Social selling has changed the way that sales world advertises, gets new leads, corresponds with potential and current customers, and many other things. Although social selling is a relatively new way to sell, it has changed significantly throughout its short lifespan. When social media was first by companies, there was a large push for everyone to get on board. Now that almost a decade has gone by, however, some things have stayed the same, and some things have changed a lot.
In this expert sales interview on social selling, Eve Mayer and John Golden discuss:
- How to pick the best social media platform(s) for your company
- Using your goals to direct your social selling
- Generational differences in the social selling world
Pick your Platform:
Part of understanding social selling is understanding the different social media platforms available, and how to use them to their fullest potential while also understanding the possible limitations. For example, if you are trying to market to teenagers, time spent on LinkedIn probably won’t get you towards your goal. Additionally, a company doesn’t need to be on every single social media platform in order to reach their goals. If an organization chooses to be on a wide variety of platforms, there’s a good chance that many of them won’t yield exciting results. Pick the best social media platform that most closely aligns with your target market and your goals for using social media. Also, understand that social media has limitations. A large follower count on Instagram doesn’t always translate into more sales. Another limitation that often frustrates companies is the difficulties measuring the success of social media.
Know your Goals:
While it’s important to understand the platforms you are using, it’s also important to understand what your goals for social selling are. “Very few business goals are going to accomplished by sheer will of having more followers on Facebook,” said Mayer. “You have to enter the process with specific business goals when engaging with social media.” If social media managers are kept in the dark about the ultimate goals of the company, they cannot use social media effectively to move towards that goal. Superiors and upper-level management can assist by helping the social media staff understand the company’s goals.
Generational Social Selling:
Social selling and managing social media does not necessarily mean simply hiring a millennial to do the job. In Mayer’s experience, millennials are often loyal and hard-working, but they have a different set of expectations from their leaders. If you are transparent with millennials and treat them fairly, then you’ll get a much different result. However, it is more about the person than about their generation. “If someone doesn’t have the company image down then they can’t do it. Just knowing the social media side is not enough.” When passing your social media on, it doesn’t matter the age, it matters the ability of the person to present your company on those platforms. Social media is really important, you take an invitation to be on television as really important, and you’d put a PR person or someone else knowledgeable to go and talk about your company. If you’re on the phone, you’d only use a competent, responsible person to represent your company. It’s the same thing with social media. You want to pick someone who is educated and trustworthy to representing your brand.
Learn more tips on social selling from this expert.
About Our Host
John is the Amazon bestselling author of Winning the Battle for Sales: Lessons on Closing Every Deal from the World’s Greatest Military Victories and Social Upheaval: How to Win at Social Selling. A globally acknowledged Sales & Marketing thought leader, speaker, and strategist. He is CSMO at Pipeliner CRM. In his spare time, John is an avid Martial Artist.
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