social selling

Using Video in Selling – Part 2

In part 1 of my interview with Video Brand Ambassador, Doug Lehman about why using video helps drive sales opportunities, he shared 3 primary reasons why salespeople need to incorporate video into their social selling stack. Those reasons are:

-Use video to educate, demonstrate your credibility and expertise, provide social proof and promote your products and services. When buyers are doing their solutions research, they turn to video for quick, informative answers to their questions.

-Reduce travel costs and other expenses. Unlike back in the day, sales interactions don’t always happen face-to-face, which explains the rapid growth of video technology being used in sales and marketing and incorporated into CRM processes.

-A sales video can be used as follow up after a sales call or meeting. Guaranteed to be more engaging than a static follow-up email.

Bonus reason: Video is great for capturing user-generated content (UGC), referrals and testimonials that build on the social proof that buyers consider during the decision making process.

Now in part 2 of my interview with Doug, you learn about the common mistakes people make with video, the best platforms to host your video content and tips for building your audience.

BG: What are examples of common mistakes that people make when getting into video?

DL: Not having a video plan is a major mistake. Producing video that does not provide any value to the viewer is a major flaw. Video that is not watchable will not engage, inspire or influence the buyer. Video context is just as important as video content. Attention is a must when leveraging video in sales. Your message should be concise and direct. Does your sales video resonate with your sales audience? Ask for feedback and test.

Video production must be watchable, shareable and findable. Make sure your lighting and audio quality is up to par. Nobody wants to watch a video that is poorly lit or contains poor audio quality. Make sure your test both in pre-production.

Not leveraging Video SEO Metadata while hosting video or using social channels to engage and promote can be a huge mistake. Hosting video on your website, blog or LinkedIn profile needs to include, the correct title, description, keywords and tags to be for effective to be found in search.

BG: Is YouTube the best place to host your videos?

DL: Hosting videos on YouTube has its advantages and disadvantages. YouTube is easy to upload and use. The reach on YouTube is awesome. YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world and is owned by Google. If you are looking for extended reach, YouTube is great. Privacy and specialized content sharing with YouTube has it’s disadvantages. Other hosting video platforms like Vimeo, Wistia, Vidyard – to name a few – are great options. All have pros and cons, on price, reach and privacy. YouTube is great but there are other options to evaluate.

BG: How do you build your audience?

DL: Building your brand audience comes down to defining the characteristics of your ideal buyer, understand what pains they are encountering, so you can craft your messages around what they care about. This is why it is so important that you start with your plan. You need to be clear on about the approach you’ll take and determine how you will deliver value to your targeted buyer. Your content is importance, but message context is just as important.

Remember that numbers are not as important as engagement and conversions to sales opportunities. Videos that deliver value, that are findable and shareable is the starting point. Engage with your video community, respond and share insightful information. Leverage other websites, blogs, and social networks to promote and share content. Video Collaboration with peers and subscribers can go a long way in building your audience. It takes time, work, collaboration and value to build an authentic audience that can lead to measurable results. Positioning your video with the right VSEO, delivering value in your messaging and using the right video sharing platform is necessary for building your audience. But, don’t forget that you can use your video to reach buyers 1-1 in a more engaging way. An engaging video that speaks to the problems you help solve for buyers, yields most positive results than simply attaching a whitepaper for someone to read.

Breaking it down…in Lehman’s terms, as Doug would say.

There is no question that using video as part of your selling process is a compelling way for you, as a salesperson, to stand apart from your competitors. Don’t keep waiting. It’s time to get started!

Make sure you connect with Doug. Talk to him about his services. He can help you get over the getting started hurdles. Reach Doug at:

Website
LinkedIn
Twitter
YouTube
Social Selling Video

3 Reasons to Use Video in Selling

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

Incorporating video into our social selling content mix makes sense on many levels, although I’m the first to admit that I didn’t do much with video until last year. Prior to that I was involved in several Google hangouts that were recorded, which I shared with my network, but I really didn’t get more serious about creating video content that I could use in a more intentional way.

I had my reasons for not making video content creation more of a priority. One of those reasons was most certainly ego. Not a big fan of how I look on video, I used that as an excuse not to get going. Perhaps that true for you too?

Finally, I got over myself.

My colleague and good friend, Doug Lehman (@douglehman on Twitter) has been in the Video Brand Ambassador game longer than most. A very early evangelist and practitioner, Doug has honed his craft and now works with clients to pull together video content that helps salespeople best represent their personal brand and topic expertise.

Watch a series that Doug and I created together called the Sales Accelerators. Sales Accelerators Video Series Watch for more videos coming soon.

