Aug. 18, 2025
In B2B marketing textbooks, steel is a textbook example of a commodity. There’s not much positioning you can do, it seems. I had a sceptical client recently commenting in our positioning session: “This all sounds nice, but when I buy steel, I don’t care about their positioning - it’s the only price that matters”. Even Porter saw chances of steel differentiation as quite limited: “In steel, a firm’s process technology is the single greatest factor in competitive advantage”.
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I found it curious to do a bit of research and learn how steel companies position themselves in real life. What I discovered is a highly dynamic, competitive industry where cost and technology matters, sure, but there are plenty of other challenges and beautiful ways of answering them with the help of positioning.
To prove my point I will show you some examples of steel companies talking about themselves both on their websites and here, on LinkedIn. But before jumping there - how much do you know about how the steel industry is doing these days?
European and American manufacturers were already struggling for some years with the increasing dependency from steel made in China. The big item on the agenda is to bring steel manufacturing home. As one recent press coverage piece in the UK tells: 'Sourcing steel from anywhere else but our own market would be a failure and a kick in the teeth for our world-class steel producers.'
The UK might not care about European regulations anymore, but the rest of the region has some serious challenges coming from European zero emissions initiatives. Steel manufacturing is one of the most emissions intense industry sectors. As one industry analyst says: “For the steel sector, Europe's resolution is nothing less than a threat to its very existence. After all, the industry is responsible for around four per cent of all carbon emissions in Europe. If only industrial emissions are considered, the figure is as high as 22 per cent. The goal of zero-emissions cannot be achieved by simply optimising existing production methods because around 60% of European steel is currently produced through the blast furnace route: an efficient, but very carbon-intensive production method.”
Now, being environmentally friendly comes with a price tag, which makes cost differentiation less of an option when competing locally. And competing globally, especially with China with their flexible approach to environmental impact, clearly makes low cost out of question. Ok, savings in transportation time and overall logistical expenses can make quite a difference - but even then time savings and reliability of suppliers is what matters more than the costs themselves.
The third big theme is steel customisation according to client specifications. There are so many ways to use steel these days, that each application has different requirements. Steel is not just a simple metal scrap - and the ability to deliver it based on the client’s needs is a big playground for differentiation.
As this was my Sunday’s research, I’ve allowed myself to roam freely in the world wide web, going through #steel on LinkedIn, some googling and industry reports, focusing on what caught my eye.
How interesting some metal scraps can be? A lot! My first observation was how powerful it can be showing what you can make out of steel. LinkedIn is full of pictures with beautiful architectural and infrastructural projects and it's certainly a point of pride for any company to say “look at this amazing project - our materials were used at building it and let us tell you how great it will impact lives of people who will be using it”.
The steel industry has stories to tell and some of the companies are really good at doing exactly that.
Celsa Steel is the Largest UK steel producer. As it sometimes happens to industry’s giants - they have a completely outdated website. It has all the necessary information, but oh the outdated design…
Their Linkedin profile, however, is a much more interesting place to explore. Its bio claims: “Made in the UK. To build the UK.” Remember, I’ve said localisation is important in steel.
They develop on the message by talking about projects they are providing their steel for, explaining their local and national importance. Besides small case stories, when their representative presents the company, he mentions all the same talking points, which I find simply beautiful.
What’s more, as the biggest market’s player they advocate for the general importance of the steel industry by sharing relevant content from associations and other sources.
What about the environmental impact? They cover that too in one of their posts: “we’re also sourcing up to 80% of our energy consumption from renewable energy sources such as wind farms.”
I’ve really enjoyed the consistency of their Linkedin page and how they show themselves as well, a reliable steel supplier which is contributing to building the UK. That’s quite a statement, but by showcasing their participation in core national infrastructure’s projects they are able to prove their point.
It sure would be interesting to see what part of their contracts come from the government - usually companies busy with winning public tenders care less about using their website as a sales tool and this might be the case with Celsa Steel UK.
Erasteel is part of French Eramet group, claiming that it is your best partner in PM high-speed steels and recycling. One of their core strength seems to be highly innovative products, developed in their laboratory in Sweden.
They say what makes them different is their expertise and a slogan “Make it happen with steel” suppose that whatever you want to make out of steel they can help you by providing proper materials. Want to know more? There’s a slightly old school video for that which does quite a good job by guiding the viewer through their main differentiation points:
Linkedin is still in the experimentation stage, but they are seemingly finding the direction. I like explanations of application of their production (like for making coins) - it is interesting to read. Or when celebrating their 50th bday last year they’ve told a story of how their innovations are connected with the first human landing on the moon. And landing on the moon is never boring!
If I would be able to understand the technicalities of their products, I might be more impressed - now I’m just left with the feeling that their expertise and ability to innovate makes them different. They say so, at least.
Moving over the seas to the USA, Nucor. Capslock takes the stage, as well as the focus on size and power. No joke. What they say about themselves is: “POWERFUL PARTNERSHIPS. POWERFUL RESULTS. Together, we’re building something bigger.”
But hey, they prove the point, by explaining it: “Powerful results start when we listen to our customers, leverage our collective strengths and deliver unparalleled value. Nucor customers can count on us to deliver, every ton of the way.
I especially like the “every ton of the way” bit, not any company can use tons as a measure for being detail-oriented :)
Language of advertising is rare in B2B, but oh America, don’t they have it covered, saying “this isn’t just a story about making steel”. And the soundtrack!
