The Keys to Securing Your Customers’ Hearts, Time, and Attention
With its origins rooted deep in English folklore, the “four somethings” of marriage is an adage I was reminded of recently as I passed another milestone wedding anniversary. I’m assuming you’re familiar- something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue. That’s what you’re supposed to have to secure your partner’s hand in marriage. A standard set of gates created to ensure the union was going to be worth it.
Not unlike the way your customers and prospects evaluate the quality of your communications, they too have their own set of gates you must overcome to secure their time and attention. So in this case, consider a customer as the object of your affection, and a meeting as the institution of marriage.
Want to secure a meeting with a prospect in today’s day and age? My recommendation is to use what I am calling the “Four Somethings of Social Selling”. The next time you are on the approach, simply include 1 item from each section of the quadrant below, apply all the great sales techniques you know, and deploy them in a 4-step campaign. Repeat each step until you have the success you are looking for.
Example:
Were I wanting to book an appointment with the CIO of a large enterprise, I would take the following steps:
- I would leave them a voicemail (something old), introducing myself and letting them know I will be in touch with some relevant assets (something that challenges the status quo)
- I would then email them a blog post I had written on the suggested topic (something new)
- I would share an article someone else wrote that supported my perspective (something borrowed)
- I would connect with them on Linkedin and start sharing relevant content with them as frequently as every few days (something blue)
I would rinse and repeat this process every week until said CIO has agreed to invest time and attention. Voila! The Four Somethings of Social Selling.
The Bottom Line
Successfully generating connections, leads, and meetings with Social Selling is hard work that comes with many frustrations and much complexity unless you have prepared yourself accordingly, following a process, and are fully committed to seeing it through to fruition. I suppose it’s because of this that it’s also a lot like marriage. Are you treating your customers and prospects like fiancées? I didn’t think so.
Interested in discussing other tips, tricks, and tactics being used by the most successful social sellers today? Let’s book a time to chat by clicking on my below calendar link. In the meantime, check out these blog posts to help you along your Social Selling journey and download the 10 Steps to Building a Social Selling Machine.
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