Thanks to the Internet, consumers are more informed than ever before when making a purchase decision. The most successful salespeople understand that today’s consumers have access to a wealth of information at their fingertips and are creating an online presence to meet prospective customers where they are: social media.
Why Salespeople Need to Have an Online Presence
According to the latest research, consumers spend nearly two hours a day on social media with the majority of their time divided between various channels depending on their customer profile. Those selling B2C may spend more time on Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram and YouTube, whereas those selling B2B will likely spend more of their time on LinkedIn.
Like any other form of business networking, if you aren’t visible where your target customers are spending their time, you may be missing out on a huge opportunity to create awareness and generate sales leads.
Here are 3 ways that salespeople benefit from having an online presence:
1. Create Awareness. Having an active presence on the social media platforms that your target audience is active on will help to keep your business top-of-mind. When a relevant need comes up, you’ll be the person people come to. Instead of using pushy sales tactics to promote your business, share educational, value-added content such as a “how-to” article or breaking industry news. This will help you to build a professional brand and allow you to meet prospective customers at their various buying stages and move them through your sales funnel.
2. Grow Your Network and Build Relationships. B2B salespeople need to have a presence on LinkedIn, the undisputed leader for making business connections. If it’s been a while since you’ve updated your LinkedIn profile, be sure to add a recent photo, showcase your value proposition in your profile summary and post any new awards or accolades that you or your company has received.
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Be an active participant in industry-related social media group discussions. If someone likes or engages in the content that you share, be sure to thank him or her instead of immediately going in for the sale. Social media is a great tool to build rapport with prospective customers, and you’ll be able to deepen your personal and business relationships by delivering value over self-promotion.
3. Strengthen Your Personal Brand. If you use social media to regularly share insightful knowledge, industry-related posts and breaking news, you’ll demonstrate to your prospective customers that you’re actively engaged in solutions for their business. This type of passion will naturally attract prospects and help to position you as the “go to” thought leader when a relevant need comes up.
Want to learn more? Contact us for a social media tune up and amplify your online presence to generate more leads!
