Having deployed these tools several times I’m the first to admit that getting the intended results (qualified leads) is harder than it sounds. When responding, it’s critical to recognize the reply should offer advice, information or help – and not be a sales pitch. To detect these buyer opportunities, deploy a social listening tool which automatically searches the social web for specific company and product keywords which identify buyer inquiries, and then capture, categorize, prioritize and route those buyers’ online social questions and comments to inside sales for qualification and response. To acquire more leads, you need to meet these buyers in the social channels where they are communicating. It’s quite likely that a very small but nonetheless material percentage of this social commenting is buyers seeking advice, referrals and information for products or services which you sell. This figure grows exponentially when considering Twitter is but one social network of many. I recommend first talking to your existing customers to understand the social channels where they most participate, then building a social presence on the social networks that your customers most frequent, and then steadily expanding your social presence across the top 6 hybrid B2C and B2B social networks (Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, YouTube and SlideShare), as well as Pinterest and Instagram if you’re in a B2C industry.Įvery day there are over 200 million tweets about companies, products and services. These buyers want vendors that share information beyond the website collaterals, which share resources who talk candidly and beyond the corporate speak, and which engage in two way conversations or deliver customer service over social channels.
It’s also important to recognize that B2B buyers are increasingly selecting vendors that are social. Simply jumping into social networks without having your own social presence comes across as something of a nomad, or even worse, simply looking to exploit other people’s social properties for your own gains. You have to get social before you can be social.