Social selling program in B2B. How to start?

Every month, there are more and more companies interested in implementing a formal social selling program in Poland. No wonder. After all, as shown by the foreign researcher Forrester’s data from 2017, as much as 77% of the surveyed companies declared that they were in the process of implementing or preparing to launch such a program in their organizations (RAPORT, Social Selling B2B Imperative).

In Poland, only six months ago, this percentage fluctuated around 5% and, according to the industry's opinion, it is growing rapidly. In order to reasonably prepare for the implementation of the social selling program, it is worth preparing both the implementation team and the entire organization as well.

HOW TO START THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SOCIAL SELLING PROGRAM?

Before answering the main question, let me also answer some other equally important ones - namely:

WHAT EXACTLY IS SOCIAL SELLING IN B2B?

The social selling program in B2B is formal, structured as well as supported by marketing and management activities of salespeople and internal experts from private LinkedIn profiles. Its purpose is to support sales processes and goals.

WHICH ORGANIZATIONS CAN USE THE POTENTIAL OF SOCIAL SELLING PROGRAMS?

Certainly, the fastest to adopt and most mature field that uses the potential of social selling is the technology industry — specifically, IT / Telecom ( I can boast that it is nearly 75% of my clients !).

It is also worth noting that more and more companies integrating LinkedIn into their sales and marketing strategies operate in such industries as finance, energy and broadly understood HR.

COMMODIZATION LEVEL AND ITS INFLUENCE ON SOCIAL SELLING SUCCESS IN A COMPANY

Going deeper within the technology industry, I notice a certain dependence. Namely, the more the offer is "boxed" and the products or services “saturated”, the lower the effectiveness of such activities. When we are dealing with services with a higher level of “sexiness", we can expect the desired results much faster.

An example can be one of the projects in the software industry. A person from the sales department, just after filling in the profile correctly and specifying the target group, was able to generate an inquiry from a client by visiting several profiles of potential clients.

Such information does not mean that industries that are less "sexy" have to give up social selling activities. However, it is worth being aware that, as in the traditional approach to sales, it will just be a bit more difficult.

CURRENT MARKETING ACTIVITIES IN THE COMPANY ARE ALSO RESPONSIBLE FOR SUCCESS IN SOCIAL MEDIA

Certainly, it will be much easier for companies that are already at a higher level of content marketing to develop the program. Content, in this context, finds its extension on the side of the sales department — especially as "fuel" for the program. The level of direct cooperation between sales and marketing is also important in this area.

GOVERNMENT USE OF SOCIAL NETWORKING PORTALS

It is also worth emphasizing that the success and speed of the program’s development depends on the company's management. A social selling program will develop much faster if the presence in social media (especially on LinkedIn) is a “daily bread for the top".

WHAT ARE THE PILLARS OF ANY PROFESSIONAL SOCIAL SELLING PROGRAM AND HOW DOES IT "MATURITY" WORK?

The basics of an effective social selling program include elements such as commitment, content marketing, sales transformation and support. 

I present the above pillars as a model and necessary for an advanced and fast-paced B2B social selling program. Each of these four pillars can be described as a labor-intensive and time-consuming process. It can be said that each pillar is a separate slider, equipped with its own "sliders", and these sliders change their position as the programs develop.

The conditions for different organizations may be different, and activities at the level of strategy and specific activities should be adapted to the current digital maturity of the organization.

Going back to the beginning and answering the title question:

HOW TO START IMPLEMENTING A SOCIAL SELLING PROGRAM?

The first step in implementing a B2B social selling program is to analyze the maturity of the organization. It is extremely important to consciously start developing a programthat will be adequate to the company's maturity and the expectations of the recipients themselves. Therefore, it is worth asking for the appropriate preparation of both the implementation team and the entire organization (including the management board).

It is necessary to analyze what the starting situation looks like in the four pillars needed to implement the program. And to make it easier, it's good to conduct a comprehensive analysis that will allow you to answer key questions:

I. Analysis of involvement and BUY-IN

• What organizational challenges is social selling supposed to respond to?
• To what extent do foreign branches (if any) and the competition use social selling?
• Has the organization used any social selling activities so far? If so, with what effect?
• What does the management board know and what is their opinion on social selling? What is the board's activity on LinkedIn?
• Is the acquisition of new customers rewarded in the company or what is the level of openness to changes in the bonus system?

II. Sales analysis

• What is the opinion of sales managers about social selling and what is their activity on LinkedIn?
• Does the organization have a sales process?
• What is the attitude of salespeople to social selling?
• What percentage of salespeople have profiles on LinkedIn and log in to LinkedIn on a regular basis (eg, every day)?
• What does the competency profile of salespeople look like?

III. Marketing analysis

• Do the marketing activities reflect the sales strategy?
• Are your marketing activities based on content marketing? And is there a "person responsible for content?"
• Were the Buyer-Persona surveys carried out directly with the customers?
• Has cooperation between the sales and marketing departments been practiced so far?
• How are the existing marketing activities perceived by the Management Board and salespeople in terms of effectiveness in sales processes?

IV. Analysis of tools and support options

• To what extent can the current CRM work tools include activities on LinkedIn and Sales Navigator?
• To what extent can the sales team and organization receive ongoing training support? Is there a person in the company who can be dedicated to social selling training?
• Is there a Social Media policy written for the company?
• Does the company have a budget for Sales Navigator tools and a Sharebee social selling platform?
• To what extent does the atmosphere of support prevail in the company and the possibility of learning from mistakes?

Knowing the answers to the above questions, you can finally begin designing activities that are necessary to start the first stage of the B2B social selling program.

SOCIAL SELLING B2B PROGRAM. WHY IS ANALYSIS SO IMPORTANT?

Example no 1: If your organization does not use content marketing activities, simply training the sales team in social selling will not be an effective.

Why? Because in this situation, salespeople will not have anything to post on their LinkedIn profiles. Content in social selling programs is like fuel in a car. If fuel is not there, the car will not get far. It is worth preparing an appropriate stock of content first, and then training your salespeople.

Example no. 2: If the "top" of the organization (especially at the level of Head of Sales) does not believe in social selling activities, training for the sales department may “burn” the budget and waste salespeople's energy.

A single sentence by the sales manager — ”Stop playing on social media and start getting real sales" — can bury people's motivation. That is why it is worth starting the implementation of the social selling program with leaders and bosses.

Example No. 3:If the company does not provide regular social selling training and there is no person inside the organization (or outside) who is responsible for it, the motivation for a modern operating mode of salespeople may quickly fade.

The implementation of a social selling program requires changing certain habits, and often, certain beliefs. Therefore, the regular "refreshing" of this topic is necessary to keep the "fire", interest and, above all, motivation.

HOW DOES THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A SOCIAL SELLING PROGRAM LOOK IN YOUR COMPANY?

Are you finished with it? Or are you just considering running it? Let me know in the comments!