It’s date night and the hubs and I are watching a movie.
I duck down behind a pillow and blanket in hopes that I’m not seen…or heard.
But the sniffles give me away.
My hubby teases me that I cry….over the movie previews.
Yes, really!
A tug at the emotional heartstrings is a recipe for success in sales.
Have you ever bought something on a whim after reading a really good ad, post or email?
(or in the case of a good movie preview – you can’t bet I’ll be adding it to my watch list)
Selling these days takes a certain finesse.
Why?
Because there is a lot of noise out there.
Recently, I mentioned my soft selling strategies and received so many questions about it I decided to dedicate one of my Free Facebook Live trainings to the topic:
No one who is on social media is there to buy. (except on places like Etsy)
Let’s be honest.
I want my social media time to be relaxing. So we are there to read stupid things, socialize with friends, communicate with family, and look at pictures of babies and animals.
However, that doesn’t mean you can’t sell there. You just have to go about it softly.
So does “softly” look like?
1. It’s a Conversation
You don’t want to preach to people or lecture them on social media. Remember, a conversation is two ways with the salesperson, letting the buyer lead the way.
2. Get Emotional & Build Relationships
Soft selling appeals to emotions more than hard selling does.
It’s all about building relationships, sharing your own emotions, and writing something (or making a video or audio) that gets the audience thinking and being more emotional.
3. Be More Personal
Being an anonymous person isn’t going to work anymore.
You must be who you are, even if you have an overall brand that you want to promote.
You and other members of your team need to be free to be more personal if the behavior is “on brand.”
4. Offer Value & Focus on Benefits
When you offer value to your audience, that doesn’t mean you’re begging them to buy from you.
Instead, it means that you put that aside and focus on giving them the information that appeals to them where they are.
If, for example, your audience is busy moms and your business is helping people get organized, you might share pictures of well-organized homes. Showing the benefits of the organization will be clear to the audience.
5. Listen & Engage
People on social media (or on your email list) will not respond to your one drive-by post in a group or on a page, no matter how well written or long it is.
Instead, they want to get to know you, and you to get to know them.
6. Encourage User-Generated Content
When you build groups or pages on social media, getting more content added via comments to your posts will build trust so that when you do post a link to something awesome, they’ll pay attention without you having to shove it down their throat.
Having your customers share their testimonials and case studies about the service or product you offer is a winning way to use the soft selling approach.
7. Respond to Questions
Once you start posting engaging information on your social platforms, expect to get messages with questions.
Once you start getting questions, that’s when you can share the link to your sales page, which of course is more direct.
8. Post Research Information
Another soft sell approach is to share research with the audience that leads them to realize they need the thing you’re selling.
For example, the insurance industry is famous for this approach by posting stats about dangers.
When you use soft selling techniques, no matter if it’s in your emails or on social media or elsewhere, it’s important to understand that you need to understand your audience and what they care about to properly engage in soft selling.
Over time, many salespeople claim that soft-selling generates just as much revenue as hard selling.