Naturally, when thinking about writing this post, I wanted to interview Doug to get his take on the role that video content plays in sales and social selling. But before I turn you loose on part 1 of the interview, here are 3 reasons that Doug shared with me regarding why salespeople need to get involved:

–Use video to educate, demonstrate your credibility and expertise, provide social proof and promote your products and services. When buyers are doing their solutions research, they turn to video for quick, informative answers to their questions.

–Reduce travel costs and other expenses. Unlike back in the day, sales interactions don’t always happen face-to-face, which explains the rapid growth of video technology being used in sales and marketing and incorporated into CRM processes.

–A sales video can be used as follow up after a sales call or meeting. Guaranteed to be more engaging than a static follow-up email.

Bonus reason: Video is great for capturing user-generated content (UGC), referrals and testimonials that build on the social proof that buyers consider during the decision making process.

Now, let’s hear from Doug.

BG: How important is the use of video in selling today?

DL: I think video is important today but will more important tomorrow. Today, buyers and customers do their own research and look for immediate answers. Using video to educate, train and promote your products and service is powerful. Most buyers would rather watch a one to two minute video versus spending time reading a full text column or whitepaper. Video is not a substitute for face-to-face meetings, but it is the next best thing to being there.

Video itself can expedite the sales cycle. We now live in the age of information at your fingertips with buyers and customers researching solutions online and using mobile devices to access quick answers to their questions. Simply put your buyers are influenced by video and sales and marketing needs to be using video to their advantage. The rapid growth of video technology in sales, marketing and CRM is on the rise and demonstrates how important video is to your content strategy. Just look at all the new video technology providers. The simple fact is that your potential customers are using video to evaluate people, products, services and companies. Proactive engagement is paramount.

From a sales point of view, video that is compelling and engaging with the correct call to action will assist increasing revenue and expanding exposure and reach. Video works well with email, which is still a very popular form of communication. Cut through the email noise that customers and prospects receive daily, capture their attention and improve your click-through rates.

Leveraging video can reduce travel costs and other sales expenses. Video helps accelerate the sales cycle on all levels. Educational, explainer videos, product-training videos will provide buyers with more clarity about what you offer, but these videos also demonstrate advanced credibility and social proof about your capabilities. It has direct impact on the buyer’s journey. Leveraging video content for lead generation with educational and explainer videos will allow for customer clarity in answering questions in the buyer’s discovery and evaluation phase. Your customer will be further along in their decision process and closer to making a purchase decision. Video can shorter the sales cycle time for complex and transactional sales.

Video works well in post sales meeting follow up. Leveraging user-generated content, referrals and testimonials can be extremely powerful as buyers look to peers from recommendations. A simple sales video follow up after a call or meeting speaks volumes. It will stand out and personalize the sales process.

From a research point of view, video is a great tool. As salespeople, we can look for trigger points and reasons to engage with buyers. Though we call it social listening, why not perform social watching. Look at your customers videos and SEE what they are talking about in a more personalized format.

Finally, customer advocacy, repeat business, referrals, references and testimonials are powerful for influencing customers. Authentic Video Marketing resonates well with customers at the highest engagement level.

BG: What are the top 3 ways to get started?

DL: Before you get started, your first order of business is establishing your plan. Watch other video examples. Replicate and test out those concepts. Spend some time evaluating what works in the business world. Do your own research by looking at video production agencies. Use YouTube as a training research tool watch videos to get your planning down.

Start with a small video project first and get comfortable. Produce shorter videos with tips and simple calls to action (CTA’s). Rehearse your project and practice before live video shooting commences. If you have someone that is more comfortable on camera, let them do the first video project or start with having your customers do a video testimonial.

Be natural and authentic and let your personality shine through. You want viewers to connect with you, which happens when your video is focused on something that is of value to the buyer. If you just make your video a sales pitch, you’ve wasted an opportunity. User generation content goes a long way too. Encourage your current customers to film a short-clip talking about why they decided to buy from you and what they liked about the process.

Using pictures for slideshows or screen casts are another way to get started. Interview style videos, live streaming and panel video chats like Skype, Google Hangout, Blab or Skype are great video tools to get started. The more experience you have on camera the better. The key to starting video is to start small, build and practice.

Breaking it down…in Lehman’s terms, as Doug would say.

By now, I hope you can see that video is a compelling way for you, as a salesperson, to stand apart from your competitors. Don’t keep waiting. It’s time to get started!

Stay tuned for part 2, where you’ll learn about common video mistakes, the best platforms to host your videos and how to build your audience.

Make sure you connect with Doug. Talk to him about his services. He can help you get over the getting started hurdles. Reach Doug at:

Website
LinkedIn
Twitter
YouTube
Social Selling Video

A Social Selling Primer for Sales Leaders

By Barbara Giamanco 3 Comments

“Social selling is hogwash. Nothing is a substitute for human interaction.”

