The social media ROI problem starts with the belief that social media marketing is all about raising awareness of and interest in something, and that it’s not tied to sales, and that social media teams shouldn’t be held responsible for selling stuff.

This is not the case. Here are four reasons why your salespeople should be deeply involved in social media marketing activities:

1. Social media teams should be responsible for selling stuff.

Throw a salesperson out on the community management front lines and see what happens. I don’t like salespeople any more than the next guy… until I want what they’re selling. And those are the customers you’re looking for.

Supercool Creative Agency has been experimenting between training our social media teams in sales, and integrating experienced salespeople into our social media teams.

Salespeople understand something that too many social media gurus, wizards and wonks don’t.

2. Salespeople know how to look for (and capitalize on) opportunities.

That’s the missing link in social media marketing.

I’m not suggesting you pull a guy off the used car lot to run your Pinterest, but you should be thinking about sales standards like call to action, follow ups and closing.

I know, I know. You’re afraid if you come off too salesy. They’ll unlike you and unfollow you and unsubscribe and take all their video views back and tell all their friends how rude you were to break with social media etiquette.

Tell them to take their whiny little comments and go home.

This is why social media is having trouble earning its keep at the quarterly financial meetings. Who’s looking for sales opportunities? Who’s closing the deal?

3. Salespeople know how to close the deal.

Marketing and sales are two different disciplines, but social media has brought marketing face to face. Social media community managers are having direct interaction and even conversations with customers. They’ve crossed the line from building demand to actual engagement. Then, they waste the opportunity having a chit chat about some this or that, share photos of their latte and move on to the next thing.

No wonder marketing directors and brand managers are finding it hard to draw a direct connection between social media and profits.

4. Salespeople understand call to action.

Marketing directors, internal social media teams and social media agencies have to start understanding the importance of not only cultivating a community through digital marketing, entertaining content, attraction, influencers, sharing, but also creating a sales funnel that involves regular fan interaction with the overt intent of getting them to buy whatever it is you’re selling.

5. Salespeople understand persuasion.

Never before has marketing been so close to the one-on-one action typically reserved for sales. In addition, the platforms and interactions are typically no more than a click or two away from a potential purchase. A fan could be having a fun conversation with your brand, and within minutes be buying something. Or, they can at least be persuaded to tell a friend! Old school is new school again, kids.

No doubt, there have to be rules and guidelines in place so your hard-earned social media presence doesn’t turn into a high pressure sales floor overnight. But at some point you have to let fans, friends and followers know that they’re there for a reason. You’re selling something. You’re a business.

So why do some social media teams have such a problem coaxing people to buy something? A good salesperson wouldn’t.

If you need help with any of this, give me a shout!

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