Social Selling and Networking

1032 Words3 Pages

The world of sales has always been about relationships and networking. However, in today’s world of smart phones, tablets, and Wi-Fi there has been a major paradigm shift. In the old days (the 1990’s), sales leads and prospects came from your network of friends and associates. This usually happened through word of mouth. Think back to the not so distant past, and you can most likely remember buying a car or ever a home through a friend of a friend. To be completely honest, this still hold true today. But, the way in which we network has changed, and so to must the way in which we find potential buyers (prospects).
To understand what social selling is we must first explore what social networking is. The short answer to that question; social networking is how people in today’s world connect, collaborate, share information, explore common interests, keep in contact, or even find a mate. The difference is, not only can you connect with your friends; you can connect with your friend’s friends, and so on.
In sales we used what is known as The Sales Process. The sales process is a multi-step process that is used to move a person from a lead all the way through to a buyer or customer. There are many different versions of the sales process, each one tailored by the person using it. The sales process I use includes; prospecting and lead generation, follow-up, interviewing and presenting, addressing concerns or objections, asking for commitment, and maintaining the relationship. Maintaining the relationship is also known as service after the sale. The two key points of the sales process when using social media are prospecting and lead generation, and maintaining the relationship.
Prospecting and lead generation are simply fin...

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...nity for sales people and buyers.” (Pg. 2) Go to any restaurant, coffee shop, or gas station in America and you will see people on their smart phones or other electronic devices. The savvy salesperson will take advantage of this opportunity and, use it as another tool to leverage in their business; those who do not will fall by the way side. In the words of Bob Dylan, “If your time to you Is worth savin', then you better start swimmin' or you'll sink like a stone, for the times they are a-changin'.”

Works Cited

"#14 The Grande Guide To Social Selling." Eloqua. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2014.

Giamanco, Barbara, and Kent Gregoire. "Tweet Me, Friend Me, Make Me Buy." Harvard Business Review 90.7/8 (2012): 88-93. Business Source Complete. Web. 14 Apr. 2014.

Bob Dylan. "The Times, They Are a- Changin’." The Times, They Are a-Changin’ Columbia Records, 1964. Vinyl.

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