I heard a speaker make this statement at a conference. Statements like that are frustrating. This speaker wanted the audience to believe that the only way to do business is to meet people face-to-face, which, of course, is no longer true. If it were, we wouldn’t continue to see a steady rise in the investment sales organizations are making in inside sales teams.

The truth is that you can “interact” with other human beings in meaningful ways online. Does this mean that your salespeople will only converse with buyers on social media to discuss, negotiate and close deals? Of course not! After nurturing an online relationship, the next step in the sales cycle is, naturally, talking to your prospective customer real-time.

Anyone proclaiming that integrating social media into your sales process (AKA social selling) is hogwash either doesn’t understand how to do it, fears changing their approach or sells services that run counter to modern day selling practices. Salespeople who plan to achieve sales quotas will adapt how they sell, because buyers demand it.

Integrating social media into your team’s selling process is a must if you expect your salespeople to break through the competitive clutter and reach buyers who are better informed and more digitally connected than ever before.

Most often, sellers will use social channels on the front end of the sales cycle to network, prospect, build their online reputation and brand, increase their visibility, demonstrate credibility and capability, generate leads and conduct pre-sales call research. Social channels can and should also be used to nurture existing customer relationships also. If your salespeople are out of sight, they don’t exist. It is dangerous to assume that once a customer signs on the dotted line that they will stick with your company forever.

To turn your sales organization into a social selling machine, you need to do these things:

Accept that buyer behavior has changed. You, as the sales leader, must shift your mindset. It is a vastly different selling world than it was 10+ years ago. The approaches that worked for you when you were building a book of business, aren’t working for your sales team members today. Inundated with requests, buyers block phone calls and emails from people they don’t know. It takes a lot to break through the noise these days. Your salespeople must change their sales approach. Your job is to help them learn how to do it.
Create a social selling strategy. Engage marketing as part of the planning process, but marketing doesn’t own it for sales. Be careful not to default to social selling training without having thought through the bigger picture. Heading straight to tactics without a well-conceived plan is a recipe for failure.
Establish usage guidelines. People need to know what is expected of them. As they do today, salespeople represent themselves and the company brand. The only difference is that what is said online stays there. Forever. Mistakes are bound to happen, but you can mitigate risks by ensuring that your salespeople learn the art of communicating online. More importantly, teach them what’s appropriate to say and do on behalf of your company when they are using social networks as part of their selling activities. Don’t assume that they know.
Choose the right tools. In planning your social selling strategy, you will have identified the key characteristics of your ideal buyer(s). Understanding these buyer personas becomes the guide you use to determine what social channels are best suited for reaching those targeted buyers. The key is in making sure that your salespeople spend time on the right social channels, and they shouldn’t try to master all channels at once. Most social media platforms are free to use but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a cost associated with them. Time is money. Spend it wisely.
Invest in training. Sales behaviors have to change and salespeople need to understand how to strategically use technology in the right way. If you, or your salespeople, view social channels as a vehicle to spam a bigger audience with a sales pitch, a huge opportunity has been wasted, and your brand reputation is put at serious risk. Training should be ongoing and not just a one-time event.
Focus on the right metrics. Expecting salespeople to just do more – make more cold calls, send more emails, or do more demos – can actually impede sales progress by wasting a lot of time. The quality of sales activities is what counts. Attaining measurable sales results is more important than checking off the box that says your reps made 200 calls each day.
Be realistic in your expectations. Using social channels is not a short-cut to increasing pipeline and revenue. You will not see results overnight. This is no different from any other sales training you may have invested in for your sales teams. Learning how to do things differently and developing new habits takes time. Provide the ongoing training and coaching that your people need and give them the space to allow these new approaches to bear fruit.

Smart sales leaders know that social selling isn’t hogwash, nor is it a gimmicky approach to selling. These leaders know social selling is simply another set of sales tools and an evolved approach to reaching today’s buyers, which means their job is to prepare their teams accordingly.

Harnessing the Power of Content to Drive Sales Results

By Barbara Giamanco 1 Comment

Content marketing is as important to today’s modern salesperson, as it is to the marketing team who is focused on driving brand awareness. A shift in how buyer’s consume information and do early stage research has completely disrupted traditional sales and marketing approaches.

Savvy organizations know that they can no longer force the buyer to fit their sales process. In fact, sales and marketing must adapt what they do to align with how the buyer makes purchasing decisions.

Though there are additional layers to each, the buyer’s journey looks something like this:

Awareness – it is here that the buyer recognizes the symptoms of a problem they want to solve, or perhaps a business opportunity that they want to capitalize on. To better define the situation, they begin doing their homework to help them determine how to move forward.
Consideration – in this phase, buyers have clearly defined what the problem or opportunity looks like. They begin doing their research, completing close to 60% of that research before the initial engagement with sales. Buyers are using your website, content you produce, social channels and more to investigate options, approaches or methods available.
Decision – at this point, buyers have begun to compile a list of vendors and products to determine which ones fit their strategy. This ultimately becomes a short-list of companies they want to talk to. While buyers are doing their research, of which content plays a key role, it is critical that salespeople are also using content to increase their visibility, and to demonstrate credibility and capability in advance of potential sales opportunities.

