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The Social Selling Bandwagon. Are We There Yet?

Jamie Shanks
Jamie Shanks

alternate-uses-for-social-media
A comparative analysis of Social Selling adoption between 2012 and 2013.

The old adage “Rome wasn’t built in a day” points to the need for time to create great things. I have found this to be almost a universal truth in business and the profession of sales. But was Rome built in a year?

12 months can be a long time, especially if you’re in sales and your pipeline resets to 0 at the beginning of each month/quarter/year. That’s why I suppose I was a little surprised by the results of a recent comparative analysis Sales For Life conducted on Social Selling adoption rates between 2012 and 2013. Surprised cause we already know the buying process has changed. I’m amazed to find that sales people are still struggling with things like buyer centric LinkedIn headlines and sharing content that influences customer behaviors.

Check out the Social Selling adoption summary:

I won’t belabor the details around our study, but (despite how you feel about statistics and assumptions) I did want to highlight the main bits of evidence that emerged. Important mainly because it exposes an opportunity sales professionals have right now. A window of opportunity that exists to emerge as experts online and effectively flip the inbound lead generation model on its head.

Social Selling Talks

But we still have some work to do. Exemplified in this recent infographic we have produced. I thought the results from this year were telling. As far as sales professionals on LinkedIn are concerned – it’s time to get out on the dance floor. Just showing up is no longer sufficient.

Here are the year over year highlights:

64% of Sales Reps had Photo in 2012, vs. 89% in 2013 or 11% who still have an avatar image.

95% in 2013 did not have a professional headline and are using a boring business card style, which is now dated and does not provide an engaging way to get a hold of you.

In 2012 an alarming 4% of profiles had added contact information vs. 47% in 2013

In 2012 only 58% of reps had posted recommendations on their profiles vs. 81% in 2013.

Today only 3% of reps are sharing and posting valuable/insightful content for their potential buyers.

The Bottom Line:

It’s true that Rome was not built in a day/that it takes time to perfect and effectively manage a Social Sales routine. But the tools are there to do so, as are the customers, the opportunities, and your competition. It’s time to move beyond having a simple presence online, to active engagement. So what are you waiting for? Download the below guides or book a call with me to learn the latest in social selling.

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Robert Kavanagh Robert Kavanagh

Social Selling Talks

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The Ultimate Guide to Social Selling