FINDING CUSTOMERS AND SUCCESSFULLY ENGAGING WITH THEM has always been a fundamental challenge for sales organizations. With an estimate 152 million blogs, 25 billion messages sent via Twitter, and 2 billion Internet users worldwide, social networks represent valuable prospecting and customer- relationship opportunities for sales teams around the globe.

1. SocialSelling
HOW TO CONNECT AND ENGAGE WITH THE MODERN BUYER

2. DEFINING KEY TERMS
THE SOCIAL-SELLING LANDSCAPE WEB 2.0 – the interactive, information
sharing, user-centered design and
collaboration enabled by the World Wide
Web. Examples include blogs, social media
sites, Wikipedia and other wikis, and
FINDING CUSTOMERS AND SUCCESSFULLY ENGAGING WITH THEM
more. A subset of Web 2.0 is the “social
has always been a fundamental challenge for sales organizations. With an estimated Web,” which refers specifically to social-
152 million blogs, 25 billion messages sent via Twitter, and 2 billion Internet networking and content-sharing sites.
users worldwide, social networks represent valuable prospecting and customer-
SALES 2.0 – the use of technology, people,
relationship opportunities for sales teams around the globe.
and process to sell more effectively. Sales
2.0 methodologies and tools result in a
However, the customer’s standardized, collaborative, and customer-
ability to independently enabled process that runs through an
discover and broadcast entire organization, leading to improved
productivity, predictable ROI, and superior
information across
performance.
a variety of social
networking platforms CUSTOMER 2.0 – a smarter, more
has in turn diminished a collaborative customer who uses Web 2.0
and Sales 2.0 technologies to research
longstanding corporate
products and services to make informed
ability to influence and buying decisions. Customer 2.0 engages
control the way products, with social media and listens to friends
solutions, and services are and colleagues over analysts and reviewers
when making purchase decisions.
perceived in the market.
The twenty-first-century SOCIAL CRM – the act of leveraging social
prospect now has greater data from sources such as blogs, forums,
access to company and and other social-media sites to engage the
product data – including customer in collaborative conversation.
peer reviews and referrals
SALES INTELLIGENCE – dynamic,
– than at any time in granular, and insightful information
history. As a result, the sales professional is no longer the keeper and disseminator of gathered from Web 2.0 sources, such
information; that role has been usurped by the ever-widening social Web. as social-media sites. Sales intelligence
moves beyond “sales data,” which is static,
editorial-based, and aggregate.
“Buyers today can get through about 60 to 70 percent of the buying cycle before they
even pick up the phone and call the rep,” says Greg Brush, vice president of sales and SOCIAL MEDIA – one of the foundations
customer success at InsideView. of Web 2.0, used for social interaction.
Social media includes all Websites that
enable people to connect via the Internet,
Accordingly, the sales organization that can leverage the tools of the information age such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and
and train its sales force to actively engage in social selling will be more likely to see blogs.
immediate revenue gains and strengthen its capacity for sustained overall growth.
SOCIAL SELLING – the intelligent use of
social media, social CRM, and other Web 2.0
In a recent survey performed by Jive Software, more than 80 percent of respondents
tools and applications to listen to, connect
across a multitude of industries (including financial services, telecommunications, and engage with, and effectively meet the
healthcare, insurance, and software) reported quantifiable benefits of adopting social needs of Customer 2.0.
business initiatives. (See figure 1)

