![\"\"](\"http:\/\/patrickhester.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/connecting.jpg\" "\\"connecting\\"")
<\/p>\nI’m always surprised by people who miss the point of social media; being social.<\/p>\n
There is a definite benefit for sales people who use social media correctly, but some try to force it to be something it isn’t.\u00a0 I see this a lot, especially with self-published authors, or people who pay services or companies to ‘monitor and update’ their social medial channels for them.\u00a0 This leads to a stream of endless and impersonal links, an immediate turn-off for people who are looking to connect.<\/p>\n
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Companies succeed at using social media.\u00a0 BestBuy, Google, eBay and Amazon, to name just a few, have done well.\u00a0 But odds are, you aren’t them.\u00a0 What most people using social media are looking for is a real person they can connect with, not a corporate giant spitting out links to deals for the day, or a person whose stream shows links off to blog posts and zero interaction or conversations with followers.<\/p>\n
When I work with sales people and talk about social media, there is one thing that a majority of them agree on – they just don’t get it.\u00a0 I’m actually surprised by this reaction because at its heart, social media is what sales people do each and every day of their lives, just in a new medium.<\/p>\n
A good sales person networks, connects and engages.\u00a0 They meet people, get to know them and build a relationship.\u00a0 Sometimes that can take a very long time, others just a few minutes.\u00a0 But the process is the same.\u00a0 Unless you are in a retail setting, you don’t meet someone for the first time and immediately attempt to sell them something.\u00a0 You try to get to know them, you share a little something about yourself, see where your interests intersect, what you have in common, and lay the foundation for a relationship.<\/p>\n
So why would you treat social media any differently?<\/p>\n
That’s just it – you shouldn’t. Be social.\u00a0 When you create your profile(s), include your interests, talk about them, share photos (you probably have a smartphone, so use it!), follow and friend other people who have similar interests.\u00a0 Engage.\u00a0 Don’t just post things in your own stream, comment on what other people are doing\/sharing, and if they comment on yours, reply back.<\/p>\n
Connect, build that relationship.\u00a0 You already know how.\u00a0 And when it’s time to sell, you’ll know it.\u00a0 Social media just offers you a new way to do it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I’m always surprised by people who miss the point of social media; being social. There is a definite benefit for sales people who use social media correctly, but some try to force it to be something it isn’t.\u00a0 I see … Continue reading