What is Social Selling and How Can You Use It?

Social Selling is a term that is creeping in to the world of social media.

What does it mean and more importantly, how can you use it?

According to Hootsuite:

“Social selling is the practice of using a brand’s social media channels to connect with prospects, develop a connection with them, and engage with potential leads”

I was reminded of just how effective social selling can be when last month I was thrown back into the deep end and did the flowers for a friend’s wedding. Luckily, I had the best help with my lovely daughter this weekend.

Did you know I used to be a florist? It is as a result of my time as a florist that I found my way into social media consulting.

You see I ran my own business.

Back then when I launched (2010) I couldn’t afford half page ads in glossy mags or local papers. I had to find other ways to create awareness of who I was and what I did.

I did this via social media and it helped me make connections that were vital to my business’s success.

On Instagram and Twitter (X) I met cake makers, photographers, wedding venues, funeral directors, party planners all the people who needed someone like me to help make an event that little more special.

I guess you could say I was a pioneer of social selling back then!

We connected via social media, met face-to-face, and referred clients, we had so much fun and worked well together.

There weren’t hundreds of them just 6 or 7 all who I had met through social media in the first instance.

Now I know Instagram and Twitter (X) are very different platforms these days but in my opinion, the principle is still the same.

Make connections, get to know that person or business, make business introductions or provide support to one another. It’s simple really, you don’t need to get complicated with the latest wizardry of creating complicated Reels or flashy videos just make a connection and start a conversation.

 

This community, though small was engaged and connected. It made a huge difference to my business and impacted how large my audience was. When you work collaboratively to build a network with other people your audience and theirs become shared. You can grow brand awareness without having to have hundreds of thousands of followers. So I very quickly grew the reach of my brand and increased awareness of what I did just by being present within this network.

This is the power of social selling.

So next time you are thinking about your social media strategy remember that it’s not about the volume of connections you make but the quality of them.

It’s not about broadcasting all the time but about engaging, making “friends”. You don’t go to a networking event and just smile and hand out business cards, you chat and ask questions.

 

If you spend time cultivating relationships with your audience, or specific members you can harness the power of social selling. When your leads are coming through word of mouth, referrals or even ‘my friend said we’d be a good fit’ – that’s when you know that your social media is working for you through social selling.

It is not to be underestimated and shows how having a real connection online means that your audience will grow and in turn so will your sales.

It was so good to be back, using the creative part of my brain, seeing the colours and smelling the fragrances of the flowers and greenery and it was good to be reminded of why I ventured into this industry, that social media is social and it’s not about chasing big numbers of followers it’s about meaningful connections.

So now I’m off to brush up on my flower names and dig out those old friends and see what they are up to these days!

If you found this useful let’s connect via Linkedin here

If you would like to some help creating more meaningful connections via your social media please send me an email and we can have a chat or book a call in my diary  here!