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Akron SCORE "Selling with Social Media" Strategic Workshop
The document provides an overview of using social media for sales, covering definitions, major platforms, strategies, and measurement of results. It emphasizes the importance of two-way communication, creating engaging content, and building a community around the brand. Key questions and strategies are outlined to help businesses effectively reach their target audience and achieve their sales goals through social media.
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Akron SCORE "Selling with Social Media" Strategic Workshop
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- 2. What We’ll CoverToday 1. What is Social Media? 2. What are the Main Social Networks in Use? 3. What’s your Social Media Sales Strategy? 4. How can I Sell with Social Media? 5. How do I Measure the Results?
- 3. WHAT IS SOCIALMEDIA?
- 4. How wouldyou define social media in your own words?
- 5. According to Brian Solis, Social Media is: “The DEMOCRATIZATION OF INFORMATION, transforming people from content readers into PUBLISHERS. It is the shift from a broadcast mechanism, one-to-many, to a many-to-many model, rooted in CONVERSATIONS between authors, people, and peers"
- 6. In the past, you pushed your message to a specific audience (i.e. – Advertising, Direct Mail) Super Bowl Ad Introducing Super Bowl Ad Featuring E-Trade - 2010 Macintosh - 1984 Sources: Mac Ad. Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20254513_20009920,00.html E-Trade Ad.
- 7. Not much room for two-way communication ◦ Word-of-Mouth was sought out most (Water-cooler talk after a funny ad last night during Super Bowl) ◦ Contact through phone (Customer service) or in-person (In line at the store) Brenda, did you see that hilarious ad last night? WOW! I’ve been telling everyone!
- 8. Transparency was tougher to identify ◦ Example: Car dealerships always say they’re largest or have most sales… Source: http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2009/12/07/lost-locations-roundup-flying-a- service-station-king-midget-factory-custom-car-dealership/
- 9. The one-way model has morphed into a two-way model The CompanyCustomer relationship has become a cyclical, web-like model Business Message Reaches Customer, trickles down to friends and friends of friends Source: http://www.vedainformatics.com/blogs/5-things-about-social-media-
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- 11. The digitized version of in-person, word-of-mouth communication In real-time and immediate A digital medium allowing your audience full access to support, critique and bash you to others ALL about content! The phrase “Content is King” was never more important Most importantly - TRANSPARENT
- 12. WHAT ARE THEMAIN SOCIAL NETWORKS IN USE?
- 14. There are 901 million + “active” users 155 million U.S. users as of 2011 7 billion monthly visitors to Facebook.com 526 million daily active users on average - March 2012 Source:: Facebook Company Info: http://newsroom.fb.com/content/default.aspx?NewsAreaId=22
- 15. Fan pages are perfect for building online communities, engagement and lead generation.
- 16. More than 140 million active accounts Is based on 140-character posts More than 340 million tweets each day Twitter usage has doubled since 2010 People connecting based on common interests in real-time (e.g. #Indians or #DWTS) Percentage of adults using Twitter daily has doubled since 2011 and quadrupled since 2010 Source: Twitter company info: business.twitter.com; Pew Report on Twitter demographics www.ragan.com/Main/Articles/44999.aspx
- 17. Great tool for customer service dept., for lead generation, product/service support, etc.
- 18. Pinterest More than one-fifth of Facebook-connected users are on Pinterest daily (which represents more than 2,000,000 members). source: Mashable U.S. users spend an average of 1 hour and 17 minutes on the site, ahead of Twitter (36 minutes), LinkedIn (17 minutes), and Google+ (six minutes). source: AllTwitter Pinterest has 10.4 million registered users. source: AppData
- 19. Pinterest A visually driven network that can greatly increase customer engagement and sharing. Boards with Pinned Items Like, Share and Comment on Pins
- 20. Has more than 161 million users worldwide with two new professionals signing up every second On pace for 5.3 billion professionally oriented searches in 2012 Executives from every Fortune 500 company could be found in 2011 The first social network to go public with an Initial Public Offering (IPO) - LNKD currently $91/share Source: LinkedIn Press Center: press.linkedin.com/about & CNN Money
- 21. Group/Business pages allow for sharing of information and help connect professionals Key data on types of positions, industry, revenue, etc.
- 22. WHAT’S YOUR SOCIALMEDIA SALES STRATEGY?