How can anyone say that steel is just steel after this?
Now, their LinkedIn focuses more on CSR and general reputation building. Which, to be honest, I love as an approach. And it supports their positioning. For example, there are regular posts showing internal teamwork and its results, which is another way to prove focus on partnerships.
Same for corporate news: Nucor’s CFO Jim Frias told the Wall Street Journal, “We’ve seen tough times before,” as he expressed confidence that Nucor would continue to be a strong partner despite the economic challenges we're facing.
ArcelorMittal is the biggest global crude steel producer and I just love how beautiful their corporate homepage is (open it, really)! Would you tell it belongs to a B2B company? Even more, one that makes steel? It’s amazing.
Contact us to discuss your requirements of Hot Selling Steel. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.
And they don’t think it’s enough just to produce steel. What they say about themselves is “Inventing smarter steels for a better world”. One, they don’t see themselves as just another manufacturer, no, they are inventors. Two, their steels are smarter than those of competitors. Third, they are serious about their impact and if a world gets better thanks to their production. Not bad, huh?
While other industry players talk that lowering their environmental impact is expensive and challenging, ArcelorMittal Europe says they “set out path to net zero by , with pioneering technologies at the forefront of the company’s roadmap for carbon-neutral steelmaking”. Focus on the future is also communicated by their podcast “Future of construction”
Their Linkedin is not that fun, though some posts are really nice in between the corporate news.
My eyes go straight back to their website. Apparently they’ve just recently launched it - and oh, it’s beautiful. For example, one of the case studies is called “Bridges that never need painting”, isn’t that sweet?
Strenx is not the company, it’s a brand by SSAB. But while the parent company is faceless and a bit dull, I’ve noticed Strenx promoted post on my Linkedin feed and in a way, it became an inspiration for this whole article.
The landing page, especially after spending some time with ArcelorMittal is a bit sad, but what they do nice is words. Strenx comes from strength and that’s a wordplay to be jealous of. “Become stronger and more successful with Strenx steel products. My Inner Strenx is a program for manufacturers who possess the drive to make the best possible products using Strenx performance steel. It’s also a way for operators and end-users to identify producers and products made with superior steel and quality-controlled production techniques for their demanding applications.”
So you can buy the cheapest steal, but if you want to be strong and successful, buy Strenx. Wouldn’t feel surprised to see a muscular guy on a TV screen advertising steel as some food supplements or other magic consumer product.
In one of the books I’ve been recently reading (Seeing around the corners by Rita McGrath), there was a story about how Klöckner was reinvented as a company. In Gisbert Rühl became the chairman and the CEO of the company and took up a job to bring the company back on track. All the internal innovation programmes weren’t successful, so what he did was opening a separate company in Berlin, staffing it with ex-startup'ers and giving it resources to come up with new ways of playing with steel. As a result, they've managed to digitalise all their interactions with partners, customers and so on.
Open their website and you’ll see that they are not even talking about steel. It’s about connection, digital solutions, online shop and being always available.
Not at all! Sure, I left Asian producers out of the picture, but only because they usually don’t give many inspirations for positioning.
Now these six examples each shows a different approach to building a brand promise and delivering on reasons to believe. Maybe there already is a company that positions themselves as the greenest steel producer - I believe it should exist somewhere in Scandinavia.
Without having much of a technical background it’s hard to evaluate how different are the actual products, but most of the stories and especially well-developed cases give even me a good understanding of what they are talking about. Those bridges that don’t need to be painted again? I will remember the story and if I ever happen to be building a bridge, it will be on my mind. Repainting the whole bridge sounds like a lot of trouble.
Sure it’s not all words and pictures. These companies are big and haven’t started the game just yesterday. They have capacities, experience, but they are also clear about the value they create.
For those who expect Cannes Lions level of creativity and implementation, my enthusiasm might sound strange. But when I make similar overviews for my clients, the goal is never to show "look, how bad they are doing", it's to discover good practices and points of inspiration. These companies are nothing like fancy startups, their legacy can be well illustrated by this video I found on youtube. That they have quite nice websites and try to care about the environment, that's already something. Else will come.
So just to sum it up. If positioning helps to sell steel, it will definitely help to sell your products or services. No excuses here to focus on offering the lowest price. No no.
The steel industry has long been a vital component of various sectors, including construction, manufacturing, and infrastructure development. As with any industrial process, the production of steel generates a significant amount of waste material known as steel scrap. While some may consider this scrap as waste, it actually holds substantial value that can be harnessed to maximize profit and benefit the bottom line of businesses.
In today’s competitive business environment, it is essential to find ways to increase profitability. Selling your steel scrap is one often overlooked way to boost your bottom line. This not only helps to clear out excess inventory and free up valuable storage space, but it can also generate significant revenue. Selling your steel scrap allows you to capitalize on the growing demand for sustainable materials, while also contributing to a more environmentally friendly future.
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Steel scrap, a by-product of various industrial processes such as manufacturing and construction, is valuable because it can be recycled and reused in the steel industry. This type of scrap consists of discarded or surplus steel materials, such as steel beams, pipes, sheets, and wires. The value of steel scrap is determined by factors such as its quality, quantity, and market demand.
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The prices of steel scrap are significantly influenced by the following factors:
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It is important to consider various factors when looking for buyers, such as:
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