Have you ever popped open the hood of your car and wondered what the heck is going on under there? It’s a jumbled-up mess of hoses, wires, metal and funky black stuff that, for most people, is pretty confusing. Social Media and Social Sales can be just as, if not more confusing. A lot of salespeople take a look and say, “How the heck does all this work together to make something run?”
The principle behind the internal combustion engine is this: If you put a small amount of high-energy fuel in a small, enclosed space and ignite it, an incredible amount of energy is released.
The principle behind Social Sales is similar: create a spark in yourself and your sales team. Add fuel by providing helpful information and expertise. Then compress it in a trusted network to drive traffic, leads and sales.
Get your Social Sales motor running with these 3 components:
1. Spark
Is there a spark in your sales’ teams engine? The spark they need is motivation and inspiration. Allow them to leverage their individual expertise by creating a presence for themselves on Social Media.
- Identify social channels where ideal customers spend their time.
- Educate your salespeople how to create a memorable online presence.
- Inspire them to become good listeners.
- Help them brand themselves on social channels so they know why people buy from them.
- Encourage them to be the first one in the relationship to provide value.
2. Fuel
Highly relevant content that illustrates the right message is what fuels Social Sales. Your business and your team gain search visibility and influence while creating a lasting impression in the buyers’ mind. Content on your blog that’s published on Social Media channels ignites the Social Sales engine:
- Everyday stories illustrating your customer’s experience and how you helped them
- Topics that educate and inform your customer during their shopping process
- Customer testimonials
- Product Information
- Industry news
3. Compression
With your spark and fuel ready to go, you can create a cycle that allows you to set off “sales explosions” many times per day, and if you can harness that energy in a useful way, what you have is the core of Social Sales!
- Take 30 minutes per day (minimum) interacting with your network.
- Join Groups on LinkedIn where your customers spend time and start solving, not selling.
- Tweet useful content at least 6 times per day and network with those who retweet you or comment.
- Twitter prospecting – follow hashtags and/or conversations in your geographical area and see where you can help.
- Share your relevant content on Facebook. Listen for opportunities to network, provide value and generate leads.
Social Sales can be as confusing and frustrating as working on a high-performance engine. But it’s not getting any easier, folks. Dive in now, get yourself familiar with the Social web and networking. You’ll be that much farther than the other guy and you might just leave him in the dust.