Social Networking Customer Acquisition 101
Spend Your Time Building Connections not Pushing Your Product
This is the most common mistake in social networking that almost 99% of all members of social networkers make daily. Never ever mention your product in your first email or comment.
This is the basic process that has a 10 fold greater success rate than anything else:
1) Send them a message or post a comment on their wall asking a question about their business.
2) Send out a friend request to each person that responds to your comment or message. 99 out of 100 friend requests will be accepted, and these are members that are actively checking their messages.
3) Respond to each message with a personal message and try to work in mentioning your business while writing about theirs. Once again, 99 out of 100 people will naturally take a look at your website as a courtesy and to see if you might be a potential customer for them. Now you have successfully added friends that will open your friend wide emails, and you have guaranteed that each member will visit your profile and website. Along the way, you will also find other members' products and services that will benefit you and your business. That is how networking creates customers.
Key points to remember:
+Do not blindly send out 100 friend requests every other day. If you are reaching your limit in requests, then you are wasting your time. Only send a friend request if someone has sent you a message, posted a comment on your wall, or posted a comment on a blog.
Take Care of Your Friends List
1) Do not abuse the “send message to all friends.” There is a reason why there is a limit to how many friends that you can send a message to at once. It makes it difficult to spam. Spamming on social networks does not make money period.
2) You should send only one message a month to your friends list. Make it a nice short to the point message that has some tie in to the network that you are on. Once a month messaging works. Anything more than once does not. Spend your time building your friend list, and then give them one phenomenal message a month.
3) If you are going to start a group or host an event, then the same rules apply. Once a month and focus your energy and efforts around one group or event.
Key points to remember:
+If you have more than one site that you are promoting, then you have one too many. Having 10 Ning sites, that you invite every friend to, just increases your chance of failing by 10 times. Do one thing with excellence, and you will be a success. Spread yourself too thin, and you will be lost in mediocrity.
The Right Way to Use Blogs to Get Customers
1) You should write blogs that ask questions that appeal to everyone on the site. All you have to do is put the question in the title, and then write a really good answer from yourself. These are the blogs that you want to use in site wide messages and in welcome comments to new members.
2) The goal of your blog should always be to generate comments. People that post comments are action takers and 8 times more likely to buy your product or service. Respond to each comment mentioning what you do while asking about their business, and then send a friend request the next day.
3) You should have a one really great blog that explains who you are and what your product or service does. You only give out this blog to the people that show an interest. This is the blog that you can use to close customers.
Key points to remember:
+Do not waste your time posting, sharing, or pushing blogs that are advertisements for your services. It does not work. You are wasting your time and destroying potential connections.
The Bottom Line
Social networking is different from every other marketing medium on the internet. What works elsewhere does not work in this realm, and it will not work here.
Each network is like the goose that lays the golden egg once a day. There is only one way to get the golden egg, and if you do it any other way then you kill the goose.
This is the only proven methodolgy to get a steady flow of customers via social networking:
1) Engage the member by asking them a question.
2) If they respond, then send a friend request.
3) Reply to the comment or message and politely work in what you do while tying it in to their business.
4) If they show interest, then close with a blog post that explains what you do with a link to your website and a phone number.
5) If there is no initial interest, then continue to send them one quality message a month to entice interest.
It took me two years before I learned the process, and gave in to the fact that this is the only way that works.
This was originally posted by the COO of Sta.rtUp.biz. Sta.rtUp.biz is a Social Network for Small Businesses and Professionals with over 40,000+ members.
This is the most common mistake in social networking that almost 99% of all members of social networkers make daily. Never ever mention your product in your first email or comment.
This is the basic process that has a 10 fold greater success rate than anything else:
1) Send them a message or post a comment on their wall asking a question about their business.
2) Send out a friend request to each person that responds to your comment or message. 99 out of 100 friend requests will be accepted, and these are members that are actively checking their messages.
3) Respond to each message with a personal message and try to work in mentioning your business while writing about theirs. Once again, 99 out of 100 people will naturally take a look at your website as a courtesy and to see if you might be a potential customer for them. Now you have successfully added friends that will open your friend wide emails, and you have guaranteed that each member will visit your profile and website. Along the way, you will also find other members' products and services that will benefit you and your business. That is how networking creates customers.
Key points to remember:
+Do not blindly send out 100 friend requests every other day. If you are reaching your limit in requests, then you are wasting your time. Only send a friend request if someone has sent you a message, posted a comment on your wall, or posted a comment on a blog.
Take Care of Your Friends List
1) Do not abuse the “send message to all friends.” There is a reason why there is a limit to how many friends that you can send a message to at once. It makes it difficult to spam. Spamming on social networks does not make money period.
2) You should send only one message a month to your friends list. Make it a nice short to the point message that has some tie in to the network that you are on. Once a month messaging works. Anything more than once does not. Spend your time building your friend list, and then give them one phenomenal message a month.
3) If you are going to start a group or host an event, then the same rules apply. Once a month and focus your energy and efforts around one group or event.
Key points to remember:
+If you have more than one site that you are promoting, then you have one too many. Having 10 Ning sites, that you invite every friend to, just increases your chance of failing by 10 times. Do one thing with excellence, and you will be a success. Spread yourself too thin, and you will be lost in mediocrity.
The Right Way to Use Blogs to Get Customers
1) You should write blogs that ask questions that appeal to everyone on the site. All you have to do is put the question in the title, and then write a really good answer from yourself. These are the blogs that you want to use in site wide messages and in welcome comments to new members.
2) The goal of your blog should always be to generate comments. People that post comments are action takers and 8 times more likely to buy your product or service. Respond to each comment mentioning what you do while asking about their business, and then send a friend request the next day.
