Why Most Business Owners Fail At Social Media Marketing

Imagine this for a second... you’re at a networking event, and talking to people. Someone walks through the door who you’ve not met before and to nobody in particular says...

“I’VE GOT A FANTASTIC OFFER ON UNTIL MONDAY! IF YOU ORDER 3 WHITEBOARDS, YOU’LL GET ONE FREE!”

What do you do next? Ignore them and turn away to continue your conversation? Perhaps you figure you’ll give them a chance so go over to chat.

You shake hands and introduce yourself and tell them that you’re moving into new office premises next week and are busy sourcing the furnishings and equipment.

In response the person replies “well, here is the order form, sign here and I can sell you some whiteboards for your new office... you get one free if you order today.”

What are the chances that you’ll order their whiteboards? Slim to none I reckon!

Yet, every single day, business owners make this critical error in their social media marketing. They sell on first interaction, spend too much time broadcasting and not enough time listening.

If the person selling the whiteboards had taken the time to talk to you first, they may have discovered that you already have whiteboards, but you know someone else who could be interested.

Or they may have realised that when they stop staring at the pound signs over your head, you are an interesting person to talk to, and while you may not be a customer or referrer straightaway, it doesn’t matter because they’ve discovered you have plenty of other stuff in common.

The big difference you can make in social media marketing that will generate more sales is to;

“GIVE PEOPLE WHAT IT IS THEY ASKED FOR OR HOPED FOR WHEN THEY WROTE THEIR MESSAGE"

Because, if you can get this right, you create emotional connections with everyone you come into contact with... and I’m sure you’ve heard that most people make emotional buying decisions? Making sales on social media is easy, providing you give people what they want from you.

So, how do you get this right? You SMILE...

S – Solutions:

If you see a tweet or Facebook/Linked in post from someone asking a question and you know the answer, give them the solution they are looking for. You’ll see lots of questions and it is a great way to share your knowledge and expertise... plus you’ll find plenty of opportunities to pass referrals too... double win!

M – Make people feel valued:

It’s a common human trait to make instant judgements. I urge you not to do this on social media but to treat everyone you come into contact with as if they were the most special person in your life at that moment. You know, just because someone doesn’t appear to be a potential client, you might be right, you could be very wrong but more importantly, who do they know?

You want everyone who comes into contact with you to leave with a positive impression... if they don’t, they’re never going to rave about you to their friends or contacts. And how much business will that cost you?

I – Inform, educate and entertain:

Share content that will add value to your followers... whether it is your own or you’ve sourced it elsewhere. Stay true to yourself, don’t try and be someone you’re not but if you have a love of F1 or an opinion on something, share this stuff. People buy from people and you may find clients where you find common interests.

Be careful with humour though, don’t say anything that could cause offence... no matter how funny it might seem at the time. And it’s never a good idea to post when you’re angry or drunk. Step away from the internet. You could damage your brand!

L- Listen:

Make time to listen to what the people around you are saying. To give them what they ask or hope for, you need to know what that is, so spend more time listening than talking. In social media terms that means more time commenting and replying to people than talking about your business. That leads me nicely onto...

E – Engage:

If you make the effort to talk to 6 new people a day on social media, in a year, 2,000+ new people will know who you are... and many (not all, I won’t lie to you) will become customers, referrers and raving fans. Search for keywords and phrases relevant to the problems your products and services solve for your customers and give the poster what they are asking or hoping for.

What I really want you to take away from this post is that your mindset is so important when you are marketing your business on social media. Don’t do anything expecting sales in return. You’ll get more sales if you give of yourself freely and because you care about the people around you.

And when you care about others, they’ll care about you too... and we’re back at the emotional sales decisions again. I promise you one thing, most of your competitors are too busy selling to care so you’ll be their go-to person when they are ready to buy what you offer.

Bio:

Veronica Pullen has been building profitable relationships on social media for over 15 years and teaches business owners and business celebrities how to generate more sales from social media in her Academy training.

Based in Redhill she is the Surrey Mirror Social Media Columnist and has recently joined our team at the Gatwick Curry Club. Download her free eBook “Unlock The 3 Secrets To Skyrocket your Sales From Twitter” by visiting http://www.veronicapullen.co.uk or follow her on Twitter @VeronicaPullen