How to Use LinkedIn for Social Selling
In order to successfully sell your products and services, you must have good relationships with your customers. One of the best ways to develop strong relationships is by being active on social media. Using your social channels, you can share information about your industry, keep people updated on your latest developments and engage customers in contests, giveaways, FAQs and more. When they’re ready to buy, the trust factor will already be there.
LinkedIn should be your platform of choice for B2B selling. While Facebook and Instagram are great for B2C sales, LinkedIn consists of a directory of professionals. This audience is looking for products and services that will help their businesses grow.
Let’s talk more about social selling on LinkedIn and how to make this process work for you.
What is Social Selling?
Social selling is different from social marketing. It refers to salespeople using social media to interact with their prospects one on one. By providing each prospect with individualized attention, their interactions are more valuable and they are more likely to convert.
Why is LinkedIn a Great Platform for Social Selling?
According to LinkedIn.com, social selling creates 45% more sales opportunities and allows businesses to outsell their competition by 78%. Social sales eliminates the need for cold calling, which can be time consuming and ineffective. Instead, relationships are built over time, making it easier to do business with the people you know and trust.
LinkedIn is a platform conducive to B2B sales because you can fulfill the four pillars of social selling. These include:
- Create a professional image. Show participants that you are an authority in your industry. They will learn to recognize and trust your brand over others.
- Focus on the right leads. Not everyone has a need for your products and services. Focus on those who do. You can identify your best targets using established criteria such as role, function or industry.
- Engage with insights. Show that you have inside knowledge by sharing relevant industry content and commenting on news articles. People want to do business with brands that are thriving and have room for growth.
- Build strong rapports. By interacting with customers, you can better understand their pain points. This will help you sell your products more effectively, as people care most about solving their issues.
Tips for Social Selling on LinkedIn
To align yourself for social sales on the professional development network, here are a few tips we recommend taking.
- Optimize your profile and let people know you are an industry expert
- Identify potential clients who are active on LinkedIn
- Arrange for real-life communication such as talking on the phone, meeting up for lunch or coordinating at an upcoming trade show
- Use automation tools to streamline communications
To learn more about social selling, take the Social Selling Index (SSI) from LinkedIn and get your free score!