Content marketing is everyone’s job.

Using content to drive buyers to take specific actions does not just rest on the shoulders of the marketing department. The strategic use of content as part of your sales process is key also.

From sources like DemandGen, Dell and CEB, we know that:

But there is a problem.

For the last several years, content creation and curation has been the buzz in the business world. With so much noise, how do you ensure that your content stands out?

Organizations can create a mix of content to appeal to potential buyers…webinars, ebooks, whitepapers, live streaming, research reports, quizzes, video and more.

Content that tends to be most useful is content that is interactive versus static. You don’t want people to simply read the whitepaper or watch your video, you want them to interact with the content. For example, you can use quizzes, assessments, surveys or contests to engage prospective buyers. Action leads to conversion.

Rising in popularity is the use of user-generated content (UGC) as part of a company’s content strategy.

“User-generated content (UGC) is defined as “any form of content such as blogs, wikis, discussion forums, posts, chats, tweets, podcasting, pins, digital images, video, audio files, advertisements and other forms of media that was created by users of an online system or service, often made available via social media websites“ –Wikipedia

More compelling than you telling the story of how your solution solves problems for buyers, is content created and shared by people who love what you offer.

According to Bazaar Voice, 64% of millennials and 53% of baby boomers want more options to share their opinions about brands, while other studies show user generated content is 50% more trusted and 35% more memorable than all other forms of media.

Here are 5 reasons to incorporate user-generated content into your strategy:

Builds your reputation.
Foster loyalty.
Generates leads.
Younger buyers love it.
Similar to a focus group, but cheaper.

How to create user-generated campaigns:

Match the promotion type to your audience. The same content isn’t going to appeal to everyone.
Request entries that you can repurpose later. Collect information you can use in future campaigns like testimonials or quotes.
Make the reward match the effort required. If you expect people to put maximum effort into creating content for you, make sure the offer matches the effort they will need to expend.
Simplify the process. Don’t make people jump through too many hurdles, or they will become flustered and drop out.
Consult legal up front. Be sure your campaigns are compliant with local laws. And, openly discuss problems that may arise. Plan your strategy up front, instead of waiting to figure it out when something goes wrong.

Finally, millennials most trust user-generated content and they are occupying a large portion of the workforce. This generation spends 60% of their time on social media with 30% of that time being spent engaging with user-generated content.

Coming up behind them is Gen Z, who use their smartphones multiple times per day, use social media weekly, and 60% have reported taking pictures and video.

The reasons for having a solid content strategy, one that includes user-generated content is clear, but remember that your strategy still needs company branded content too!

Join me at Ariba Live in Las Vegas on March 16th to learn more about how your content strategy drives brand awareness and revenue opportunities!

3 Reasons Why Salespeople Lose Deals

By Barbara Giamanco 2 Comments

Salespeople can lose deals for many reasons, starting with tripping all over themselves on social media trying to short-cut the sales process by blasting out sales pitches, but today, I want to talk about three more, which are:

No access to C-Suite executives
Pitching versus problem solving mentality
Sales messaging lacks relevance

Let’s explore each in a little more depth.

No Access to C-Suite Executives

By now you’ve heard the stats that tell us that buyers are doing early stage research on products, services, companies and people. For that reason, salespeople do need to have brand presence on LinkedIn and other platforms, and their story should clearly communicate how a buyer benefits from working with them.

C-Suite decision makers; however, are not necessarily exploring options, setting vendor criteria or examining the alternatives that exist themselves. They have team members handling that aspect of the process. Many CEO’s will tell you that they are not going to undermine their team members by getting involved at this stage.

So, yes, you need online presence, and you need to consistently be sharing content that demonstrates capability and credibility, but if the focus of that content is simply talking about what your product or solution does, you won’t be capturing an executive’s attention.

To get the attention of the C-Suite “Bring the right issues,” advises Wayne Pisano, CEO of biotech company, Vaxinnate. “Don’t waste my time. Be direct and concise. Generally, people who deliver and behave that way have unlimited access.”

Sales Messaging Lacks Relevance

“According to sales management, the salesperson’s ability or inability to communicate value messages is the biggest inhibitor keeping salespeople from achieving quota.”—SiriusDecisions

This just further cements the need to take a step back and really think about what a C-Suite executive cares about. Within seconds your message has to demonstrate that you’ve done your homework and understand the company, its challenges and what is happening in their industry. Your focus should be on the business issues the executive faces, but absolutely NEVER on the features of your product. How you are going to impact the bottom line in a positive way is what they care about most.

