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Blow Up Your Social Media Strategy – Team Up With Engineering and Sales Today

If you’re running a business in today’s digital age, you’re no stranger to the importance of a robust social media strategy. It’s not just about crafting compelling tweets or creative Instagram stories; it’s about understanding your audience, leveraging your products and services, and ultimately driving growth. But are you unlocking the full potential of your strategy? The secret to explosive success might just lie in two unlikely allies: your engineering and sales teams. Let’s explore how this cross-functional collaboration can supercharge your social media efforts.

Breaking the Marketing Silo

Traditionally, marketing teams have operated in their own silo, isolated from the rest of the organization. This approach often leaves marketers with an incomplete picture of what they’re marketing. By integrating with engineering and sales, marketers can better understand the product and customer perspective, leading to more informed and effective strategies.

A Better Grasp of the Product

Consider the potential power of your engineering team’s knowledge and insight. These are the people who design and build your products or services. Their technical understanding can add depth to your marketing content that’s hard to replicate. They can highlight features that may not be immediately obvious but can differentiate you from the competition.

Real-world example: Microsoft has leveraged this tactic effectively, often featuring their engineers in their social media content. They discuss the technical aspects of their products, explaining their capabilities, benefits, and how they stand out in the market. This strategy gives their audience a deeper understanding of their products, leading to increased engagement and conversions.

Understanding Your Customer

Your sales team is on the frontline, interacting with customers and potential customers daily. They have an in-depth understanding of customer needs, preferences, pain points, and what they value about your product. Incorporating this knowledge into your social media strategy can enhance your content’s relevance and resonance.

Real-world example: The CRM platform, Salesforce, has been known to leverage the insights from their sales team in their marketing strategy. They use real-life customer queries and pain points to create relevant, engaging social media content that answers potential customers’ queries before they ask them. The result? Improved customer satisfaction and increased lead generation.

Data-Driven Insights

Perhaps the most significant advantage of teaming up with engineering and sales is the potential for data-driven decision-making. Both teams generate a wealth of data that can significantly enhance your social media strategy when correctly analyzed and applied. You can gain insights into which product features attract the most attention or which customer needs drive the most sales and tailor your content accordingly.

Metrics that matter: After implementing a cross-functional approach, the clothing retailer ASOS reported a 30% increase in their social media engagement rate and a 25% increase in conversions from social media traffic. This improved performance was attributed to a more nuanced understanding of their products and customers, achieved through closer collaboration with their engineering and sales teams.

Final Thoughts

Blasting off your social media strategy may be as simple as knocking down internal walls and embracing a collaborative, cross-functional approach. With a deeper understanding of your products and customers, you can create content that attracts, resonates, and drives growth.

According to a study by the Aberdeen Group, organizations with aligned sales and marketing teams achieved an average of 32% annual revenue growth, while less aligned companies reported an average of 7% decline. This significant gap proves that interdepartmental collaboration is beneficial and essential for a thriving business.

In another example, the marketing software company Adobe Marketo is an excellent service that uses rich behavioral data, built-in intelligence, and sophisticated journey flows to identify and engage your best customers and accelerate the customer experience. Reported a 67% higher conversion rate when sales and marketing teams were in sync, emphasizing the power of a unified approach.

Start bridging the gap today and watch your social media strategy soar. With the combined insights and strengths of your engineering and sales teams, there’s no telling how high your business can climb.

Social Media Sales in 2022

Forward-thinking salespeople are embracing a more “social” approach to break down old communication barriers such as Cold Calls, and Email = Social Media. Social selling allows salespeople to laser-target prospects, establish rapport and with their networks, and possibly even ditch the dreaded practice of cold calling.

While determining the best way to connect with prospects and help coax a consumer down your sales funnel, buyers are consistently going to social networks and the Internet to research products they have an interest in purchasing. Whether you are a B2B or B2C brand, potential buyers are looking on these social media platforms for product information. As smartphones are getting bigger form factors and faster processors, consumers are apt to looking, researching with these larger handheld mobile screens.

Here is a brief breakdown of Social Media as related to the Enterprise:

Business to Consumer = Facebook

Business-to-Business products (or services) = LinkedIn (if you have a first-level connection in common with the executive or buyer who will sign off on a PO)

All types of sales = Twitter

*Twitter is the best for “all kinds of sales” as it’s a very popular network (across all demographics) that doesn’t have privacy settings that keep you from high volume searches and actions.

Social Media Sales strategies

Twitter. Make sure you “add” to the conversation a little before directly engaging in customers:

Like (heart) a few Tweets
ReTweet one or two Tweets
Follow them

Friend, Follow, Follow Back or Connect with individuals with profiles that match you or your clients. Its VERY Important to build relationships on any Social Media platform. Not only can it help to generate leads, it can also help foster relationships with current customers.

Be in expert in your space. Provide solutions or tips and feedback to your customers or potential customers if they post a question or gripe on Twitter/Facebook. Prioritize the social channels and tools your audience is already using and that you’re familiar with, then organize those by their primary function.

Listening on social media is one of the most powerful tactics in a social selling strategy. Monitor for popular hashtags and keywords that are relevant to your industry or brand to find useful insights but also see what is being said about your competitors.

Never cold pitch on Social Media platforms. It comes off as desperate and will be ignored. If there is a conversation trending within your industry and potential customers, join in to offer meaningful commentary and interact with these potential buyers. Listening for these opportunities and finding out the pain points your potential customers are having will give sales people a feel for the conversation and allow them to add value.

Social media is “networking” more than it is “advertising”. The goal is to get them to call you (or vice versa), have an open mind about your product or service, and then make your sales pitch.

When its time to engage or pitch, follow these steps:

Ask for their email so that you can send them some info on your services.

Find them on LinkedIn and add “connect” with them.

Send a polite email and mention a conversation you had with them on Twitter or Facebook. You can also mention a tweet or Post that you “favorite” or “liked” from them.

Good Social Sales tools in this space that keeps track of conversations and engagement include:

Hootsuite. More for individuals and small business.

Salesforce Marketing Cloud. Enterprise grade and scalable.

Its apparent that Social Media like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn are not fads anymore. These platforms are now mature options to generate leads and sales online. By experimenting with different Social Media sales strategies, you can find the best way to convert them into real quantifiable results on all levels. There are no participation medals in social selling: if you’re going to do it, you have to do it right. That means providing valuable insight to the right prospects at the right time.

Social Media Sales

Forward-thinking salespeople are embracing a new approach to break down old communication barriers such as Cold Calls, and Email = Social Media.

While determining the best way to connect with prospects and help coax a consumer down your sales funnel, buyers are consistently going to social networks and the Internet to research products they have an interest in purchasing. Whether you are a B2B or B2C brand, potential buyers are looking on these social media platforms for product information. As the rise of smartphones are getting bigger form factors, consumers are apt to looking, researching with these larger handheld mobile screens.