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The 5 W's and an H of Social Media

Guest post by: Tim Hagen

Article Overview: Your sales progress can be linked to your connection to customers. Find out how social media can help you expand your reach. These tips and tools will help sales people connect with more prospects and will help you reach your bottom line.

The 5 W's and an H of Social Media

Who?

Coca-Cola. Starbucks. Kohls. All these companies have Facebooks and Twitters. From big to small, companies are investing in new social media tools.

What?

Social media sites.

Where?

Online. Social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Blog places like WordPress and Google blog.

When?

Now! There is no time to waste because your competition has probably already figured out how to harness the tools.

Why?

Social media offers many benefits that traditional advertising does not. First, the cost is significantly lower. Most sites are not fee based, and the time spent to get your information across is much lower. Where creating an entire ad campaign can take months, creating a Facebook page and monitoring it only takes a couple hours a day. Second, social media tools allow you to more closely contact your target audience. You aren’t wasting your time broadcasting to a large audience. Instead, your message is more direct and targeted. If the consumer you are trying to reach is on Twitter, than you can directly connect with them by simply clicking the “Follow” button. Finally, most consumers these days are ignoring traditional advertising. TiVo has become a lifesaver for people that want to sit down for a couple minutes and catch up on their shows. And commercials on the radio? No one needs to listen to those anymore thanks to CDs and satellite radio. Consumers want to be able to come to you when they need something, and that is exactly what social media sites allow you to do. They contain information, reviews and sometimes, coupons and deals. This is much more appealing than having to listen to a salesperson’s cold-call during dinnertime.

How?

There are many ways to capitalize on social media. If you have a Facebook page, frequently update it with deals and steals for customers because everyone likes to save money, especially now. Let customers know what your company is all about and include discussion pages so customers can become engaged. Join groups on LinkedIn and interact with other business professionals. Find out what they are doing to stay successful through the group discussion pages. Many people do not think that Twitter can be of use to them, but in fact, it is a great outlet. Enter your company name in the “Search” box and find out who is talking about you. If someone is following you or tweeting about you, then request to follow them. It is a great way to show them that you care.

Every great salesperson knows that they can reach their bottom line faster if they are connected with their customers, and social media sites allow you to do just that. So, get online and get started. Business opportunities are out there, and they’re just a click away.

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Article Tags: business opportunities, great salesperson, sales progress, sales tips, social media



Related Forum Posts
Re: Kevin needs "social glue" ideas - Hi, I like the idea of "10 items that could act as "social glue" because I am an internet marketer. But I agree with the rest that the 10 recent post is nice. Maybe we should open up a new section in the forums on Social Media...or Social Media Marketing. I will tell you that the world is about 1 1/2 behind when it comes to understanding social media. Building a section now will put EvanCarmichael.com is a great position a year down the road when people realize Social Media can produce more traffic than SEO. Jeff
Re: Kevin needs "social glue" ideas - [quote="WebBizIdeas.com":gvtxsu7g]Hi, I like the idea of "10 items that could act as "social glue" because I am an internet marketer. But I agree with the rest that the 10 recent post is nice. Maybe we should open up a new section in the forums on Social Media...or Social Media Marketing. I will tell you that the world is about 1 1/2 behind when it comes to understanding social media. Building a section now will put EvanCarmichael.com is a great position a year down the road when people realize Social Media can produce more traffic than SEO. Jeff[/quote:gvtxsu7g] Hi Jeff, Thanks for the suggestion. Why don't you start a new post (with a poll) to see if there's enough interest in your idea for a social media section?
Re: UPDATES: New Campaign! New Layout! New Ideas! - GT - thanks for the FYI - I'm not sure if we'll put a link back. Something to consider though! Trent - the new category is "Social Network and Media" which was put in to compliment the Online Businesses category that currently exists. Overall the new categories are: - Looking For, Networking and Events - Review My... - Social Network and Media - Brags and Rants These came as a result of Ringo doing research on other forums and thinking about what could be improved on ours to give a better experience for everyone. I hope you enjoy them! David, I'm looking forward to reading your Brag / Rant!
Re: Marketing 2.0 - What Are Your Thoughts - Hi Shri, Thanks for posting this. I also read it and I believe Social Media is here to stay, until the next best thing comes up. Social media proved to be useful for me many times and I think everyone should use it for their business.
Re: Social Media Marketing Ignorance - [quote="vbn411":7qciluxl]Social Media is space that you have to be in to succeed in our current climate. People are going to be discussing your brand / product whether you like it or not, so you might as well join the conversation and add value. [/quote:7qciluxl] I think that's probably one of the most realistic way to think about it. There's no real textbook way of understanding Social Media, it's the networks of people and their interactions that will exist with or without your input. As for Jennifer, You can always have 2 Facebook pages. Many people do. There is also LinkedIn, which is like a professional networking version of Facebook. The only way to know is to try it.


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