Interesting dialogue showed up on my wall this morning.  A friend of mine had her furnace conk out on her the other day.

It also got me thinking: companies should have a social media strategy.  Why?  Because even if you’re not on it you’re on it.  At the very least you should be using tools to monitor what people are saying about you…good or bad it’s an opportunity for your business.

In the dialogue you see here do you think people will be asking my friend who gave the shoddy service? Yup.

Do you think my friend will call Superior Heating and Air Conditioning?  Probably.  Do you think others who see this message will call Superior the next time they’re in need?  There’s a good chance.

So how many people potentially could have seen this dialogue?  Based on the connections…over 5000 people!!!  Now granted, not everyone is going to care and read the message.  The point is…your business…GUARANTEED…is being talked about in the Social Media realm.

So what’s your Social Media strategy?

Ever get that deal where everything seemed to go perfectly and the deal actually closes itself?  Wonderful aren’t they?  They are the product of simple steps working in harmony and it all begins with listening to your customer.

One of my favourite sales gurus is Jeffrey Gitomer.  He’s coined the phrase “People hate being sold but they love to buy”.  And if you take the time to think about it in terms of your own buying habits you would agree.  When you walk into an electronics store, furniture store or clothing store you are often greeted by a sales person.  And the greeting typically starts with “Hi, welcome to our store…can I help you find something today?”  Ask a closed ended question and get a closed ended answer.  My typical answer is always…  “No, just browsing around.”  But the truth is I could probably be persuaded to part with my hard earned dollars in any of the stores I walk into.

The trick is to ask an open ended question that almost requires a longer response than – “NO”.  And the funny thing is…9 out of 10 times they’ll tell you the answer.  Asking a series of open ended questions will get you to the close quicker.

Another interesting dude that I read from time to time is Scott Ginsberg…the Name Tag Guy.  He wrote an interesting post the other day titled 8 Ways to Help Customers Close You.

Getting people to buy is not as difficult as selling especially if you consider the following 8 points to help the customer close YOU:

1. Create a significant emotional event
2. Disarm the immediate preoccupation
3. Flip the pitch
4. Consider your pre-sale position
5. Make them ask what’s next
6. Deliver an ongoing value message
7. Allow your customers to have their fingerprint on the solution
8. Help customers verbalize their hopes

For a more in depth breakdown of each point head on over to Scott’s post.

The challenge is to change the way you sell.  Most of us have been taught the old school style of selling…my product is this, my product is that etc.  And the fact of the matter is that your customer doesn’t really give a rats ass about your product.  All they really care about is how it affects them.  Offer significant value and the close is yours.

In business, it is my belief that NOTHING happens without SALES.  If you think about it for a second…it’s the primary reason why businesses start in the first place.  Then the next question usually is: Can I make money selling it?  And if the answer is YES, you try and figure out how much of X you can sell.  You do a bit of research and if it supports your theory you give it a shot. 

In my 15 years of working with Small / Medium Enterprise (SME) I’ve seen businesses take-off flying, sputter, stagnate, and fail.

Below you will find 8 key areas that SMEs need to address to achieve sustained growth in Sales:

Capital
It’s very rare to encounter a business that is so flushed with cash that capital concerns are non-existent.  Even if lack of capital was not a concern a business should still operate within a reasonable business model.  At the end of the day, businesses are started to earn a reasonable profit.  How a business deploys its capital to achieve that profit is still a very valid question.  From a marketing standpoint, marketing is often viewed as an expense and is often one of the first things to get cut in economic downturns.  Cutting back on marketing is not the answer, a more strategic efficient approach to marketing is…see other steps below.  Cash is KING in business…businesses that use it most efficiently win in the long run.
 
Management skills
Lack of management skills is often a major stumbling block to growing SMEs.  Usually due to lack of capital, SMEs typically start with a limited human resource base requiring individuals to wear multiple hats.  This leads to a “Jack of all trades, master of none” scenario.  Often in smaller SMEs, the sales & marketing function is left to the owner or the president of the company.  The challenge is the individual is also juggling 20 other different tasks and responsibilities…and studies have shown – humans are not well equipped to multitask.  Successful growing businesses recognize core deficiencies and address those needs by hiring, training or getting outside help.  Hiring a consultant can be a logical intermediate step to hiring a full-time dedicated marketing employee – cost is less, risk is lower.  You could also use the expertise of advertising sales reps that knock on your door…be wary though.  The Sales Rep is ultimately responsible for increasing sales for the company they work for…which means your interest might not be aligned with their interest.
 
Information
Lack of information about what is working, and what is not working is a common issue for SMEs.  Most things in life have a cause and effect relationship.  Sales and marketing operates on the same principle, marketing is the cause and the effect is sales.  Developing a measurement and tracking system of key performance indicators (KPIs) is key to making sound business decisions on challenges and opportunities that arise.  If you don’t measure it, you cannot manage or improve it.

Planning
Many SMEs suffer from this fundamental flaw – a lack of a plan.  As the saying goes, failure to plan is planning to fail.  Getting from point A to point B can be done many different ways.  Planning helps mitigate risk.  The lack of a plan allows for potentially large deviations that can lead to failure.  A well devised plan allows for modification and flexibility to achieve the end goal.

Poor procedures
An efficient disciplined approach to running a business is the hallmark of a well oiled machine.  Businesses that adopt procedures enjoy economies of scale, better sales processes, happier employees, less error correction, better customer service and the list goes on.  Well documented procedures invested up front produces dividends and profits in the long run.  

