How to sell to Founders at Manufacturing companies
Founders in manufacturing are primarily measured on operational efficiency, specifically reducing production costs while maintaining quality. They respond to outreach that demonstrates a clear understanding of their unique challenges, such as supply chain disruptions or workforce management issues, and offers actionable solutions that can streamline their operations.
Written and maintained by the SoloRiff team, who build outbound software and run outbound with it. The figures below are our own: we measured 552 manufacturing company domains over public DNS on 2026-09-03. Last updated 2026-09-03.
What actually hurts
- supply chain disruptions
- equipment maintenance costs
- labor shortages
- regulatory compliance issues
The playbook
- 01
Identify recent funding rounds
Use platforms like Crunchbase to filter for manufacturing companies that have recently secured funding. These founders are often looking to invest in innovative solutions to scale their operations more efficiently, making them more receptive to outreach.
- 02
Analyze production challenges
Research common pain points in the manufacturing sector, such as equipment downtime or labor shortages. Tailor your message to address these specific issues, showcasing how your solution can alleviate these challenges effectively.
- 03
Leverage industry-specific events
Look for upcoming manufacturing trade shows or conferences where founders might be attending. Mention these events in your outreach as a conversation starter, indicating your awareness of their industry landscape.
- 04
Acknowledge the competitive landscape
In your communication, reference the pressures of competition in the manufacturing sector, such as rising costs or technological advancements. This demonstrates an understanding of their environment and positions your solution as a necessary advantage.
- 05
Suggest a time-sensitive opportunity
Propose a brief call within the next week to discuss how your solution can help them capitalize on current market trends. Founders are often driven by timely opportunities, so creating urgency can increase your chances of securing a meeting.
Can manufacturing companies even receive your mail?
We measured the DNS of 552 manufacturing companies, sampled evenly across company sizes, to see how many authenticate their own email. It matters in both directions: a domain that does not authenticate is a domain whose team is used to mail going missing — and if your own domain is in the gap, yours is the mail going missing.
Publishes a DMARC policy of quarantine or reject — the domain actually asks receivers to act on failures.
The gap is the finding: 24.3% of 1–10-person companies against 83.1% of the largest — 59 points apart. Small companies are where the unauthenticated domains are, and small companies are who most cold outreach is aimed at.
Where does your domain sit?
Same three lookups, run live against your domain. Nothing is stored and nothing is emailed to you.
How this was measured
Company domains were sampled within employee-count bands, then queried over public DNS for SPF (TXT at the apex), DMARC (TXT at _dmarc.) and MX. One domain per company, deduplicated. Anyone can reproduce any single row of this with dig.
DKIM is deliberately absent. A DKIM key lives under a selector that cannot be enumerated from outside the domain, so a company with flawless DKIM under a name we did not guess would be counted as having none. That would measure our guess list, not the industry.
Domains with no MX record are excluded rather than counted as failures — parked and redirect-only domains would otherwise drag every figure down and make the result an artefact of the sample.
Sampled within bands, so this describes the population of companies, not of employees: a 10-person company counts once, as does a 10,000-person one. Each band is at least 60 domains; bands below that are not published. Figures are percentages of the sample, not of the whole industry, and we publish no company names — only counts.
Measured 2026-09-03. Re-measured monthly.
The full census across every industry — sortable, with sample sizes, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0.
Subject lines that fit
- Streamline your production costs
- Tackle supply chain challenges
- Boost efficiency in manufacturing
Questions
- Why do founders in manufacturing ignore outreach about software solutions?
- Founders often prioritize immediate operational concerns over software solutions, perceiving them as non-essential. They may also be overwhelmed by generic messaging that doesn't address their specific pain points, leading to a lack of engagement with outreach.
- What messaging resonates with manufacturing founders?
- Messaging that emphasizes cost reduction, efficiency improvements, and tangible ROI tends to resonate with manufacturing founders. They appreciate insights that directly relate to their daily challenges, such as labor management or equipment efficiency.
- How can I get the attention of a manufacturing founder?
- To capture a manufacturing founder's attention, focus on industry-specific insights and case studies that highlight successful outcomes. Personalizing your outreach to reflect an understanding of their unique challenges can significantly increase your chances of engagement.
- What factors influence a manufacturing founder's decision-making?
- Manufacturing founders are influenced by factors such as cost efficiency, production quality, and regulatory compliance. They seek solutions that not only address these factors but also enhance their competitive edge in a rapidly evolving market.
Or have it run itself
SoloRiff does every step above on its own — finds the companies, finds the people, writes each of them individually, and handles the replies. Drop your URL and watch it work before you sign up for anything.
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