Social media is many things. It’s a fantastic business building tool. It’s a great networking and learning tool. And when used correctly it can be a good selling tool. Here’s how to sell with social media.
#1 Use social media to build a brand. Social media is an excellent brand building tool. Brands are important because they help a prospect create an identity for you. When you have a strong brand identity your prospects will think of you first when they have a need. Building a brand with social media takes time. It takes creating a plan, a message, and a brand image. Decide what image or brand you want to communicate and then create a plan to make it happen. This plan will likely include interacting online. In addition to posting messages on social media sites, and creating a profile that represents your brand, you will interact in a manner that is consistent with your message.
#2 Use social media to enhance likeability. For many businesses their brand is their personality and this is easy to communicate via social media. We buy from people we like and from people we connect with. Social media is a fantastic way to express who you are and what you’re about so you can effectively communicate your personality. Be friendly, be funny, be informative, be who you are and your audience will connect with you and ultimately buy from you.
#3 Use social media to quietly, subtly promote your products or services. You have to be careful with social media. People join social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to interact, not to shop. They do not like nor do they respond to blatant sales messages. You can occasionally post a promotion or a new product on social media sites. The best results tend to come from promotions that are specific to your connections on that site. For example, “Facebook Friends 20% off Promotion.” However, it’s also important to test and track promotion tactics to determine what your audience responds to. Take great care when using social media to provide valuable information and interaction or you’ll turn off prospects.
#4 Advertise. Many social media sites now offer highly targeted advertising options. Like any marketing tactic, it pays to invest wisely, test and track for optimal return on investment. However, business owners are finding success using social media advertising options.
#5 Integrate your social media interactions into your business website. It’s about creating a community. Once you have a group of people who follow you, trust your authority and credibility, and like you, then selling via social media is easy. The key to using social media to sell is to use it as a tool to build your relationship with your prospect. Using it as a medium to deliver a sales message generally doesn’t work. Fit the message to the medium and use social media to build awareness, traffic, liking, brand, and your community. Selling will come naturally and the potential for profit is huge.
Your relationship with your client is one of both necessity and pleasure. You need clients to stay in business. And hopefully, you enjoy connecting with your clients. To build a good rapport and maintain trust, it takes a plan and ongoing strategies for success. Here are a few ideas you can use to build and maintain a positive relationship with your clients.
#1 Communicate with them often. Now maybe you already do this. Maybe your customers receive regular emails from you. However, what you say in these emails is important. If each and every email you send is a promotion or asking for a sale then they’re going to stop reading your emails pretty darn quickly. They’re going to lose trust in you.
On the other hand, if your email communications are chock full of valuable information, value, and benefit then you’re building trust. Customers will look forward to our information.
The same goes for social networking. You can communicate with your customers on a regular basis. Instead of posting promo link after promo link, post real, human interactions.
#2 Prove you’re worth trusting. If you are a service provider then it’s imperative to post samples of your work on your website. And if you’re a service provider, retailer or even an information marketer or affiliate marketer you can provide case studies to demonstrate the value of your products or services. This provides credibility and it makes it easier to trust you as a provider and business owner.
#3 Give away things for free. Free can be used as a marketing and relationship building tactic on many levels. For new prospects you build trust by providing valuable information and free downloadable information. For current customers, they love freebies too. You can give away reports, videos, and ebooks . You can even take it a step further and give current customers a coupon or freebie.
For example, current customers can be offered a free report as a loyalty thank you. You can even start a loyalty program that awards customers with points or dollars they can use toward future purchases.
#4 Be Transparent. Transparency is a word that’s thrown around a lot lately. It essentially means that you don’t hide any of your polices or procedures. You’re 100% up front about who you are and what you’re about. This may mean making sure you have a double opt in for your email signup, a privacy statement that’s easy to find, contact information and even a FAQ page. Transparency helps customers and clients trust you.
#5 Show gratitude. Depending on the size of your client base and the nature of your business, ending clients and customers a personal message is a great way to build rapport. Send cards and gifts during the holidays if it fits your budget. Or just send a note now and again with some helpful information.
There are many ways to build rapport and trust with your clients. Begin by taking a look at y our clients and what you can do for them. Then set about to create an ongoing plan to connect and build trust. A little planning and action can go a long way to creating a business that is successful today and ten years from now.
Social media is many things. It’s a fantastic business building tool. It’s a great networking and learning tool. And when used correctly it can be a good selling tool. Here’s how to sell with social media.
