked through their experiments using the tools and what they found most and least beneficial. On the whole, the scales weighed heavily towards the negative, but all involved saw some benefit and think there is a positive outlook for gains as the tools mature.

The best experiences centered upon headline generation and branding rule enforcement. The tools also provided a nice starting point to overcome "blank page syndrome." The worst experiences were around long-form technical content and any piece of content where you'd like to reinforce your brand messaging and SEO terminology in an authentic manner. 

The team put together an AI for B2B Content Generation guide based on their research and experiments to date, including before/AI-generated/writer-edited live content snapshots which really drive home their lessons learned. This guide will be continuously updated as TREW learns and experiments more. 

Resources

• An Industrial Marketer's Guide to Generative AI
• Writer
• Jasper
• ChatGPT
• Canva Magic Write
• Grammarly
• MarketMuse
• Dall-E

Connect with TREW Marketing

•  Learn About TREW Marketing 
• Order the book! Content Marketing, Engineered
• Connect with Wendy

TREW Marketing is a strategy-first content marketing agency serving industrial companies that target highly technical buyers. With deep experience in electronics, test and automation, software, and engineering services, TREW Marketing helps clients build trust and generate demand.

 We're in a world where everyone wants to be a thought leader. But what does it look like for your company to gain thought leadership?  

Lisa Gately from Forrester meets with us to discuss thought leadership – what it is, what it isn’t, and how to create a thought leadership campaign. 

According to Lisa, “Thought leadership is a social dialogue. It is an intentional exercise of knowledge, skills, and expertise to build awareness, elevate perception, and drive preference related to key issues that audiences care about.” 

Thought leadership is brand equity – but it’s not easy to achieve. Most thought leadership misses the mark because it doesn't provide a unique perspective on an issue, it's not prioritized with internal resources, and it's ultimately self-serving -- it's product or solution marketing -- not industry leadership.

Lisa discusses how to diverge from our traditional way of thinking about thought leadership and build a thought leadership plan that's strategic, resourced, and meaningful.

 https://bit.ly/CMEPodcast 

Learn more about TREW Marketing

 https://www.trewmarketing.com 

Order the book! Content Marketing, Engineered

 https://bit.ly/contentmktgeng

Find out why conversations are so important to our health, careers, and personal growth, and learn practical tips to becoming a better conversationalist. 

Two-time book author and former technology marcom professional Patti DeNucci wants to inspire you to improve (and enjoy!) conversations, whether those take place in a social or professional setting. I couldn't think of a better time to spend some mental energy on this topic, with a post-pandemic re-emergence into face-to-face gatherings, or for some, hesitation to even engage IRL. 

In Patti's new book, More Than Just Talk: An Essential Guide for Anyone Who Wants to Enjoy Better Conversations, you'll learn why conversations are so important to our health, careers, and personal growth. She walks you through barriers and obstacles to good conversations and calls us out on some excuses we've probably all used to avoid social situations. 

In the episode, you'll hear how setting intentions and preparation will provide focus and confidence. We also touch on several concepts from Patti's "Conversation Toolkit" including my favorite, becoming a "Possibilitaritan." 

Having better conversations includes a healthy dose of listening, and Patti explains what prevents people from actively listening and how to improve this key skill.

One of my favorite tips comes at the very end of the episode where Patti tells us how to perform the "sniff test" and warns us to make sure this is done in private. Be sure to listen for that nugget!

More Than Just Talk follows on the heels of Patti's first book, The Intentional Networker.

For show links and more, visit the Content Marketing, Engineered podcast blog

 https://bit.ly/CMEPodcast 

Learn more about TREW Marketing

 https://www.trewmarketing.com 

Order the book! Content Marketing, Engineered

 https://bit.ly/contentmktgeng