Social enlightenment

Most of the hype in social media is aimed at page promotion, getting liked and followed.

One area that often escapes the attention of the pundits is the platform that social media provides to learn more intimate details about others you can then apply in a meaningful way.

I connect with most of my key clients in social networks, because I want to learn more about them. For example, Facebook offers details about your customers’ family members, such as childrens’ names and favourite family activities.

Also found readily are restaurants they frequent, sporting teams they support, music preferences and even where they went to school and with whom. The list goes on.

Who needs a private detective when we have social media?!

LinkedIn provides information about a client’s network and if someone you know is connected to them, you can quickly hit them up for some valuable intelligence.

Never before could we access this type of information about someone without a direct relationship with them. The sceptics spout this development poses dangerous ramifications and that greater transparency will lead to more deceptive behaviour. I tend to agree, but like anything in life, the devil dwells in extremes.

The information people display in this medium is meaningful to them, so make it meaningful to you. Don’t use intimate details to manipulate, rather, communicate in a way that demonstrates a genuine interest in them as people instead of dollars signs.

Countless people that follow someone on Twitter then send an email promoting something, this not only invalidates their interest it’s annoying.

Commonsense should always prevail, respect peoples boundaries and don’t be too quick to judge. Often a public face is what people want you to see, which can be misleading.

Interestingly, the more you know about your customers, the less you will need to sell.

For more Selling Strategies advice, click here.

Trent Leyshan is the founder and CEO of BOOM Sales! a leading sales training and sales development specialist. He is also the creator of The NAKED Salesman, BOOMOLOGY! RetroService, and the Empathy Selling Process.