On this page
- The short answer
- Why subcontract manufacturing needs a different approach
- Google, LinkedIn and retargeting each have one job
- Advertise capability, not "quality engineering"
- Track every RFQ to quote and order
- Common mistakes subcontract manufacturers make with ads
- Related industrial work
- What it costs, and the DIY option
- Frequently asked questions
- Read next
The short answer
CNC and precision engineering companies generate more qualified RFQs by advertising exactly what they're set up to make, to the buyers who need it. Use Google to catch engineers and buyers searching for a process, material or part, and LinkedIn to put your capability in front of procurement and engineering buyers at the OEMs and sectors you supply. Lead with your machines, tolerances, materials, approvals and lead times rather than "quality engineering", send every click to a page with a quick way to send a drawing, and track each RFQ through to quote and order in your CRM.
- Decide which work you want more of: the processes, materials, batch sizes and sectors where you have capacity and make money.
- Use Google for buyers searching now, one campaign per process, with negative keywords from day one.
- Use LinkedIn to reach the OEMs you want: a list of target companies and the job titles who raise RFQs.
- Advertise capability, not adjectives: machines, tolerances, materials, approvals and lead times.
- Track every RFQ to quote and order in your CRM, so you know which ads bring in work worth quoting.
We don't have a CNC client case yet. Our closest industrial work: a machinery manufacturer whose cost per lead fell from £300+ to £55, and an industrial product company whose enquiries went from 4 a month to 7 a week. See both.
Most subcontract manufacturers I speak to have the same story. A handful of big accounts keep the machines running. New customers arrive through a referral, a trade show or a buyer who moved jobs and brought you with them.
That's a solid business until one of those accounts moves a programme, cuts volumes or takes work in-house. Then there's spare capacity on the floor and nothing in the pipeline to fill it. And when a new buyer does look you up, your website says what every other machine shop's website says: quality, experience, competitive prices.
Ads can fix this, but only if they do what a good estimator does: say exactly what you can make, and make it easy for the right buyer to send a drawing.
01Why subcontract manufacturing needs a different approach
CNC subcontractors, precision machinists, sheet metal fabricators, electronics manufacturers, injection moulders and contract manufacturers all sell into the same kind of market:
Your best customers already know you
Most of the work comes from a handful of existing accounts and the odd referral. That's fine until one of them moves a programme, cuts volumes or brings work in-house, and there's nothing behind it.
Buyers shortlist on capability
An engineer with a drawing needs someone who can make this part, in this material, to this tolerance, by this date. If your website and ads don't say that, you're not on the list.
Spare capacity costs you every hour
An idle spindle or a quiet line still costs rent, finance and wages. The work you want is out there. The buyers who have it just don't know you have the capacity.
Not every RFQ is worth quoting
Estimating takes time. One-off hobby jobs, the wrong material or a part you can't hold to tolerance cost you hours and win nothing. More RFQs only helps if they're the right ones.
Put those together and the job of your ads is clear. Not more enquiries. More RFQs for work you're set up to make, from buyers whose next drawing could become a repeat order.
02Google, LinkedIn and retargeting each have one job
- Who it reaches
- Engineers and buyers searching for a process, material, part or approval
- Judge it on
- Qualified RFQs per search theme
- Who it reaches
- Procurement, supply chain and engineering buyers at the OEMs and sectors you supply
- Judge it on
- RFQs from target accounts, quotes and orders
- Who it reaches
- Engineers and buyers who visited your capability pages, on LinkedIn and Meta
- Judge it on
- Return visits that become RFQs
Google: catch the RFQs being searched for
Engineers and buyers with a part to place often search for the process, the material or the approval they need. Those searches look something like this:
- 5 axis CNC machining UK
- precision machining AS9100
- subcontract sheet metal fabrication
- low volume PCB assembly UK
- small batch injection moulding
- CNC turning stainless steel
Example searches written for this guide.
Give each process its own campaign and its own page: 5-axis milling, turning, fabrication, PCB assembly, moulding. Send each search to the page that matches it, with your machines, materials, tolerances, batch sizes, approvals and a drawing upload. Not the homepage.
Then block the junk. Engineering terms attract hobbyists looking for a machine for the garage, students and apprentices, people hunting for used machines and DIY projects. Our free negative keyword list for manufacturing and engineering covers them. Check the search terms report every week anyway.
LinkedIn: get on the shortlist at the OEMs you want
Most of the buyers you want aren't searching today. They have suppliers. LinkedIn lets you get known by them before their next drawing lands, so you're the name that comes up when the current supplier is late or full.
- Build a list of target companies. The OEMs and tier suppliers in the sectors you serve: aerospace, automotive, medical, defence, energy, food machinery, whatever fits your approvals. Use company size and industry if you don't have a list yet.
- Pick the job titles who raise RFQs: buyers, procurement and supply chain managers, purchasing managers, design and manufacturing engineers.
