Why the Best Sales Training Seminars Now Include a Strong Section on Social Media

Social media. A lot of salespeople resist investing too much time or money in it, or they aren’t successful using it to drum up business. Selling evolves with the times, and social media is an inexorable part of our daily existence and an increasingly important part of the sales profession.

I am sure when the telephone first came out, salespeople were perplexed as to how best to use that newfangled invention, but they adapted…and I will bet that trillions of dollars’ worth of deals have been facilitated with it by now.

Now imagine what can be done with ever-connected social media such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook and their billions of members?

Here are a few reasons why the best sales training seminars should include a strong section on social media.

Its where the people are.

Salespeople need to be where the people are in order to sell to them. Nowadays, most people are on one of the major social media channels seemingly 24/7.

Talk about a captive audience!

The best sales training seminars emphasize treating social media selling the same as selling in the real world.

Namely:

• Don’t be overly intrusive.

• Qualify before pitching. This is much easier to do on social media, as prospects volunteer a tremendous amount of information about themselves and their companies online.

• Avoid taboo topics, like religion or politics, in channels prospects might visit.

• Use shared connections to provide an introduction where possible – it is better than cold approaches.

• Don’t try to close for a sale, but rather close for a face-to-face or telephone appointment, where closing techniques are more effective.

It’s cheap.

Compared to buying ads in traditional media, social media marketing is cheap, cheap, cheap. Because the assets are created live on the web, they will provide benefits well past the original publication date. A few years from now, someone could read your posts and decide to contact you.

That being said, it takes a real strategy to make money using social media. This is where the best sales training seminars provide value, because they show you how to develop a strategy that generates leads, rather than just create content for its own sake.

It closely mirrors natural human interaction.

Traditional advertising is all about grabbing attention and “look at me!” Also, it typically puts a lot of pressure on the viewer to pony up cash and BUY NOW.

In contrast, connections are the key in social media marketing. Relationship-based selling thrives on social media because you and your audience get to know each other over time, and therefore a stronger bond develops. You really get to build a base of “raving fans” who will stick with you and buy repeatedly – while spreading awareness of your company through their own shares and likes (referral marketing, anyone?)

The best sales and corporate training seminars aren’t afraid to delve into social media, because they know that it is not going away – and instead it’s increasing in importance year after year. Make sure you aren’t left behind.