3) You should have a one really great blog that explains who you are and what your product or service does. You only give out this blog to the people that show an interest. This is the blog that you can use to close customers.
Key points to remember:
+Do not waste your time posting, sharing, or pushing blogs that are advertisements for your services. It does not work. You are wasting your time and destroying potential connections.
The Bottom Line
Social networking is different from every other marketing medium on the internet. What works elsewhere does not work in this realm, and it will not work here.
Each network is like the goose that lays the golden egg once a day. There is only one way to get the golden egg, and if you do it any other way then you kill the goose.
This is the only proven methodolgy to get a steady flow of customers via social networking:
1) Engage the member by asking them a question.
2) If they respond, then send a friend request.
3) Reply to the comment or message and politely work in what you do while tying it in to their business.
4) If they show interest, then close with a blog post that explains what you do with a link to your website and a phone number.
5) If there is no initial interest, then continue to send them one quality message a month to entice interest.
It took me two years before I learned the process, and gave in to the fact that this is the only way that works.
This was originally posted by the COO of Sta.rtUp.biz. Sta.rtUp.biz is a Social Network for Small Businesses and Professionals with over 40,000+ members.
Views: 0
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Bob Knorpp on -
I find it ironic that this post, which is obviously a misplaced abuse of social marketing principles, should be here lecturing us on how to effectively leverage social media.
Let's go through the bottom line points:
1) Engage the member by asking them a question. (As far as I can tell there's not a single question mark in the above post. Maybe I should be inferring the question, "Hey, y'all! Wanna read my blog post? Cause here it is.)
2) If they respond, then send a friend request. (Nothing to respond to. There's no question. Only a link. The only reason I'm responding is because I'm a smart ass.)
3) Reply to the comment or message and politely work in what you do while tying it in to their business. (This ought to be good.)
4) If they show interest, then close with a blog post that explains what you do with a link to your website and a phone number. (Jumping the gun a bit, considering you haven't asked me a thing about myself and you've already posted your blog post in the forum.)
5) If there is no initial interest, then continue to send them one quality message a month to entice interest. (Uh. Isn't that email marketing?)
God! This post irritated me. What do you think, guys? Are they material for The BeanCast? Think I should have 'em on my show?
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Permalink Reply by Buddy 'Friendly' Wachenheimer on
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Bob, my smart ass pal, this is your smart ass chum Buddy. Question... W H Y did this post annoy you so much? And why would this post make you angry enough to want to do a Bean Cast show about it?
I don't get it, I didn't find it to be that offensive. I mean, the cute little girl next door with no name was just trying to offer some information that might help or be insightful. What's the problem with doing that? What's the big deal?
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Permalink Reply by Bob Knorpp on
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Ha! Wasn't serious about the show. Should have used the end sarcasm tag. ;-)
And as for what bothers me, this person (I doubt it's even the person pictured) didn't practice any of the principles being preached in the post. I find that incredibly annoying. I would have rather she/he/it put some good old fashioned spam in the forum than to preach about what good social media is while not practicing any of the principles being espoused. My bullshit meter went off the charts on this.
But you're probably right about me over-reacting about something that is largely irrelevant.
Bob
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Permalink Reply by Alex Har on
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I always said, There are 3 types of sales people...
1. Goes to the pub, make friends, sell people, and keep them as friends
2. Goes to the pub, make friends, try selling people and get chucked out
3. Goes to the pub, make friends but never sells anyone..what a nice guy!
We have all heard of friends who went on cruise and secured a million dollar sale and others who don't.
I do not know if its more personality type, a relationship skill or both.
Some people are probably better at crafting a direct mail or email offer...and others
do well remotely on the phone without face to face contact.
Social marketing is really a mix of all these....
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....that it is, pal. That it is. Good points.
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HEHEHEHEHE
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Permalink Reply by Eric Weaver on -
I have to agree with Bob. This is spam dressed up as a helpful tip.
Social networking ain't about "getting a steady flow of customers." It's about networking. If sales come out of that, great, but the intention for Facebook and Twitter users isn't to be sold to.
Adding to the irony is the complete lack of transparency and authenticity. Gotta love that.
Yaaaaawnnnn.....
...anyway, where were we? Oh yeah. Talking about advertising on AdGabber.
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Permalink Reply by Michael Durwin on -
Other than being thinly veiled promotion to drive traffic to their site (which looks like someone ate a book on bad design and regurgitated it onto your screen), the post is HIGHLY flawed.
Mistake #1 - which social network? They're all different. Facebook has a wall, but Twitter doesn't.
Mistake #2 - most social networks don't allow you to engage with a user unless you are already connected.
Mistake #3 - most people are savvy enough to see someone weaseling their business into a conversation.
Mistake #4 - close with a blog post? On Which site? Facebook? LinkedIn? Bebo?
Mistake #5 - so the person you've tried starting a conversation with is someone you don't know, you've been able to shove your business in their face, they're not biting, so you're going to keep spamming them once a month?
I'm offended by this post for several reasons:
Offense #1 - Their is no legitimacy. A stock photo, user name is a web site. How do we know this person has any practical experience in social media marketing?
Offense #2 - ties into Offense #1 - this seems to be just another hack that has thrown up a shingle as a social network expert. I've been marketing through "social networking" since 1994. The above "sure fire plan" makes very little sense. Every social network is different. You have to learn the lingo to be involved. This means that every social network has a different way of interacting with people.
Offense #3 - a stock photo of yourself, really? Talk about lack of transparency or honesty.
Offense #4 - I do this for a living, the user that posted it doesn't. More likely than not they're hurting businesses that listen to them.
So my issues are that the advice is wrong, it's fake, and it's misleading to those who are trying to figure out SoMe marketing. Don't even get me started on the fact that Sta.rtUp.biz is nothing more than an awful looking Ning site!
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