- Set the location to where you can realistically deliver and support.
- Don't stack seniority, job function or skills on top. Titles at the right companies are cleaner than LinkedIn's broad "Engineering" function.
- Turn LinkedIn Audience Expansion off, so your budget stays on the companies you chose.
Our LinkedIn Ads guide for engineering and industrial firms covers targeting, message and measurement in more depth, and the specialist industrial products playbook shows how to replace trade show dependence. For what UK LinkedIn clicks and leads typically cost, see our UK LinkedIn Ads benchmarks.
Retargeting: stay in front until the next project
An engineer who looked at your 5-axis page in March might not have a part for you until September. Retargeting on LinkedIn and Meta keeps your machines, parts and approvals in front of everyone who visited, so you're remembered when the drawing arrives. On Meta, set it to optimise for a tested website conversion, such as an RFQ, not traffic.
03Advertise capability, not "quality engineering"
A buyer with a drawing is asking one question: can you make this, to spec, on time? Most subcontractor ads don't answer it. Compare these:
Quality precision engineering since 1985. Experienced team, competitive prices and fast turnaround. Contact us for a quote.
500 off in 316 stainless, turned to ±0.01 mm? Our twin-spindle lathes have capacity from next month. Send your drawing and we'll quote within two working days.
Example ads written for this guide.
Ad B tells the buyer the material, the tolerance, the batch size, the machine and when you can start. That's what gets you shortlisted. Put the same detail on your capability pages, in a format a buyer can scan in ten seconds:
"High-quality precision engineering with state-of-the-art machinery and a commitment to customer service."
- Machines
- 5-axis machining centres and twin-spindle CNC lathes
- Materials
- Aluminium, stainless steel, titanium and engineering plastics
- Tolerances
- To ±0.01 mm on production parts
- Batch sizes
- Prototype to 5,000 off
- Lead time
- First article in 10 working days
- Approvals
- ISO 9001 and AS9100
Example capability spec written for this guide. Use your own machines, tolerances, approvals and lead times.
Show real parts and real machines from your own floor. Close-ups of finished parts, the inspection room, a CMM report, a time-lapse of a job running. Technical buyers trust what they can see. Then match each type of work to the person who raises the RFQ and what they need to see first:
| Type of supplier | Who raises the RFQ | What they need to see | An offer that fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| CNC subcontract machining | Buyer or design engineer at an OEM | Machines, materials, tolerances and inspection kit | Upload a drawing for a quote |
| Precision machining for aerospace or medical | Supplier quality and procurement | Approvals, traceability and first article inspection | Capability pack with approvals and sample inspection reports |
| Sheet metal fabrication | Production engineer or buyer | Sheet sizes, thicknesses, finishing and assembly | Design-for-manufacture check on their drawing |
| Electronics manufacturing and PCB assembly | Hardware engineer or supply chain manager | Volumes, component sourcing and test | Design review of their board before quoting |
| Injection moulding | Product engineer or buyer | Tool making, press sizes and materials | Tooling cost and lead time estimate |
| Contract manufacturing of assemblies | Operations or supply chain director | Capacity, quality system and the risk of switching | Transfer plan for one product line |
Table written for this guide as a starting point. Replace it with what your best customers asked about before they placed their first order.
04Track every RFQ to quote and order
An RFQ isn't an order. If your reporting stops at enquiries, you'll reward the campaign that brings in the most drawings, which is rarely the one that brings in the best work. Here's what complete tracking looks like:
- Ad click
- Capability page
- RFQ with drawing
- RFQ in your CRM, with its source
- Quote
- Order
- Capture the source on every RFQ. The ad platform, campaign and process page should land in your CRM with the contact and the drawing.
- Mark each RFQ as qualified or not. Right process, right material, right volume. Count qualified RFQs, not form fills.
- Record quote value and outcome. Then you can see quoted value and win rate by campaign, not just volume.
- Send quotes and orders back to Google and LinkedIn. Upload them as offline conversions, so the platforms learn which clicks become work.
- Count repeat orders. A new customer's first order is often a trial batch. The value is in what follows.
If GA4 is crediting your best RFQs to "direct", read why LinkedIn conversions show as direct traffic.
05Common mistakes subcontract manufacturers make with ads
"Quality precision engineering" ads
Every competitor says it. Name the machines, materials, tolerances, approvals and lead times instead.
Sending every click to the homepage
Send each search and each ad to the capability page for that process, with a drawing upload.
Making RFQs hard to send
Long forms with no file upload lose buyers. Ask for the drawing, quantity, material and date, and nothing else.
Running Google without negative keywords
You'll pay for hobbyists, students and used-machine hunters. Use our free list for manufacturing and engineering.
Targeting "Manufacturing" on LinkedIn
That filter includes everyone from a one-person workshop to a global OEM. Upload the companies you want.