Stop broadcasting vendor centric sales pitches. Executives don’t care about your pitch. If you want them to give you a second thought, focus on how you can help them during the stages of the decision making process they involve themselves in:

Front-end: Understanding current issues, establishing objectives and setting strategy.
Back-end: Planning implementation and measuring results.

The question you want to ask yourself in both instances is how you can be a resource in these areas. Demonstrating this to a C-Suite executive will set you apart from competitors.

In the research the authors of Selling to the C-Suite conducted, the stages I just noted is where executives get involved. The problem is that a lot of sales messaging is focused on the middle space of exploring options, setting vendor criteria or examining alternatives. In other words, pitching your product and trying to prove your company is worthy of consideration. As noted earlier, C-Suite executives have team members focused on this part of the decision making equation.

Remember that you have one shot at making a good first impression throughout every stage of the sales process. This is especially true with an executive. Make it count!

Pitching versus Problem Solving

I’m not sure why this continues to be such a monumental problem, but it is. Feature dumps don’t cut it, and if you really think that a C-Suite executive wants a demo of your product in that first meeting, then you might want to rethink a career in sales.

Let’s assume you got a yes to the meeting. When you get there, get to it. Brevity matters here, and many executives will expect you to net it out in two slides or less with just a few bullet points. That’s right. Two slides not a 50 deck tome that starts with 10 of those slides bragging all about your corporate history! Many C-Suite executives would rather you skip the PowerPoint altogether and talk to them.

Why focus on understanding the problem and speak to that?

Harvard Business Review reported last year that 72% of the executives they surveyed, said that a salesperson’s ability to help them solve business problems they can’t solve internally plays a big role in their decision making process.

Before you jump on any sales call or walk into that executive meeting – DO YOUR HOMEWORK. Don’t expect a busy C-Suite executive to educate you about their business. With all the tools available to us today, not having a cursory understanding of the executives business before you meet with them is simply unacceptable.

Focus on the problem you solve, not your sales pitch! Says Adrian Davis, author of Human to Human Selling “C-suite executives meet with salespeople all the time. Very few of these salespeople, however, get a second meeting. Those who do, get one because they did their homework and were able to have a focused and value-driven conversation with the executive.”

Conclusion

Salespeople are often their own worst enemy when it comes to being successful in sales. I realize that often the pressure they are feeling from management to close, close, close makes it easy to justify taking short-cuts. However, short-cuts lead to a lack of leads in the pipeline and deals going south in that first meeting. Times have truly changed. Your sales approach needs to change too. And, by the way, you are already way behind!

It’s 2016. What Will You Do Differently?

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

Buyers want and expect more. They drive the decision making process and expect salespeople to align their approach to match their process for making a purchase. If you keep trying to force them into your sales process, you will have difficulty getting to a successful sales outcome.

The buyer’s journey looks like this…

AWARENESS

57% of buyers start the sales process without engaging sales. -CEB

Why is this important?

Buyers begin their early stage research when they have a problem to solve or an opportunity they want to capitalize on. In this awareness phase, they can easily gather plenty of data to get them moving in the right direction. The question is twofold: can you be easily found on the web, in LinkedIn, on Twitter? And, once buyers find you, does your story make it clear to the prospective buyer what they can expect to benefit from if they work with you?

It is in this phase that you want to leverage a content sharing/creation strategy that helps you stay visible and top of mind with prospective buyers.

CONSIDERATION

72% of B2B buyers used social media to research their purchase decision. -DemandGen

57% of executives browsed discussions to learn more about the topic. -Dell

What are the implications?

In the consideration phase, the problem or opportunity is now clearly defined. Research begins to understand the available options, approaches or methods to help them solve the problem. In other words, they are then looking at the products, people and companies they feel can deliver on what they need. This is exactly why you need to continue to share content that educates, provides fresh insights and value to buyers, knowing that they are now digging deeper into what is available. The more you demonstrate your thought leadership, credibility and capability, the higher the likelihood that prospects will want to talk to you.

DECISION

53% of buyers said that they rely on peer recommendations before making a purchase decision – a number that was just 19% in 2012. -DemandGen

What does this mean for you as a salesperson?

Peer recommendations influence the decision to invite you to a buying conversation. By the time the buyer enter’s the third stage of their journey – decision – they have vetted a short list of the vendors they want meet. How much focus do you put on building a network of influencers? Who do you know that is connected to your prospective buyers? Can you enlist their help in recommending you? Peer influence and introductions/referrals made by people your prospective buyer trusts goes a long way toward helping you get in the door.

Change can be a challenge.

That is especially true when you’ve been successful doing things in a particular way, but times have changed and if you are not adapting your sales and marketing approach to address it, you have a problem.