- 23. Facebook ◦ The 35+ demographic accounts for more than 30% of the FB user-base ◦ On average, fans spend an additional $71.84 on products compared to non-fans Twitter ◦ 30% of users have annual household income of $100K+ ◦ 31% of 18-24 year olds are Twitter users Pinterest ◦ Average annual household income is between $25K - $60K LinkedIn ◦ 68% of the users are over the age of 35 ◦ 69% of all users make more than $60K/year
- 24. Youraudience usesthese social networks everyday. So how are you reaching them? You’re probably not… Let’s look at what you’re missing
- 25. Social Media ROI:Socialnomics video (4:15) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypmfs3z8esI
- 26. DON’T just create a social presence because everyone else is! Just because you have a page doesn’t mean you’ll succeed QUESTION: How many of you have stumbled across a Facebook Fan page that hasn’t been updated for months, if not longer? Social Media is Strategic… and it shows
- 27. Keep it simple when developing strategy Be realistic. Start small. Go after the lowest hanging fruit and build from there… Three key questions that will drive strategy: ◦ 1) What are you trying to achieve? ◦ 2) Who are you trying to reach? ◦ 3) How will social media tools help facilitate this?
- 28. Types of goals and objectives: ◦ Build awareness ◦ Change perceptions ◦ Reach new audiences, new geographic areas ◦ Gain feedback on a product or service ◦ Use it to see what your competitors are doing ◦ Provide better customer service ◦ And on and on… ◦ Make sure goals and objectives are tied to business objectives and sales goals
- 29. Set your goals andmake them your guiding light! If not, you’ll end up like this guy!
- 30. Social media allows precision audience targeting (demo info, user data, etc.) Once you know your target audience, social media allows you to build a community ◦ This community allows the online conversation to become offline (real world) Gain some basic insight into your audiences’ habits, likes and dislikes ◦ Can help target better
- 31. Create a basic messaging platform What is the essence of our business or organization? Capture that essence with key words and phrases Develop a tone, a context to your posts and responses… what’s your business’s PERSONALITY? DO NOT post sales pitches. Create a conversation that engages them to talk about your business.
- 32. Make your entire team part of the messaging discussion ◦ That brings them in on the ground floor Give them ownership, claim to this “voice” you’re creating for your business Ensure the person/s who are the “content creators” keep continuity in that voice Give access to your SM accounts sparingly, to those you trust most – they will be the digital voice of your business!
- 33. Create a social media policy guide, including: How to respond to positive and negative posts or comments Who should be responsible for posting and responding Rules for use for employees with their own personal accounts
- 35. HOW CAN ISELL WITH SOCIAL MEDIA?
- 37. If you’re brave, takea stab at trying them all! By the way, this is only just a few of the thousands out there! Graphic courtesy of
- 38. Begin by researching where your audience resides online If you have a direct competitor, review their social networks and take notes You don’t have to use every available social media network! Start slow… if your customers use Facebook the most, start there… then build.
- 39. Top line information ◦ Logo and tagline if you have one ◦ Business background (Facts and stats) ◦ Location and hours of operation ◦ Contact information (Website, email, phone, etc.) ◦ Add your other social networks links (if applicable)
- 40. Sales & MessageAlignment Your tools need to match your objectives! This means: ◦ Identify realistic business objectives ◦ Market and respond in a timely manner – SM is real time! ◦ Create content that creates interest, encourages sharing Industry information Featured products and what they do for the customer Customer stories and testimonials Connect your products and services to awareness days (i.e. World Environment Day if you sell recyclable products) Interact on a regular basis with your fans
- 41. Sales & MessagingExample Integrate your Facebook, social messaging to generate quality sales leads. Remember: Talk to your audience! Don’t market. Facebook Links to Microsite Product Page
- 42. Develop a TimelineApp (Tab) Direct current and prospective customers to this area ◦ Utilize this page to intrigue the customer with compelling content and call-to-action (i.e. visit a targeted microsite, call, email, Tweet, etc.)
- 43. Trying Twitter Your voice/message needs to be shorter, more concise. Listen more at the beginning, retweet other industry leaders, then get in on the conversation! Use hashtags (#FollowFriday) to view topical streams and get heard Use a “branded” profile (your company name), not a personal page. Be personable, real and honest, don’t hard sell!
- 44. Trying Twitter Traditional practices translate to Twitter ◦ Spark up conversations based on common interests ◦ Focus on customer needs and solving problems Design your social experience to sell ◦ Don’t just pitch your product; engage the audience ◦ Tell your story once the person is engaged LEARN – use Twitter to gather info
- 45. Connecting on LinkedIn Network, network, network LinkedIn is a digital rolodex Research your customer contacts Advertise directly to a certain profession Stay connected; keep contacts fresh easier
- 46. Pinning on Pinterest Allows you to show off your personality Integrate with Facebook and Twitter accounts Use images that set the stage for selling ◦ Selling lemonade? Show a hot sunny day or lemons Link back to your website, FB page, etc. (builds SEO)
- 47. Pinning on Pinterest Images of product/service with people! Inspire creativity among loyal customers Tie in to holidays and current trends What a pin on a board looks like
- 48. Don’t Just Startwith the tools… Fail to Plan… Plan to Fail
- 49. Done your research Set goals and business objectives Chose the social network/s you will participate in Aligned your sales and message Set up your pages with key content Strategized how you will utilize these networks to interact and market your customers What do I do next?
