Social media has made it easier for brands, businesses, and entrepreneurs to sell. In the past, business owners had to pay loads of cash for TV spots, print advertisements, and brochures to get their products across. Now, they can simply use Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram to advertise their products and services, and it does wonders.
The Philippines is the best place to use social media to sell, as the country is the social media capital of the world. Almost half of the country’s population of 100 million people are online, which means almost 50 million people can see your brand.
But how can you sell online? Just because millions of people can see your brand doesn’t mean it will translate to sales. Boom San Agustin, the country’s leading sales management consultant and motivational keynote speaker, has some ideas.
Below are his 7 easy ways to sell your brand on social media:
1. Find leads
Your first step is to identify and find your customers. Is your target predominantly male, female, or both? Do they belong to a certain age group or location? It’s important to keep in mind your method of selling: shotgun (targeting everyone), sniper (more focused), guerrilla (competing with other companies), or farming (area-based).
San Agustin recommends going for the sniper method, as it is more potent and cost-effective. When you’re reaching out directly to your target market, the chances of you landing the sale is higher.
2. Create your brand
The next step is creating your brand. Your brand is different from your product. If your product is the item you’re selling, your brand is the idea. It’s the promise or the thought that comes to your consumer’s mind when they hear your name.
A brand is created through five simple steps: contrast (something that makes you different from similar products and services), repetition (something you can do over and over again), emotion (the impact you wish to make), significance (it has to signify you), and time (something that will stand the test of time).
Agustin says that entrepreneurs create products and consumers create brands, but that doesn’t mean you can’t control it!
3. Promote on social media
Now that you’ve found your target market and your brand, it’s time to promote. As we mentioned earlier, social media is the best place to market yourself. But first, you have to figure out which platform you’re going to use. Each platform has its own quirks, so study where your market is most online. For example, you’re not going to sell bathing suits on LinkedIn.
Each platform also has its own algorithms, so study that and consider boosting. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have boosting services that are easy to understand and are measurable.
4. Engage
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the job is over when you put yourself out there. People are seeing your product and service, it’s now time to hook them in by engaging. Make your content relevant to people and the times. Some brands usually use a pop culture phenomenon to insert themselves. During the Miss Universe pageant, brands made online ads that use their products to form the shape of a crown. Just recently, a shopping card took advantage of the #SaltBae trend. Engaging works wonders: Vans saw a spike in sales after the Damn Daniel video trended.
5. Build trust
Trust is important for a brand, because this transforms potential prospects to long-term partners who will eventually become your ambassadors. Having a loyal clientele is like having a set of free endorsers who will promote your brand to family, friends, and on social media. How do you build trust? Provide genuine communication and fulfill your promise.
6. Make it easy for them to buy
Selling your products or services online is not the same thing as having your own store, but it could be easier. Think about it: if you have a physical store, people will have to go there, which takes effort. On the other hand, people can just browse photos and order online. Make it easy. Have an email address or contact number that will always respond. Some social media platforms allow customers to directly send messages.
7. Get feedback
Feedback is important because it allows you to grow your products and services, so you can be inspired to improve them. Asking for feedback lets you know what your customers think, which will also give you insight on your target market. Find out what they like and don’t like about your brand and go from there.
Find more ways to sell your brand on social media with Boom Agustin, author of the book Be Stupid, Be Selfish, Be Suicidal, Be Successful. He is the managing partner of Our Knowledge Consulting Services Asia (a sales management consulting firm) and the corporate secretary of Adwolf Incorporated (a below-the-line ad agency). To learn more about sales and brand management, contact him at @boomyoursales on Twitter or boom8088@gmail.com.