This is where social selling strategies come into the picture.

Success in sales today requires your ability to educate, inform and engage with prospect buyers at the early stages of the buying journey. Using social media, you can do just that. With an ability to network, generate leads and gather rich insights that allow you to better inform the sales conversation, leveraging social channels is a must. But, don’t forget that tactical, front-end social selling activities only get you so far. To the meeting. After that, your consultative sales, listening and problem solving skills must be top notch.

It's 2016. What Will You Do Differently?

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

The buyer’s journey looks like this…

AWARENESS

57% of buyers start the sales process without engaging sales. -CEB

Why is this important?
Buyers begin their early stage research when they have a problem to solve or an opportunity they want to capitalize on. In this awareness phase, they can easily gather plenty of data to get them moving in the right direction. The question is twofold: can you be easily found on the web, in LinkedIn, on Twitter? And, once buyers find you, does your story make it clear to the prospective buyer what they can expect to benefit from if they work with you?
It is in this phase that you want to leverage a content sharing/creation strategy that helps you stay visible and top of mind with prospective buyers.
CONSIDERATION

72% of B2B buyers used social media to research their purchase decision. -DemandGen
57% of executives browsed discussions to learn more about the topic. -Dell

What are the implications?
In the consideration phase, the problem or opportunity is now clearly defined. Research begins to understand the available options, approaches or methods to help them solve the problem. In other words, they are then looking at the products, people and companies they feel can deliver on what they need. This is exactly why you need to continue to share content that educates, provides fresh insights and value to buyers, knowing that they are now digging deeper into what is available. The more you demonstrate your thought leadership, credibility and capability, the higher the likelihood that prospects will want to talk to you.
DECISION

53% of buyers said that they rely on peer recommendations before making a purchase decision – a number that was just 19% in 2012. -DemandGen

What does this mean for you as a salesperson?
Peer recommendations influence the decision to invite you to a buying conversation. By the time the buyer enter’s the third stage of their journey – decision – they have vetted a short list of the vendors they want meet. How much focus do you put on building a network of influencers? Who do you know that is connected to your prospective buyers? Can you enlist their help in recommending you? Peer influence and introductions/referrals made by people your prospective buyer trusts goes a long way toward helping you get in the door.
Change can be a challenge.
That is especially true when you’ve been successful doing things in a particular way, but times have changed and if you are not adapting your sales and marketing approach to address it, you have a problem.
This is where social selling strategies come into the picture.
Success in sales today requires your ability to educate, inform and engage with prospect buyers at the early stages of the buying journey. Using social media, you can do just that. With an ability to network, generate leads and gather rich insights that allow you to better inform the sales conversation, leveraging social channels is a must. But, don’t forget that tactical, front-end social selling activities only get you so far. To the meeting. After that, your consultative sales, listening and problem solving skills must be top notch.

Manners Matter

By Barbara Giamanco 4 Comments

Before the internet – yes, there actually was such a time and it wasn’t that long ago – I have believed in following a code of conduct in business and in life. It’s called manners and includes being respectful and honoring boundaries. Sometimes not easy, especially if someone treats you badly, but I don’t sink to their level. That’s doesn’t mean I’m a doormat. I’ll speak up if I need too. But I can still be professional about it. My code of conduct also includes being aware that there is a time and a place for everything, which is what leads me to my post today.

Earlier in the week, I posted a status update on LinkedIn that related to some interesting statistics from Forrester about when B2B buyers want to engage with salespeople. Some social selling guru’s act like all you need to do is tweet all day long to make quota, which, of course is not true. Buyers may not need to talk to you the first minute they are thinking about buying something, but they do when the solution is:

Complex
Expensive
Requires service or installation
The price needs to be agreed upon

My status update was meant to get people thinking and hopefully, spur some dialog. Well, imagine my surprise – though I shouldn’t be, because I see people do this often – when someone added a comment and included a link back to a recent webinar their company had conducted. While there isn’t a rulebook related to how you behave when participating on social channels, there are some generally accepted best practices. One of them is that you don’t hijack other people’s status updates to push your own self-serving sales agenda.

I was annoyed by that action. Do we really have to spell out what common courtesy is to people? Anywho, the action led me to post another update mentioning that I didn’t think it was cool to hijack the conversation in that way, but I wanted to know what other people thought. Overwhelmingly, people do not like it. Naturally, the person who did the deed thought it was just fine if the information was relevant. I don’t disagree that sharing relevant information is helpful. Why not post a link to Forrester then? Why the link to your webinar?

Proponents argue that they are just “adding value” by linking back to their blog, their website, their podcast, their video, their webinar. You get the idea… THEIR STUFF. Usually, they add a one sentence comment and then say, “go read my blog/watch my webinar to learn more.” These people justify their actions by saying that they don’t want to leave a lengthy comment, but they are resolute in their belief that they are just being helpful by sharing their knowledge. Sounds charitable doesn’t it?

