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 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.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by papottsy on
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Thanks for sharing this with us and I do agree that we should spend more time taking care of our friends. There is a lot of people that just want to slam the advertising and I have been like that also. It seems that it is really hard to market online and maintain the right balance. I am full time and not having the 9-5 makes it hard at times to keep things straight. I get going and then look up at the clock and it is 3am. I spend way to much time doing the little stuff than get anxious when I see that and go bananas trying to get into the business. I am going to start using a daytimer to get myself some kind of a schedule. Maybe that will help
Rev Steven Potts
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Permalink Reply by David Foster on -
I have a list of activities that I do DAILY Steven. I make sure that I do ALL of the things that I have to do first that are money making activities. Once those are done, then I can play and investigate....since I have started doing that my results have quadrupled. It really is all about focus!
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Permalink Reply by Jill Stemm on -
I agree if you do not organize your daily efforts it is way too easy to get side tracked and end up doing some medial task that is not accomplishing a thing for you. When I make my lists I make sure I put the tasks I like doing the least first so I don't get burnt out and not do them. If I get them over with early in the morning then the rest of my day is smooth sailing and I get to do things like engage in interesting conversations with people on the social networks,lol It really is funny everyone seems to think if you own your own business that you don't have to work much. I imagine part of this is all the advertisments you see out there claiming they work 4 hours a week or 2 hours a day and in my mind that is bunch of bull because I work my butt off with advertising and product development. It is just never ending when it is your company. Have a good day everyone
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Permalink Reply by Mary Ellen Terry on -
You are correct, although rewarding, it takes time and planing. I love networking, especially if you can offer your customers the opportunity to change their lives without taking a risk.
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Permalink Reply by Robert Molluro on
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I Coach a lot of professionals who want to take their businesses to a much higher level. One of the techniques is to make sure that you have time allocated to do those things that make you money. The other is to eat a Green frog for breakfast-do that tough thing that you are putting off as it is never as difficult as you think and yet it really drains your energy. If you want to get things done try this advice. Do the things that feel good is just another form of procrastination unless you have reached the place in your business where you are able to delegate or outsource all of the stuff that you are not good at. A good strategy long term is to know the 5-7 things that you excel at and love to do and do those 80% of the time. This is not as hard as it sounds if you focus on it.
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Permalink Reply by Sharon Monteiro on -
I use the "pareto' method and I swear by the book 'Eat that Frog' by Brian Stacey (concept is do the tough yet effective jobs first). You know what's interesting, I have introduced this method to my kids in regard to their homework and they are pleased with the results. They have subsequently introduced this concept to their friends to.
Another concept I would like to introduce is 'delegation' - empower others to take responsibility - that way you get more time to do what you and only you can do. Explain very clearly the job at hand and the end result you want.
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Permalink Reply by Terri Pattio on -
You said the magic word "FOCUS"
You can't get distracted, boy do I know about that one, it's real hard for me, so I have to work at it by making a "to do" list and checking off things as I do them, that way I can see what I accomplished for the day. I have to maintain my focus and move my business forward each day in order to continue to be successful.
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Permalink Reply by Lily Chauvin on
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Hi Rev Potts :o)
I highly recommend a FranlinCovey planner. They also have a phenomenal seminar "What Matter's Most" that I took a few years ago. You are on the right track. Stay the course. . . .your hard work and determination will pay off.
Lily
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Permalink Reply by Catherine Mascrès on -
Thank you for sharing your experiences. Amicalement. Catherine
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Permalink Reply by Charlie - Steals.com on -
Great blog post. I've enjoyed seeing THIS social networking site grow since I join last June.
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Permalink Reply by David Foster on
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Thanks man! Great post! I have been telling people this very same thing. For some reason people seem to think that the more they just BLAST people with their links, the better chance they will have at getting people to their website and well that is just not the case...it just upsets people and is the quickest way to get them from that point on to ignore everything you post...
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Permalink Reply by zorro potion on -
Its good "old fashioned" courtesy that wins out always. A recently noticed trend is members plopping their ads in my comment section. .and I am not on their friends list. ..It is rude leaving me feeling somewhat "overlooked".I sent friend invites to these people, in future I will delete their ad and be more selective in my friend choice.I am relatively new to social networking and admit when I first became a member here I put ads on my friends site because I actually thought thats what "you did" I was mortified when I was politely told it wasnt! I have been putting ads on my page as blogs as I cannot work out how else to get them onto my page.The ning epedemic is well under way.I get up to 15 invites a day to join groups. .sometimes from the same person lol. Integrity surely gets lost along the way. .
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