When was the last time that you had a social selling eye exam? Have your shots been slightly off mark lately? Perhaps it's time to refocus your efforts.
Selling socially can be a hectic process, especially for those just starting. Everyone has to start at the beginning, and many of today's social selling experts learned to focus their efforts after plenty of trial and error.
These social selling gurus have spent countless hours honing their skills, focusing on a specific part of the sales cycle and perfecting their strategies. While you'll still need to develop a holistic social selling strategy, these stories can help identify certain areas for greater focus.
Focus on Pipeline Progression
It's easy to focus only on the number of sales you are making, which is after all the end goal. However, there are several key metrics that contribute to overall success. Chief social selling evangelist Jill Rowley argues that a more thorough analysis is required.
Here are examples of additional metrics to track that can directly impact your pipeline.
- Quality of leads
- Connections, Number of connections within target companies
- Current social activity
- Referrals/recommendations
If only there was a tool to track these types of metrics in a professional, sales-driven setting...
Focus on the Earliest Possible Engagement
Speaking of pipelines - there are some social selling experts who argue that focus should be placed more toward the front of the pipeline, where the initial engagements take place. HubSpot's Matt McDarby offers this tip for social managers looking to refocus their team's energies.
Focusing on the early stages of the sales cycle requires extensive research into prospect behaviors. If salespersons spend enough time observing prospects and identifying their buying signals, they will be more prepared for those first engagement stages. Some frequent buying signals include:
- Questions about industry-related topics
- Critiques of a competitor's solution
- Job changes
Of course, it can be challenging to follow all this information manually. Perhaps there is a tool to automate and deliver targeted content about your prospects on a regular basis...
Focus on Social Proof
Testimonials, recommendations, case studies and referrals - these all provide insight into your target prospect and company. Professional sales consultant Colleen Francis argues that salespersons should focus primarily on these signals to guide their strategy.
How do you know that you (or your prospect) hold significant social proof on LinkedIn? Look for these signals:
- Multiple endorsements for a variety of skills
- Several positive endorsements of the product/services themselves
- Connections at industry-relevant companies and competitors
Some of this data is readily available on LinkedIn profiles, but it would likely take a lot of time to search through them all. There is another way, though...
DON'T Focus on the Status Quo
Okay, so you've built a strong social selling strategy and you've found success in your early trials. Great! Don't stop there. Even if you found an answer for your client, you'll need to be prepared for follow-ups and new opportunities as the sales relationship develops. Introhive's Rob Begg offers some advice for social sellers - keep going!