Demystification of Social Media
by Larry Eiler

Social Media Marketing is an incredible mystery. Facebook has over 175 million members for mainly personal info and there are an estimated 112 million bloggers in action. LinkedIn has 35 million users that are mainly business related. People get their names increasingly on the Internet and newspapers and magazines are evolving into a new delivery.

Point
We are in a time of enormous change in delivery and receipt of information.

New Media Methods Abound

The Fifth Era of Marketing ( Contemporary Marketing Boone and Darr) is here!

1. Production - Product sells self
2. Sales- Competition forced sellers to promote
3. Marketing- Shift from seller's market to buyer's - convince me
4. Relationships- Partnerships to extend reach
5. Wired- Ways people get information and how it is delivered.

Guest Writer

Selling Smart

By Joe Marr
The Sandler Sales Institute
www.marrsales.com

Does Your Message Get'em in the Gut?
Will prospects switch to a telecommunications provider that offers "The Widest Coverage" when their current network works ok? Will prospects buy copiers with "Enhanced Duplex Color" when most of their copying is single-sided B/W? Will they sign up for internet service that offers "Lightening Fast" connections when they mostly just use it for e-mail? Unlikely... unlikely... and unlikely!
 
You won't capture a prospect's attention with grandiose claims, regardless of how Revolutionary, Tested, or Enhanced they may be Rather it's better to describe your product by the way it resolves a specific problem the prospect has.

Your message, whether on the air or in print, should be focused on a typical prospect's problem For example rather than tout "widest coverage," ask, "Does some of your family live just outside of your calling area?" Or rather than "lightening fast internet connections," ask "Does it take longer to download your e-mail than it does to read it?"
 
Nobody really hears superlative claims like New, Improved, Fastest Enhanced or Most Effective because they've been so overused. But if a person is frustrated with a problem situation you describe, they're a more likely prospect. Therefore, more likely to "tune-in" on a gut-level, and listen to the rest of your message.
 
Once you get them tuned-in by demonstrating your understanding of their problems, follow by sharing how you resolve them. If you want to capture your prospect's attention, focus your message on the problems, concerns, or challenges they face. If you want to keep their attention, follow with how you deliver what you promise.
�Copyright 2007 Marr Professional Development Corporation

Joe Marr is a public speaker, sales and management consultant and trainer, and runs the Sandler Sales Institute at 2750 South State Street in Ann Arbor.  To reach him call: (734)821-4830 or visit his website at: www.marrsales.com