Bridging the technical translation gap in contract manufacturing teams

Does your business struggle to translate the technical details from your engineering team into helpful customer service messaging? If so, you're not alone.

When delivery issues or supply chain problems arise, account management and customer service teams must share the news with clients.

Equally, as new equipment comes online or R&D teams deliver new innovation, client-facing teams are tasked with informing existing customers. 

Not delivering the right technical messages in the right way at the right time can lead to client confusion.

Not communicating the commercial implications of engineering changes for customers can also cost your company.

Source: SIS International Research

The challenge: Two teams, two languages

Contract manufacturers must be careful how technical information is shared with customers and by whom. 

After all, engineering teams excel at technical detail. But they're not always great at diplomacy or grasping the bigger commercial picture. On the other hand, customer service and marketing teams excel at communication but don't always have the skills to interpret highly technical information.

This disconnect between engineering and customer-facing teams is sometimes called the 'technical translation gap'. It can create serious problems for a business attempting to manage customer expectations as it delivers and upsells services.

Clarity of communication is key to great customer experiences

Finding ways to keep technical information accurate and understandable for different stakeholders in a client's business can be challenging. 

Contract manufacturers must explain service challenges and communicate new opportunities in different ways to a range of client business functions, from the C-suite to logistics and operations teams.

Big rewards await customer service excellence

But getting customer service right  is becoming increasingly important in the manufacturing world as companies realise how it can affect retention, revenue and sales growth:

Source: Revolutionising Customer Service in Manufacturing, Salesforce

How to bridge the technical communication gap

In our everyday lives, we've all become used to super-fast, ultra-personalised customer service. Just think about how logistics companies alert us to a package's delivery status in real time or how Amazon anticipates and supports our every query or requirement. We expect these standards to be applied to our business lives, too.

It is vital to ensure our teams can operate as one seamless entity to serve our customers through AI-powered automation and crystal-clear messaging.

Here's how you can deliver this in your business:

1. Bring your teams together

Implement regular cross-functional meetings, joint training sessions, and collaborative projects to bridge the customer service gap between technical and customer-facing teams. Help team members gain exposure to different aspects of the business and appreciate the needs of various business roles. 

Together, these teams should agree and map out the different customer journeys that clients take:

• Identify key touchpoints where clients could be automatically updated about project progress
• Use insights from both technical and customer-facing teams to anticipate customer needs
• Implement automated communication strategies to stay ahead of customer demand

Controlling the flow of information to customers through templated emails and self-serve tools (developed in collaboration with account management, marketing and technical specialists) can help ensure standardised messaging to manage client expectations and experiences.

2. Use CRM systems to drive account-specific insights

• Use advanced CRM platforms like Salesforce or HubSpot to centralise client data, including order history, project status, and communication preferences.
• Integrate the CRM with ERP systems to provide a seamless flow of information across teams, ensuring account managers have real-time access to project updates and supply chain data.
• Automate personalised communications such as order confirmations, project updates, or product recommendations tailored to each client's needs.

Example: A CRM system can automatically send clients notifications when their custom order enters each production stage, informing them of progress without manual intervention.

3. Implement AI-powered chatbots for routine queries

• Deploy AI-driven chatbots on your website or customer portals to address FAQs such as lead times, pricing, and troubleshooting.
• Program chatbots to escalate more complex or high-value issues to human agents with a detailed context summary, reducing resolution times.
• Use natural language processing (NLP) capabilities to make interactions intuitive and more empathetic. This will ensure that clients feel heard and understood while escalating complaints to real operators.

Example: A chatbot could guide clients through uploading CAD files for a new project, providing step-by-step assistance and confirming successful submissions.

4. Harness data analytics for proactive support

• Analyse client data to predict needs, such as reordering trends or potential upgrades.
• Use predictive analytics to flag and address potential issues like delayed shipments before they impact clients.

Example: Analytics could identify a recurring component order pattern, prompting pre-emptive restocking recommendations for clients.

5. Establish a knowledge base

HubSpot's Knowledge Base feature is a powerful tool for managing and distributing technical documentation:

• Create and organise help articles, tutorials, and technical documents into categories and subcategories
• Tag articles with relevant search terms to improve discoverability.
• Use AI to identify opportunities for creating new articles, ensuring your documentation stays up-to-date.

This allows OEM clients to access technical documentation easily through self-service, reducing the need for direct support and freeing up your team's time for more complex issues.

6. Establish a customer portal

The HubSpot Customer Portal feature enhances transparency and accessibility:

• Connect the portal directly to HubSpot's shared inbox for omnichannel conversations.
• Link the customer portal to your knowledge base, allowing clients to access technical documentation seamlessly.
• Customise the portal to match your branding without requiring coding skills.

This gives OEM clients a centralised location to access all relevant technical documentation and support resources.

7. Reporting and analytics

HubSpot's reporting tools provide insights into how OEM clients interact with your technical documentation:

• Track which documents are viewed most frequently.
• Analyse customer feedback to identify areas where documentation can be improved.
• Monitor customer service metrics to ensure timely and practical support.

These insights help refine and improve your technical documentation and distribution processes.

Sharing technical information with clients

Instead of creating separate, tailored technical documents for each job role from scratch, your team can work with AI to help build and distribute materials to the right audience in the most efficient way:

Create a master technical document

In tandem with engineering and commercial teams, create a template for each service offering:

• Detailed technical specifications
• Cost implications and efficiencies
• Quality certifications and capabilities
• Production capacity and lead times
• Case studies and success metrics

Develop audience-specific templates

Using AI tools, you can transform this detail into product information designed for different stakeholders:

• For engineers: Focus on technical specifications, tolerances, and material capabilities
• For procurement: Highlight capacity, lead times, and cost efficiencies
• For quality teams: Emphasise certifications, inspection capabilities, and quality metrics
• For executive teams: Showcase ROI, strategic benefits, and competitive advantages

Real-world example: Speaking to different audiences

Let's say you're introducing a new advanced welding capability. Here's how the same information could be presented to different audiences:

• Engineers: "Our robotic welding system achieves penetration depths of up to 12mm with ±0.1mm repeatability, suitable for high-strength steels and aluminium."
• Procurement: "The automated system reduces labour costs by 40% and material waste by 25%, supporting batch sizes from 50 to 5,000 units."
• Quality assurance: "It offers 100% AI-powered weld inspection, real-time defect detection, and ISO 3834 compliance."
• Executives: "This technology reduces production costs by 35%, increases throughput by 60%, and accelerates product launches by 40%."

With different kinds of technical documentation stored for distribution via your knowledge base and service workflows - you can be sure the right people are constantly being served the most relevant content.

To read more about how extraordinary account experiences can change the nature of your client relationships - read our blog: Account Based Experience: Giving your ABM strategy the 'X Factor'

Conclusion: Closing the communication gap

Contract manufacturers can bridge the technical translation gap by aligning teams, automating processes, and tailoring communication. This improves customer experiences and can drive retention, revenue growth, and long-term success.