Don't miss these signals
During a physical sales conversation, your conversation partner is constantly giving off signals , for example by leaning forward or looking away. An experienced sales professional reads this behavior and plays on it. On social media, we are not yet trained to pick up on these signals.
For many, social selling only starts when more information is specifically requested in the comments or via a private message. That is a missed opportunity. Because even less clear signals such as likes and mentions (@jan, something for us?) under messages appear to be very valuable indicators for social sellers.
Play it smart by asking if you can do something for that person. Do this via a private message because your competitor might be reading along and you want to prevent them from running away with your valuable social lead .
The path of gradualness
Social selling is not a fast track to success. We all know social sellers who only want to connect with you to make an offer right away. I personally throw them out of my contact list right away. Social selling works best along the path of gradualness. For example, look up connections from the past, such as former colleagues or fellow students.
A good moment to come into the picture with existing contacts is a change in the work area. Anyone phone number library who starts with a new employer or gets a new role, then relatively often examines the existing supplier network. A friendly congratulations, followed by the question whether you can do something for your contact, can be the start of something nice in the work area.
Did your client score a job? Congratulate them. Help your clients, where possible. Share their vacancies ( #Hiring ) and dare-to-ask posts. Successful social sellers 'give' a lot to their network to build up credit for the few times they come 'to get' something.
The fact that past relationships are an important starting point for successful social selling does not mean that you should not expand your network with new contacts now. Send out personalized connection requests on a regular basis, for example after someone has shared an interesting message on their timeline or you both participated in an online webinar.
Find and find your own voice as a social seller
There is no single successful social selling approach. Try things out and develop your own best practice . Does LinkedIn work for you or do you work on Instagram? Share posts from your company and the market, or create your own content. Find new ways to be successful, in the way that works for you. Have you perfected your social selling approach yet ? Let us know what works for you.