Leaving LinkedIn Audience Expansion on
It quietly widens your audience beyond the companies and titles you chose. Switch it off.
Counting enquiries instead of orders
Report qualified RFQs, quoted value and orders from your CRM.
Only advertising when the floor is quiet
Buyers place work months after they first see you. Switching ads on when capacity frees up is already too late.
Already running ads that bring in the wrong RFQs? Our ads audit looks at your account and tells you what to fix first.
06Related industrial work
We don't have a CNC or precision engineering client case study yet. These two are the closest work we've done: industrial companies selling technical products to engineering and operations buyers. They show the approach, not a CNC result.
New business depended on expensive trade conferences, and the pipeline between shows was unpredictable. Google Search caught buyers already comparing machines, LinkedIn put the machines and the sales team in front of plant managers and engineering buyers every week, and retargeting brought back visitors who left without enquiring. Read the case study →
Strong SEO and a working sales team, but most visitors left before reaching the enquiry form. We made the form dead simple, cleaned up the page and added retargeting for visitors who looked but didn't enquire. It's the same lesson as the drawing upload: make the next step easy. Read the case study →
Anonymised client engagements. They show what's possible, not a prediction for your business.
07What it costs, and the DIY option
Working with usEvergreen Growth costs from £1,250 a month + VAT to manage one ad platform. Ad spend is separate and paid directly to the platform, from £500 a month per platform. Rolling monthly, 7 days' notice, no setup fee.
The full breakdown is on our pricing page, and what we do is set out on our LinkedIn Ads agency page. Before you spend anything, work out what a typical order and a repeat customer are worth to you. That tells you what you can afford to pay for a qualified RFQ.
Frequently asked questions
How do CNC companies get more RFQs?
Make it obvious what you're set up to make, then put that in front of the buyers who need it. Build a page for each process you want more of, with machines, materials, tolerances, batch sizes, lead times and approvals, plus a quick way to send a drawing. Use Google to catch people searching for that process and LinkedIn to reach procurement and engineering buyers at the OEMs you want to supply. Then track every RFQ to quote and order.
Do Google Ads work for CNC machining and precision engineering?
Yes, for catching buyers who are already searching for a process, material or part. Keep each campaign to one process, send it to the matching capability page, and block hobbyists, students and people looking for machines to buy with negative keywords. The number of searches is limited, so Google catches demand that exists but won't create more.
Are LinkedIn ads worth it for a subcontract manufacturer?
They can be, when you aim them at a list of target companies and the job titles who raise RFQs, rather than everyone in manufacturing. LinkedIn reaches the buyers who aren't searching today but will have a drawing next quarter. We don't have a CNC case study yet. Our closest work is a packaging machinery manufacturer, where Google Search, LinkedIn and Facebook retargeting together took cost per lead from £300+ to £55 and brought in 17 new clients.
What should a CNC company put in its ads?
Capability, not adjectives. Name the machines, the materials, the tolerances you hold, the batch sizes you suit, your lead time and your approvals. Show real parts and real machines from your own floor. If you have spare capacity on a process, say so. "Quality precision engineering" tells a buyer nothing they can shortlist on.
How do I stop Google Ads sending hobbyists and students?
Use negative keywords to block searches for home and hobby machines, courses and apprenticeships, used machines and DIY projects, and check the search terms report every week. We've published a free negative keyword list for manufacturers and engineering firms you can copy straight into Google Ads.
What budget does a CNC or precision engineering company need?
Work it back from what a typical order, and a repeat customer, are worth to you, not from a platform's suggested budget. Ad spend starts from £500 a month per platform, and for LinkedIn we recommend £1,500+ a month of media for a meaningful test. That's a recommendation, not our minimum. Evergreen Growth costs from £1,250 a month + VAT to manage one ad platform. Ad spend is separate and paid directly to the platform, from £500 a month per platform. Rolling monthly, 7 days' notice, no setup fee. So the smallest all-in month with us is about £1,750: the £1,250 fee + VAT plus £500 of ad spend.
How long until ads turn into orders?
Google can produce RFQs quickly, because those buyers are already looking. LinkedIn takes longer, because you're getting known by buyers before their next project. Orders then depend on your quoting cycle, first article approval and the customer's own programme. Judge it over at least a quarter, on quotes and orders, not on the first month's enquiries.
Can I run ads for my engineering company myself?
Yes, if your budget is small and you'd rather learn than hire. The B2B Ads Kickstart is our step-by-step course for running your first LinkedIn or Meta campaign, with an AI coach at each step. Step 1 is free. The full course is £97 (inc. VAT), one-off.
Spare capacity and not enough of the right RFQs?
I'm James Green, founder of Evergreen Growth. On the call we'll look at the work you want more of, the OEMs you want to supply and what an order is worth to you, then tell you whether Google, LinkedIn or both make sense. If there's a fit, you'll get a proposal.