Nope, it is self-serving.

Here’s the thing, no matter how you try to dress up your argument, what you are really doing is trying to get exposure for yourself. Unless you run a charity and don’t need to make money, I assume you sell something. If you really want to contribute value to the conversation then why include a link to push people somewhere else? Specifically, that somewhere being to YOUR PAGE.

The final kicker is that this person I’m talking about works for a competitor. Yes, I know and respect the owner, but a competitor none the less. That makes the action, in my opinion, more grievous. There’s something called professional courtesy, and I’m all for co-opetition. There is plenty of business for everyone. But using my LinkedIn profile as free real estate for anyone to push people to their website is rude and self-serving.

Salespeople (and marketers) are feeling the pressure to hit revenue goals. I get that. The problem is that the pressure can lead to short-circuited thinking and bypassing common courtesy and accepted best practices. I have no doubt that the individual who did this to me, does it to others. All the while justifying that he’s only being helpful. There are other ways to share your great content, but hijacking someone’s status update on their profile to do it… not cool. Period.

In most LinkedIn groups, there are specific guidelines about not linking back to your own sites, but I suppose there are people out there that just assume that your status updates are fair game. They aren’t.

What did I do?

After giving it a day to ponder, I eventually – and for the first time, I might add – deleted the comment and disconnected from that person as a connection. I decided it was an opportunity to make my point. That point was really driven home – well, maybe – when the offender noticed I deleted his comment and sent me a LinkedIn mail about it. I told him straight up how I felt about what he did. Will his behavior change? Doubtful.

There are reasons why sales gets a bad rap. The people using social media to try and short-cut the process aren’t helping things. So, here’s my sales tip…

STOP TRYING TO MAKE EVERYTHING ABOUT YOU!

Participate in the conversation taking place on someone’s status update to share your knowledge and expertise. If people like what you have to say, they will check you out to learn more. Be patient and respect the process. When you disrespect others, that will come back to bite you.

Does Your Sales Message Scream Value?

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

According to an eBook on Expert Prospecting Tips from Witty Parrot, one in every two B2B salespeople are left to their own devices to generate leads, which creates a bit of a problem since buyers easily block their prospecting efforts. It is time for salespeople to look in the mirror and accept that there is a reason why this is happening.

“According to sales management, the salesperson’s ability or inability to communicate value messages is the biggest inhibitor keeping salespeople from achieving quota.”–SiriusDecisions

Can you really blame buyer’s resistance to dealing with salespeople? Their experience is, more often than not, a waste of their precious time. The inability to create a value message is at the heart of this problem. Feature dumps don’t cut it, and simply making more phone calls, sending more spam emails, or broadcasting your pitch to more people on social channels aren’t helping you. Your sales messaging has to change.

Today’s traditional sales approach is to broadcast communication that is nothing more than vendor centric sales pitches. That broadcast could be via the phone, email, social networks or during the sales call. Rather than breaking through the competitive noise and generating a return on effort, poorly crafted sales messages earn salespeople a place in the delete pile. Worse, they are doing harm to their professional brand and that of their company. You have one shot at making a good first impression throughout every stage of the sales process. Why wouldn’t you want to make it count?

Don’t do this!

Here is an example of an email I received recently that illustrates my point. It completely misses the mark, and frankly, I can’t imagine any decision maker agreeing to a sales meeting after reading it. Let’s see what you think.

“Good Day!

XYZ Services is a technology services company which provides “CEO’s, CFO’s, Operations, Sales, and Training Managers” the ability to share content by educating, energizing, mobilizing, motivating, and training their consumers, prospects, and employees. Our new product called Whatever and Whatever are tools that will transform your business into focused energy! The link above is a “Manager” who conducted a Webinar Training on XYZ’s Educational Services. It was extremely successful for her and her business/company. I would greatly appreciate 15 minutes of your time to learn more about your company and how you currently communicate within your organization and if you’re experiencing the “White Water Mentality.” My goal is to help you get more Psyched up and in Sync! Do you need increased productivity, a wider audience, and more business sales? Let’s invest some time and see where WE can GROW together. Change is inevitable. Vision means rallying the troops! I look forward to collaborating with you soon!”

There are so many problems with this email.

For starters, I have no idea what this company actually does. Do you? Something about a content sharing platform that lets you educate, energize, mobilize, motivate and train people. Their service is supposedly for five different types of company leaders, but the message is not customized for any one of them. This email should really be five different emails with a message that is focused on what each leader would actually care about.