3. FOLLOWING QUANTIFIABLE BENEFITS OF ADOPTING SOCIAL BUSINESS INITIATIVES:
An OgilvyOne study also indicates that Figure 1: Survey Response from Jive Software
the B2B space is seeing major gains
from social selling: Among 1,000 sales
professionals in the US, UK, Brazil, and 42%
China, 49 percent believed social media
was important to their success, and more 34%
than two-thirds of the most successful
31%
27% 28%
reps said that social media was “integral
to their sales success.”
A strategic approach to social media can
help sales executives reach the twin goals
of increasing revenue and streamlining
Idea Exchange Customer-Support Brand Customer Communication
team efficiency. with Customers Call Volume Awareness Retention and Ideas
MEASURABLE RESULTS AND ROI
SPECIFICALLY, COMPANIES THAT ENGAGE IN SOCIAL
SELLING GAIN THE FOLLOWING ACTIONABLE BENEFITS:
• MULTIPLE WAYS TO REACH CUSTOMERS IN THE RIGHT PLACE,
AT THE RIGHT TIME.
• A PUBLIC FORUM TO SHOW ITS WILLINGNESS AND ABILITY
TO SOLVE PROBLEMS FOR CUSTOMERS WHO EXPRESS
DISSATISFACTION WITH PRODUCTS OR SERVICES.
• THE ABILITY TO IDENTIFY CUSTOMER NEEDS AND WANTS
AND SOLICIT FEEDBACK ON PROPOSED INITIATIVES AND
CHANGES TO PRODUCTS AND SERVICES.
From the customer’s perspective, social networks not only offer
an easy and viral way to spread the word about brand-related
experiences, they also serve as easy entry points for researching or
reaching out to a company.
It stands to reason, then, that B2B companies and sales executives
who lack an established of companies that have taken a proactive
approach to social selling and seen significant ROI.

4. Thanks in part to the leveraging of social networks like blogs and Twitter to
5 TIPS FOR
empower employees to deliver a superior customer-service experience, online
retailer Zappos was able to scale its business from zero to more than $1 billion in LAUNCHING A SOCIAL
gross merchandise sales in less than 10 years. SELLING INITIATIVE:
Cisco executed one of its top five product launches in the company’s history solely 1. EVALUATE WHAT YOU’RE DOING.
through the use of social media. By targeting Many people on your team probably
platforms that its customers were already already use LinkedIn, Twitter, blogs,
using (including Facebook, Second Life, etc. Take stock of how you’re currently
connecting with and listening to
video-conference services, and blogs), Cisco
customers, and see what seems to be
drew 9,000 people to its product-launch
working. Where are you successfully
event (90 times more attendees than in the
engaging and building relationships with
past).
prospects and customers?
Sparked by its “Will It Blend?” viral video 2. START BY LISTENING.
campaign (which has so far received more than 134 million views on YouTube Just as you wouldn’t run into a cocktail
alone), Blendtec was able to increase brand awareness and lower cold-call party and start shoving your business
resistance for its sales force. Since the campaign’s launch in 2006, sales have card under everyone’s nose, don’t jump
increased 700 percent. on Twitter and start jabbering about your
business. Instead, listen to what your
As of June 2009, Dell had attributed $3 million in revenue to the launch of its @ target market is saying. Get a sense for
DellOutlet Twitter account and successful engagement with its followers (currently who your customers’ mouthpieces are
more than 1.5 million). The company estimates that its global reach on Twitter (via and their communication and interaction
styles.
targeted accounts such as @DellHomeSalesCA and @DellnoBrasil) has brought in
more than $6.5 million in revenue.
3. SHARE INFORMATION.
Create a way for your team members
to share information internally. There
FUTURE SUCCESS are a variety of CRM-compatible tools
to facilitate the tracking and sharing
of information companywide. So if at
a trade show your marketing manager
meets a prospect who loves to ride
The change in buying behavior that has been ignited by the social Web will
horses, that information can be entered
continue to evolve, and the need to master social selling will continue to grow.
into a collaborative database and used to
But the measure of social-selling success is not in how quickly one can leave the strengthen ties during follow-up calls.
old behind; it is in how well one can use existing sales principles to adapt to a new
arena that offers a very powerful and efficient way to engage customers, shorten 4. COMMIT TO THE PROCESS.
sales cycles, and increase revenue. In the end, the right mind-set is just as important Building relationships online is not
as methodology. Sales executives who embrace social selling will win more something you can do all at once. Realize
you may not see the payoff right away,
opportunities to maximize the growth potential of their sales team and company.
and commit to three to six months before
you evaluate your efforts.
Social selling is constantly evolving as more and more companies recognize the
importance of social media on sales team success. To learn more about how social 5. COMMIT TO EVOLUTION.
selling can revolutionize your sales department and significantly increase win rates, Your team’s social-selling skills will need
visit InsideView’s Social Selling University at http://www.socialsellingu.com to evolve with the Web. Prepare to invest
time and effort in updating your social-
selling strategy, learning about new tools,
and keeping skills sharp.