what is social selling?

Call it 'the end of the cold door' or 'a different relationship to get customers'. It's still social selling. Or rather, the use of social media to get leads, connect with your audience, build branding and get potential customers into your brand. That's what you wanted, isn't it?

Then, you have the perfect excuse to join us, don't miss the opportunity to read this post and discover what social selling is. It won't take you more than 5 minutes to learn something that can change your brand's life forever. Think about it..

what is social selling and what is it for?

Good question. With the clues we have given you, it is very likely that you are associating social selling with an online sales system. Believe us, it is much more than that. It is getting into the minds of your potential customers indirectly, without rushing, letting them decide what to do with you (whether to give you a chance or give you the boot). It is selling without selling anything - as strange as it sounds. And it ends up generating sales.

A social selling strategy in this day and age is useful because:

• More than half of users connect better with brands that interact on social networks.

• People spend a large part of their time browsing the social spaces the internet offers us.

Even better:

• Reduce the sales cycle so you can focus on other aspects of the sale that add value to your customers.
• Increase the online reputation of the brand thanks to the opinions and comments generated about the product in the different profiles.
• Optimise sales on the different communication channels, even if you do not yet have a sales website.
• Generate leads thanks to the valuable content you offer to your audience and the possibilities to learn about their needs and concerns.

It's not about having the biggest list of followers or becoming an influencer. It doesn't mean that users will buy more. You will only achieve that if you really influence your ideal audience by offering different things.

The ways of selling have changed

It may sound cliché, but it is the reality that all brands should know and analyse. You probably already have a profile on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram or another social network, but many times you are not active enough or do not have the visibility you would like, even if it is hard to recognise it.

Thanks to social selling strategies you can reach users that you would not reach otherwise, grow and make your brand exponential. How many times have you put into practice the so-called cold door? That traditional sales where the theory of the sales funnel was already squeezed out, where the most important thing was the products, with generic arguments that did not listen to the consumer.

Things, as we said, have changed. The evolution of timing has given a twist to the traditional sales funnel, bringing Inbound Marketing to the fore. Or, in other words, attraction marketing. The user doesn't want interruptions. He doesn't want you to stick something in his eyes that he doesn't even know if he needs. He wants space. And just like in love, in marketing he also expects a brand that accompanies him, that understands him and makes him feel unique.

how to attract your potential customers? With content marketing. Don't think that we're only talking about publishing posts on your blog, it's much more than that: video, eBook, webinar, infographic, podcast, whitepaper, guide, microsite, hashtag... You don't have to follow them to the letter, there are endless examples.

The success of companies that apply social selling strategies

Social selling, as HubSpot would say, "is the process of researching, connecting and interacting with prospects and customers on social networks, especially Twitter and LinkedIn, although it is also common on other networks". The best thing about it is the genuine relationship you can build with your audience through likes, comments and posts.

And while it's not the exact twin of lead nurturing, the process has some similarities. It's not for those looking to make sales immediately, it doesn't work at the speed of light. Rather, it's what the saying "the best dishes are cooked over a slow fire" applies to. Because you have to be willing to put in the time and effort to connect with your target audience constantly. Only then do the fruits and your maturity as a brand come to fruition.

However, despite the uncertainty of waiting for results, they show that those brands that use social selling get better rewards: "The most successful sales reps, those who close more than 51% of deals compared to their peers, consider networking platforms a very important factor in their success". But it doesn't stop there, HubSpot has also shown that "sales teams that use social selling get 18% more volume in their pipeline and 21% more velocity than those who don't implement these strategies".

Social selling, in short

are you one of those who were thinking about your current social media strategy while reading this post? Now that we have come to the end, we want to say goodbye and leave you with a good taste in your mouth, and to do so, we are going to give you some vital tips to improve your social selling strategy:

• Optimise your brand's profiles on social networks. Your efforts will be in vain if you have an incomplete or outdated profile.
• Share content to enrich your profile and build credibility- if you find something of quality, you can share it with your audience.
• Read the comments carefully- you can join the conversation. Indirectly, you'll be telling your audience "I see you, I hear you and I care about you".
• And set up social listening alerts- you'll be aware of the actions your prospects are taking, as well as new sales opportunities.

Remember to be consistent. Now that you know what social selling is, you'll know that it's not just for a few days, it's a way of life.