This dandy new tool will transform your business into focused energy, which sounds ridiculous and means nothing. The seller does attempt to include a success story, but there are no specifics about the actual success the manager supposedly had. Did she bring in new leads? How many? Did she secure meetings with 15 decision makers on her target list? What percentage of new business did she close? Specific metrics grab attention. By the way, most people will not click on links when the email comes from a stranger. Communicate value in the message assuming people won’t go and visit your website.

This salesperson wants a phone call to learn more about my company, which he could easily do by reading my LinkedIn profile. If you are going to get 15 minutes with your target buyer, you want to make that time count. Don’t waste it asking the buyer to educate you about their business. Do your homework and figure it out. Use your meeting time to progress the opportunity not halt you in your tracks.

This seller also wants to know how I communicate within my company and if I’m experiencing “white water mentality”. What does that mean? Finally, he ends his email with “change is inevitable” and “vision means rallying the troops”. Hum. Should I be insulted that he thinks I’m stuck in my ways and have no vision?

Stop with the nonsense.

This nonsensical email is filled with jargon, buzz words and lacks any clarity as to the value this seller can bring to my business. I have a picture in my mind of what a sales meeting with him would look like and it’s not pretty.

When crafting sales messaging, keep these tips in mind:

Know your audience.
Make the message personalized, focused and relevant.
Skip the jargon and buzz words.
Include metrics to support success stories.
Get another perspective before sending the email or presenting your story.

If your aim is to source new sales opportunities, change your message. Focus on quality not quantity. It takes work to get the message right, and I believe this is one area where sellers can create true competitive advantage for themselves. So, will you?

Hey, while you are here, don’t forget to download your FREE copy of my Message Matters e-book from the home page. Learn tips for transforming those messages into something that works.

Why I’m Over Social Selling

By Barbara Giamanco 26 Comments

I said it. I am over social selling. Totally. Over. It.

Given that I’ve been evangelizing the integration of social media into your selling process for years, you might be wondering why. In a word… noise.

And not just noise, but noise specifically coming from a whole new crop of experts, as well as companies who are looking to capitalize on what they perceive is a hot SEO term. Each camp then goes about finding a way to put their own self-serving spin on the subject. It has become nauseating.

As someone who loves the profession of selling and has worked hard to elevate the perception and professionalism of our industry, it riles me up that this new breed of social selling noisemakers only drag the profession down. These experts don’t actually talk about what it takes to successfully sell today. They can’t. They don’t know how to sell. Oh, they can copy and repeat what others have already said for years and act like they are the first to tout such profound wisdom. They are good at bragging about how many Twitter followers they have or how high their Klout score is. They will beat you over the head that it’s “all about content”. On LinkedIn, they want you to know they have high SSI (social selling index) scores, which supposedly means the higher your score, the higher your sales opportunities will be. Except for one thing. Scores, followers and sharing content have zip to do with the ability to sell.

Let’s talk about selling, shall we.

I love social tools, if put into the hands of those that have been trained in the art and science of core selling skills. –Miles Austin

Anyone with any REAL SALES BACKGROUND already understands that social channels are nothing more than another set of “tools” that you can avail yourself of to reach potential buyers. We know that buyers block cold emails and phone calls, because they just don’t trust vendors to do much more than waste their precious time trying to pitch them.

We also know that as a result of easy access to information, buyers and their teams go online to research companies, solutions and people to get a sense of who will make their short-list when they have a problem to solve. But the latest noise would have you believe that content is all that drives buying decisions. Yes, content is important, but content IS NOT going to close that B2B, highly complex sale. Content may win you the opportunity to have a sales conversation, but from that point on your consultative selling skills better be top notch, because that’s what wins business. I have said this for years, and I’ll keep saying it until there is no more breath left in my body.

This graphic I put together illustrates how I think about the sales process. From my point of view, using social channels (social selling) fits in those first 3 steps you take to connect with and engage buyers in order to secure the sales meeting. You can also use social channels to keep up with ongoing support and the nurturing of your client relationships. But what about those stages in between? Qualify the opportunity, propose a solution, negotiate the terms of the deal, close the business and deliver the service? I can think of few situations where those steps are happening using social channels. These activities are happening when you are actually engaged in the art of selling. You know…when you are talking to and meeting with potential buyers.

Yes, absolutely, integrate the use of social media into your sales process, but I’m asking you not to believe anyone who would suggest that’s all you need to successfully compete for business. You must have great sales skills and understand your buyer’s decision making process well enough to align your approach to theirs.

Being a great salesperson doesn’t rely on cheap social selling tricks. Your success depends on taking a strategic sales approach, great selling skills that focuses on solving problems for buyers and a process that you consistently execute against. You can follow the social selling noisemakers who can’t go further than clicks, likes and shares and believe their hype, or, you can get the training you need and do the work it takes – throughout the entire sales process – to be great at selling.

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I love social tools, if put into the hands of those that have been trained in the art and science of core selling skills. –Miles Austin

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