Coordinating Sales with Marketing and Social Media

Sales professionals must keep an eye on changing trends in the field, as technology and social trends have a big impact on sales success. Social media marketing is just one strategy that has an impact on sales, as millions of people use social media accounts to share information about their favorite products and services. People also use social media to warn others away from companies that use high-pressure sales tactics or fail to provide good customer service. Here are just a few ways that you can integrate social media marketing into your strategy as a sales professional.

Before launching your social media strategy, you must engage in the planning process. Failure to plan can lead to some negative social media marketing results, so use caution when planning your initial strategy. A June 2013 article in AdAge indicates that "bad buzz" actually had an effect on a telecommunications company. In fact, the company received so much negative attention on social media sites that it experienced an 8 percent reduction in customer signups. Your strategy should outline how your company plans to respond to negative comments. Instead of deleting comments—which looks bad for your company—you should keep your cool and be sure to respond to each comment. Responding to criticism appropriately helps demonstrate your professionalism, and you may find that it helps you make more sales.

"Forbes" contributor Mark Fidelman reports that salespeople who use social media often outsell those who do not. In fact, 78 percent of the people who use social media sold more than peers who did not have a social media strategy. This demonstrates the importance of integrating social media and marketing into your sales techniques. When you're planning your social media marketing strategy, you must determine which tools will give you the best return on investment for your time. Fidelman reports that LinkedIn helped salespeople achieve the best results, followed by Twitter and Facebook. If you're a sales executive, you can support your front-line salespeople by offering training in the right way to use social media marketing for sales.

Although social media marketing is important, you should not underestimate the importance of traditional marketing tactics. Email marketing, blogging, and search engine optimization can help you achieve your sales goals, but you must use these tools consistently. You must also understand the basics of marketing before attempting to develop a marketing strategy. You should understand the needs and wants of your target audience and be able to explain how your products or services meet those needs. You should also understand the best way to reach members of your target audience. Social media marketing is great for reaching members of Generation Y, but it probably wouldn't be the best strategy for reaching a target audience of elderly people.

Social media marketing and other marketing techniques should always play a role in your personal sales strategy. Taking the time to plan how you'll use these tools is important, as social media and marketing mistakes could cost you sales. If you don't have any experience with social media marketing, ask your employer to provide training or consider investing in books and other educational materials.

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