As the saying goes, failing to plan is simply planning to fail. It is easy to make excuses for not putting in the planning time…too busy with projects, clients, family commitments, etc. You are already stretched thin. How you can possible add one more thing to your plate?
Listen, I understand. I really do. And, in my most empathetic voice, let me just say…you must get past the excuses!
Let me ask you something.
- Do you need more revenue flowing in the door?
- Do you need more prospects in your pipeline to ensure that revenue keeps flowing in the door?
- Would it be helpful if more of your deals closed faster?
- Would your revenue benefit if you could get in front of opportunities before your competitors?
Ok then. You need a Sales Meets Social Media plan and playbook.
There are 5 master keys to successfully using social media to increase pipeline and revenue. They are:
- Have a plan. What are you trying to accomplish specifically?
- Target your audience. What are the characteristics of your ideal buyer?
- Choose the right tools. Not everyone needs Twitter. Use the right platform based on your needs.
- Implement consistently. If you aren’t participating on a daily basis, you are missing the point.
- Measure and track. Determine what forum or set of activities work for you, discard things that don’t.
About that plan.
If you are like a lot of people, you get hung up on the word “plan”. This isn’t a 30 page document that you need to write. You can easily keep it to 1-2 pages and you should. Your goal is keep it simple and narrow your focus.
The process begins with defining the characteristics of your ideal buyer. Hint: it is NOT everyone. Nail down the specifics like title, age, income, type of industry, etc. Clearly defining your target makes it easier to determine where your prospect may spend time online.
Next, you need to think about your purpose. What it is specifically that you want to accomplish using social media? More sales? How much more? Net new meetings? Ok, how many per week? Acquire 10 new clients? By when? Increase the size of your LinkedIn network? By how much and by when? You get the idea. Put your thinking cap on and decide on what you are really trying to do.
Now that you know who your target prospect is and you’ve determined your purpose, the fun begins.
For your plan to succeed, it is important that you set detailed goals, strategies, tasks and social activities you will commit to and take action on.
Start by setting 3-5 goals to support your purpose for using social media in the first place. If you want to increase your sales, one of your goals might be “build a referral network”. Next you commit to the date for getting your process established to achieve your goal.
Once you’ve determined your goals, you need to ask what results you expect to achieve, which is closely followed by deciding on the best strategy to undertake to achieve the desired results.
Next, break down that strategy into tasks and tactical activities that lead you to achieving your desired objective. And don’t forget to commit dates to these tasks to ensure that you get them done.
You see…pretty straightforward and easy process, but the plan won’t write itself!
Your Sales Meets Social Media plan is your roadmap to success. Without one, well the outcome is going to be questionable.
************************************************************************************
If you are ready to ROCK YOUR SALES and want to learn HOW TO use social media to help you do it, we are launching a new program that will teach exactly what you need to do and why. Check out the details here. We’ve made it super easy for you enroll by letting you split the fee over 3 payments!