- 50. Share content between social networks Cross- and back-linking creates great search engine optimization (SEO) – It makes your business get found easier! Always try and tie your links back to your website to increase your ranking in search results Use hashtags, targeted keywords, links from other social networks to enhance your social search results Good SEO makes me like you!
- 51. Types of ads in a nutshell – Cost per Thousand (CPM) and Cost per Click (CPC) On Facebook, you can target your customers by their interests (sports, politics, cars, etc.), geography, demographics and psychographics (buying behavior)! On LinkedIn, you can target prospects/leads by job title, function, industry, age and geography… or by company size and revenue if you’re B2B On Twitter, you can use the “Promoted Tweets” and “Promoted Trends” on Cost per Engagement basis.
- 52. Send a message to your friends to check out your new business page and “Like” it ◦ A great way to get a small base of fans ◦ Friends are more prone to share with their friends Run a contest or giveaway to compel people to “Like” page ◦ Create an incentive when advertising (Coupons)
- 53. Promoted and paid advertisements on Facebook are powerful tools! Messaging is key here! A conversation will better connect you to you audience.
- 54. LinkedIn Advertising Advertise directly to certain professions Look at keywords and highlight your specific audience Promote your LinkedIn presence
- 55. Twitter Advertising Promote tweets to people outside your network
- 56. HOW DO IMEASURE THE RESULTS?
- 57. Common Measurement Questions But you want more than this… Slide via @ChuckHemann, Digital Analytics at WCG
- 58. Monitor & Measure There are limited ways to measure social media… but how do I measure ROI? Benchmark your sales data up front Set goals based on that data (i.e. I want to increase sales leads from 10 per month to 15 within six months) The extra 5 leads could = $X dollars. These are quantifiable numbers! Monitor your social networks, seeing what posts your customers like, if they share or comment, etc. ◦ Tied your customers interactions on your social networks to the “actions” you want them to take.
- 59. Measuring your FacebookPage Review important data points, make educated assumptions and decisions and move forward.
- 60. Facebook Ad Measurement Facebook advertising can be measured in a vast number of ways.
- 61.
- 62. Now that you have a page or pages, you are in charge of the content Keep a calendar of when and what to post Your personal account is now connected to the fan page as an administrator ◦ DON’T accidentally post something thinking your fan page was your personal page
- 63. Just because you created it, doesn’t mean your customers will flock to your page It takes a little leg work… some manual labor Do research. Find where your audience hangs out. What they like. ◦ Again, look at your competitors pages, or similarly aligned fan pages Courtesy of: http://blog.sironaconsulting.com/sironasays/2011/02/the-use-of-social-media-in-the- last-12-18-months-has-become-a-widespread-tool-in-the-business-toolbox-although-frustrating.html
- 64. Tom Duke will moderate questions…
Editor's Notes
- #7 Via TV, Print, Radio, Billboard, Direct Marketing, etc. TO GET ATTENTION, YOU NEEDED TO MAKE YOUR AD STAND OUT FROM THE REST! COMPELLING! FUNNY! SHOCKING!
- #9 Largest dealer in NEO or Ohio Best price for your trade in. How do they know this? Statistics can be twisted to meet the needs of the advertiser.
- #10 The one-way model of “ONE TO MANY” has become “MANY TO MANY” as Brian Solis said. You can touch one person with your message and if received properly, can spread among the web of people that person knows. This trickle-down effect is apparent in digital communication (Social Media)
- #15 About 70% of Web users are using FB in US, so your prospective and current customers are using FB!
- #16 EXAMPLE: Coca-Cola Fan page. Largest in world at 42 million fans!
- #22 Post updates on LinkedIn which keeps people following the page Gain detailed statistical insights on the company, such as revenues, departmental They have 16,000+ followers who will have potential to see their posts on the company You can follow and share information on your business with them and potentially get followers by using their prominence
- #27 1) Many businesses and orgs create a page quickly and make a few posts just to say “Hey, I have a Facebook or Twitter page!” 2) That Doesn’t mean it will work. 3) You MUST think it through!
- #30 So you’ll see that setting a strategy based on solid goals and objectives is key and DOES work!
- #35 Brand was in danger of failing. People felt their product was sub-par, delivery was poor, etc. Being transparent, they took the blame and said I’m Sorry through a powerful social media and traditional campaigns (TV, Print, etc.) All of it drove people back to the fan page to “Like” it, share their pictures of delivered pizza and share their thoughts on how the company can improve. Now, no one thinks of that campaign and they positioned themselves as the top pizza place in America They changed perceptions and gained valuable customer feedback , which helped transform their brand.
- #53 You can do this right when you create the page using the Facebook Wizard for example. It asks you to invite friends or upload a database of emails (E-newsletter list, etc.) Ask yourselves… who do you already know? Who’s your customer? Do you have a connection already? If you already advertise, put a link to your page on the ad if print, mention to join the FB page on TV ads, etc.
- #54 Storytelling!