Ignoring risks
To some the word RISK is a four letter word to avoid at all costs.  In business and in life, RISK is a fact of life and is something that cannot be eliminated but can be managed.  Risk is managed through research, follow up and utilizing the correct internal or external resources.  Ineffective marketing for example, can be a risk for businesses.  The lack of knowledge, planning or measurement of marketing is a threat to sales and profitability.

Lack of focus
As mentioned earlier, limited human resources is a big challenge for smaller SMEs.  The end result can be a lack of focus.  Short term priorities often compete with focus on long term objectives.  Marketing is often a discipline that is left unchecked.  SMEs often take an unplanned approach to marketing…trying various tactics to support the goal of increasing sales.  Without focus one cannot become proficient at anything and marketing is no different.

Time Management
The scarcest resource for many is time.  It’s the ultimate barometer to success.  We are all given the same amount of this depleting asset.  The most successful businesses and individuals know how to leverage their time and energy.  Marketing can be leveraged to save time and money by addressing the most common key issues noted above.  Furthermore, marketing done correctly can help your prospects make a buying decision quicker.  The customer you can sell to quicker is one less customer your competition has available.  Is your marketing good enough to help you out sell your competition?

Seth Godin published an interesting blog post today about raising expectations…and then dashing them.  Godin bashes Banks and Airlines as they tend to be culprits in setting false expectations…and for the most part I tend to agree.

I would take this one level further.  If you are in business, your unique selling proposition (USP) should also denote what you are really about.  As your USP also helps set the expectation for customers or clients when they decide to do business with you.  Get your USP wrong, and you go down in flames.

Back in my radio days, I would say to clients if we have the correct message and the right schedule…you will do well.  On the other hand, if we craft a message that you can’t deliver on…you’ll experience a disaster.  These days it’s even more imperative that you get the message right because the power of social media compounds the effects…especially with unhappy customers.

For example, take the following USPs:

King of the 10 minute call back

Home of the 10 minute Oil Change

Always on time or you don’t pay a dime

Pretty solid USPs, but imagine the negative effects on not being able to deliver on them.  I’ve tested all three of these businesses…only one failed to deliver.

Remember…strategy before execution…under promise and over deliver should help you win the race.

Our good friends at Mashable published an interesting article on Viral Video Marketing.  Titled Ten Most Innovative Viral Video Ads of 2010.

Definitely some great work as evident by the number of views they get on YouTube.  While it’s great to have a video go viral, from a business stand point you have to ask yourself did these videos achieve the desired result?  I would say yes and no.  As a business person, sure branding is an important component for a business…ultimately, the question that should be asked is – did this marketing tactic help drive sales?

The videos produced all had a significant number of YouTube views but many in my opinion lacked strategy.  Take the first one for example, A Hunter Shoots a bear this is an ad for Tipp-Ex white-out tape.  It has all the hallmarks of a Viral Video Marketing campaign…unique, funny, engaging, interactive etc.  Is it going to get me to go out and buy Tipp-Ex white-out tape? Ah…No it won’t.  Will it even keep this product top of mind for me? No, again.

Second on the viral video marketing list was Embrace Life…a video meant to encourage the use of seats belts.  Great use of videography.  Will it get more people to wear seat belts?  Not sure, as my thoughts on seat belt use is related to habits…and you what they say about habits…good or bad they die hard.

Third on the list is the Levi Strauss commercial another great clip…am I going to buy Levi’s now…probably not.  Is the desired effect of the video supposed to make you feel nostalgic? Or bring back the emotions you felt in your travels in a pair of Levi’s…who knows.

One of the most memorable viral video marketing campaigns has to be the Old Spice commercials.  I’m still not an Old Spice Man but I’d be willing to bet that sales of Old Spice increased as a result of these commercials.

Lost in the translation for me is the Puma Commercial…I’m not a European Football fan so I can really comment.  To date is has achieved over 2 million views with over 2000 comments…if you some how tap into these passionate fans I’m sure you can find a way to benefit.  On a side note, I have a friend that is so passionate about his Chelsea Football Club that he bought a Samsung TV because they are a major sponsor of the club.  Imagine that, buying a TV just because they are a sponsor…no TV Buying Guide or recommendations required.

A great example of Viral Video Marketing is the Google Chrome Speed Test.  Now the Google Chrome Test did the trick for me…I’m going to try Chrome because of this video…the Video which you see below gets the point across…Google Chrome is fast!

Toyota – Swagger Wagon a pretty decent video aimed at making parents feel better about buying a van.  Can you own a van and still be COOL…this video says you can.  At over 7 million views I’m sure others will feel the same way too.

There’s a Soldier in All of Us is a cool video…it’s intent was to suggest that the video game Call of Duty Black Ops is a game anyone can play.  Being an on and off gamer myself and a fan of the Call of Duty series…I may just go out and buy this game.

Write the Future was a promotion for FIFA 2010 World Cup and Nike it has less than 300,000 views and it still made the top 10 list at Mashable – Josh Warner must be a soccer or Nike fan as I’m not sure why it made the list.

My favorite of the bunch coming at # 10 is titled Master of Business Card Throwing a video for the Samsung Digital Camcorder H205.  I don’t like it for it’s ability to educate or entice me to buy a Samsung Camcorder but this guy throws business cards like Ninja Stars…it’s a cool example on Viral Video Marketing but the end goal in my opinion was lost.

To see all of the The 10 Most Innovative Viral Video Ads of 1010 check out Mashable.

What do you think…are there better videos out there achieving their goals?