demand creation

Does social media generate leads?

These are my experiences. The answer to the headline question is “yes and no.” Let me explain by talking about a few different ways we’ve converted social media activity in new business. Later, when I have more time, I’ll talk briefly about a few things that didn’t work.

TWITTER FOR LEADS? Personally, no. We have seen no new business from Twitter but like the rest of the world, I’m holding out because it looks promising. On the other hand, a number of people that I follow have subscribed to my newsletter and RSS feed. I’ve connected offline with three prospects via Twitter but right now they are only in the early stages of the sales pipeline.  The problem I have with Twitter is that most of the activity could be considered “preaching to the converted.”

LINKEDIN FOR LEADS? Personally, yes. Without a doubt, LinkedIn is a great tool for developing and cultivating new leads and new business. It is even more valuable for researching prospects.  If forced, I would say that spending time mastering LinkedIn is by far the best investment we have made in our social media activity.

FACEBOOK FOR LEADS? Personally, no and yes.  So far, no new business generated from Facebook. However, I’m connected to a few prospects on both LinkedIn and Facebook. Probably more important, I’m connected to quite a few clients on Facebook. Connecting with clients on Facebook makes it easier to share stories and photos of babies and puppies. We also use Facebook to research and monitor the weekend debauchery of prospective employees.  So is Facebook a good use of time? Yes. It is a good nurturing tool.

I’ve received calls from clients that want to outsource their “twittering.” I’ve warned them that outsoucing this part of your social media persona is a little bit like trying to outsource your social life.

Just an observation but I think the people that are using these tools most effectively are the ones that can walk the tightrope between sales and marketing with relative ease. The people that function as true advocates, that are empowered to say things online that maybe slightly left of appropriate and the people who are good at building relationships are the best users of social media and the ones that generate the most leads using social media.

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