First things first, I’m going to burst your bubble. Sorry, it’s not my intention but I think it’s important that someone tells you this. Social media in itself is not a money making tool. Yes, I actually said (typed) that. Just by using social media does not mean that you are automatically going to generate an income for your business, there’s more to it.
Social media is a social tool, a way to build and nurture relationships.
When Mark Zuckerberg started Facebook, for example, it was a fun project that enabled students from one particular university to stay in touch and be part of a social network (once they had gotten past the photo voting purpose). It then grew to include other universities in the US and it has ultimately grown to cover the globe. The main point though, is that Facebook was originally intended to be a social tool and only later did they find a way to monetise the software and add business functions.
I’m not telling you that social media can’t make you money, because it can. There’s just more to it…
The opportunity of making money from social media lies in building and nurturing relationships. Combine this with systems and other online marketing tools and you have a winning formula.
You may have heard of a sales funnel, but you might be slightly puzzled on how this works. Let me explain it..
A sales funnel in the traditional sense is shaped like an actual funnel, it’s wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. The idea is that once someone lands in your funnel, you can ‘nurture’ them to ultimately work with you, which is represented by the narrow section of your funnel.
The first stage of your funnel, the wide section, focuses on an introduction to your business and then narrows in on creating awareness, education, engagement and ultimately action. Social Fresh suggests that this is only half of the equation and goes on to explain what they call the loyalty loop. It’s an interesting concept that you should familiarize yourself with.
My point today is that you need systems, or some method, to invite potential customers to join your ‘sales funnel’. Social media is one way to engage with your customers but often you have no control over who sees your posts, how many people it’s shown to or if they even see it at all. In other words, don’t trust that your social media followers will see what you’re posting but instead be proactive and find ways to engage with them on multiple levels. The best way to build a stronger connection with your audience is by inviting them to join your email list.
Yes, you may have heard this before. It’s that dreaded phrase called email marketing. It’s important for your business and an essential part in your sales funnel, especially if you want to make money from social media. A Facebook page alone is highly unlikely to bring you lots of customers, what you need is a system and a process to nurture your audience. Social media is one tool in your toolkit. Your toolkit is what will make you money.
Curious to know how to do this?
