Social selling
Why it matters
Most buyers ignore sales messages from unknown senders. A bit of earned familiarity lowers that resistance, and tends to lift reply rates on the outbound that follows. Social selling does not replace outbound. It warms it.
It also shows what prospects care about. Their own posts, job changes and comments are visible, which gives a real reason to reach out, instead of a generic opener.
The cost is time and consistency. It works best for a founder or a small team with a clear niche, who can post and comment on their buyers' real problems. It is slow, and it does not suit a team that needs 200 meetings next month.
How to apply it
- Rewrite the profile headline to state the problem solved, not just a job title.
- Post once or twice a week about a problem buyers actually have.
- Spend more time commenting on prospects' posts than writing your own. Add a point, do not just agree.
- Use a real trigger, such as a new role or a company announcement, as the reason to message.
- Move the conversation to a call or email once there is a genuine reason, and not before.
- Track replies to comments, accepted connections and meetings booked. Follower count says little.
What it is
An email from a stranger is cold by definition. An email from someone whose helpful comments the buyer has seen for weeks is not, even though the product has not changed. Social selling is the habit of earning that familiarity in public: a clear profile, useful posts, thoughtful comments and small, relevant conversations.
It is not mass messaging. Automated connection requests followed by an instant pitch are spam with a profile photo.
Common mistakes
- Pitching in the first message after a connection. It reads as spam, and people remember it.
- Posting without a target audience. Content for everyone reaches no one. Write for the people you want to sell to.
- Only broadcasting. Comments on prospects' posts build more familiarity than your own posts.
- Automating the personal part. Bulk connection requests and canned comments are easy to spot.
- Measuring followers. Count replies, meetings booked and deals that mention the content.
- Expecting quick results. Familiarity builds over weeks.
