If your business is anything like ours, it has forever changed because of the differences we see in our customers and their complex buying behaviors. Customers now arm themselves with more information than ever before to make informed purchasing decisions.
Customers are constantly having conversations with their peers on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to learn about the successes, challenges, and problems involved with any product or service they might be interested in.
Businesses need to be involved in and around those same conversations to socially surround potential buyers by engaging with them through the sharing of ideas and content that can help them achieve their goals and overcome their problems.
Social selling is a means of building relationships as part of the sales process using one or more social media platforms to engage with prospective customers.
For the most part, social selling takes place via social networks such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest, but can also occur on other platforms depending on your business's brand identity and customer personas.
Think of social selling as an additional "layer" on top of your existing sales process. When done properly, it will help you build a sustainable sales pipeline and keep your business top of mind with your potential customers.
Whether your business is focused on B2B or B2C sales, connecting regularly with your future clients where they "live" in the social media space is an important element of your sales strategy for the following reasons:
Of course, you need to be selective with the platforms you're using and the ways in which you are engaging prospective customers for the best ROI.
The general idea is to choose the sites that your targeted prospects use on a regular basis for business and/or personal interests during the days and times they are most active.
Use your customer personas and business model to understand what forms of social media your targeted audience is using, and the days and times they are using them.
It's important to understand that the research process will take some time and that's okay-- it's critical to get these aspects of the process right before moving forward. Ask yourself the 5 "W" questions to best uncover this information:
Once you have a good idea of the platforms you want to be involved with, and at what times, it's time to make sure your sales and marketing departments are aligned. If you're wondering if your sales and marketing teams are aligned or what that means, STOP! Go back and click the link.
Alignment between sales and marketing is essential to your company's overall ability to attract and covert sales leads — not just on social media.
Your sales Pros are on the frontline of your business. They’re out in the field or on the phone, talking with buyers everyday, and hearing firsthand what buyers are looking for. By involving them, your content will be more relevant and valuable to your audience.
You're almost ready to put your business out there and start practicing social selling.
In our next blog installment on this topic, we’ll share the process and several best practices that will help you execute your social selling strategy with excellence!