Before you spend a dollar on campaigns, ads, or content, there is one question you need to be able to answer clearly: What makes your firm uniquely you? Three marketing leaders from inside the integration industry share where to start.
According to Control Engineering, total system integration revenue grew nearly 86% between 2021 and 2025. Meanwhile, competition is nationalizing. And buyers are doing their homework long before they ever call you. And yet, many system integrators are still relying almost entirely on relationships and referrals to grow their business.
That approach worked once. It is becoming harder to sustain.
CSIA recently sat down with three marketing leaders from within the integration industry to talk about what it actually takes to build a marketing function that drives growth. Their insights are practical, direct, and grounded in the realities of running an integration firm.
What Is the Difference Between Sales and Marketing?
It is a question worth getting right, because confusing the two leads to underinvesting in both.
Holly Hixson, VP of Marketing at EOSYS, puts it plainly: Marketing is everything that happens before someone becomes a lead. It builds awareness, establishes credibility, and warms a prospect before sales ever enters the conversation. Sales then takes that momentum and converts it into a relationship and ultimately a contract.
Crawford Rogers, Marketing Strategist at Interstates, adds important context: Research shows that B2B buyers are between 57% and 70% through their purchase decision before ever contacting a sales representative. Marketing is what shapes that journey.
Why Integrators Can’t Afford to Skip Marketing
Kimberly Shirk, Marketing Manager at Huffman Engineering, came to the integration industry from broadcast journalism. Her reaction when she saw what engineers and technicians do every day? Why doesn’t anyone know about this?
That question is at the heart of why marketing matters. Your engineers are solving complex, mission-critical problems. If you are not telling that story, someone else is — and they are telling it to your prospects.
Rogers frames the stakes clearly: Regionality used to be a reliable defense. It no longer is. As the industry consolidates and national integrators expand their reach, owning your niche requires more than a good reputation. It requires a deliberate message delivered consistently.
Where to Start
All three speakers converge on the same starting point: clarity before tactics. Know who you are, who you serve, and what makes your firm the right fit. Build your message around that, make sure it shows up consistently everywhere a prospect might encounter you, and then start telling real customer stories.
As Crawford Rogers puts it: One ingredient doesn’t make a meal, and clients buy meals. Are you a steakhouse? Are you a burger joint? Are you a taco place? Figuring out your combination is Step 1 — everything else follows from there.
This series of videos was commissioned by the Best Practices Manual Committee to help educate system integrators and provide resources they need to grow.
Sources
Forrester, Myth Busting 101: Insights Into The B2B Buyer Journey
Control Engineering / Plant Engineering, 2025 System Integrator Giants