Hey there, my fabulous listener, welcome to episode 143 of the Small Business Made Simple Podcast.

Thank you for lending me your ears today – I know you have lots of choices, so I sincerely appreciate me being one of them!

If you’re a first time listener, super super welcome, I am so pleased to have you here.  I am your host Jenn Donovan, and it’s my job, via this podcast, social media and everywhere else actually, to make your business life simpler. 

This episode is brought to you by my 5 Step Marketing Plan which basically deals with the Who, What, Where, How and Why of running a small business and growing it using strategic marketing.

Want to know more?  Get in touch and book a discovery call or follow me on social media to find out more in coming weeks!

Have you been listening to my short episodes that drop on a Monday?  Like less than 5 minutes short?  I’d love to know if you’re listening and enjoying that quick content.

Marketing is all about testing and measuring – so that’s what I’m doing – testing and measuring!

So, today, we are talking about 3 ways to create sales conversations online.

There’s 4 stages in our customer’s journey.

Attract – obviously the stage in which we are attracting new prospects with our content and marketing

Nurture – this is where your prospects are in a holding pattern almost and you are nurturing them until they are ready to buy or buy again

Convert – taking them from onlookers to buyers

Fan – where your customers become your biggest fans and word of mouth because a massive marketing tool for you because of the customers who are here – they love you, they love talking about you and your brilliance and how you’ve helped or delighted them.  This is where marketing gets good and a little effortless because they are spruiking you, not you spruiking you!

So today, we are talking about 3 ways to take those people in the holding nurture pattern to the conversion group and making the sale.

I see it on social media all the time – people forget to ask for the sale or forget to ask to get people into sales conversations.

So, let’s chat about 3 super simple ways you can start implementing into your marketing strategy and content to help create sales conversations.

1. Sending them into a specific funnel with a specific outcome

Hold the eye roll on the word funnel!  At its most simple, this looks like providing links to click in your content which leads them to your website, to take a specific action to come deeper into your world.

For example, a link to go to a landing page to download your latest and most fabulous lead magnet that solves one of their biggest challenges, which after they put in their email and name, puts them into an automated funnel.

Depending on your business model, this funnel could consist of emails, SMS messages or some phone calls thrown in (yes, the phone!  It’s an amazing sales tool – try it!).

Your funnel needs to be set up with the end in mind – the sale.  As your prospect falls through the funnel, think about how are you going to create the sale.

Is it as simple as asking for it along the way?  Actually, I would think so – especially if you’ve done the whole process with the end in mind.

2. Get them into your DMs and create conversations over there!

Getting people off your socials and into your DMs (messaging services) is a great way to have 1 to 1 sales conversations.  Of course, you’ll need some nurture in there, depending on the sale or the conversation, but you can talk directly to your prospect, understand their needs/challenges and then give them your saleable option!

You can create DMs (direct messages) via Instagram, Facebook (messenger), LinkedIn or telling people to simply hit reply to a sales/nurture email.

If you want to stop talking to many, start talking in your marketing about having conversations in DMs. 

And for those of you who are thinking this isn’t a great strategy, I would 100% say it depends on your target market but some of the most successful online people I know, including some clients of mine, use this strategy so so well and it actually makes being online profitable as they sell via their DMs.

3. Have a system for booking a call

Depending on your business model, offering prospects the chance to chat to you 1:1 either in person or via a platform such as zoom, at their convenience and yours is essential.

Get yourself a booking system such as Calendly or Acuity (they have free offerings too if you’re just starting out, but if you’re a profitable business, invest in the tech).

Give that link out (I like to make mine a bit.ly link so it’s more easily trackable) and offer people to book a time with you for a chat.

Put it on your website – in several places, use as PS in emails, put in your social content as a “if you need some help, book a time with me ….”

Face to face with your prospect, talking about their challenges and roadblocks, allows you to tell them exactly how you can help.

I’d say face to face, sales are easier – but you do need a bit of a system and know your audience, your branding, your values, your offerings and stick to them!

Not every call is going to be a sale – but without a system for people to be able to book you, you are 100% leaving money on the table.

So, there you go – 3 ways to create a sales conversation online.

If you’re interested in learning more about sales, from a superstar expect, go and listen to episode 96 of the podcast and hear from Julia Ewert.  She has the best selling system that she teaches to business owners just like you and her episode is full of sales gold.

Here’s the link www.socialmediaandmarketing.com.au/96

Before I finish off today, here’s a challenge for you.

Go back over your content for the last month and write down every time you have attempted to create a sales conversation with your audience, either on socials or via email.

Perhaps you’ve given links to a funnel, offered them to book a call with you or asked them to DM you with their thoughts or how you could help them.

Social media is ALL about being social – absolutely, but you can still, as a small business owner, sell like a human and not sell like a 1970’s car salesman.

Do the audit and then look at your content for the next month and see how you can work some of these tips into your content marketing strategy.

Let me know in my Like Minded Business Owners group how your audit went.  Do you need some help, maybe a nudge or some accountability?  You’ll find it all in the group.  If you haven’t joined, go to Facebook and search for Like Minded Business Owners and join up!

I’d love to hear, as usual, any shifts in your marketing or business you get from listening in each week.

But that’s it for ep 143. 

If you’re enjoying this podcast, which if you have listened to here – you hopefully are, don’t forget to subscribe, share this episode with another superstar business owner who’s doing the daily grind and would appreciate someone making their business simpler, and leave a rating or review to show how much you are loving this free weekly content.

Massive love coming your way if you do!

See you next week on the podcast for episode 144.  But in the meantime, let’s hang out on social and get social on social – you’ll find me on Instagram, Facebook and my fav LinkedIn.

But whatever you do,

……..remember small business peeps, as my opening song says, there’s no point in dreaming small!