Who? What? How?

As our certificate frame business continues to grow and evolve, social media is playing a bigger part in how we maintain presence in the marketplace. Online sales continue to grow and search is king. Here at Fusion Frames we are taking to heart this new transparent business strategy. Social Media is a platform to reach out in a different way. There are so many in marketing who immediately jump on the “Who can I sell to?” strategy. And admittedly I was there over a year ago blogging and on twitter. But, as I started engaging, building interest, and learning about my customer online things changed; communities formed, conversations started and relationships blossomed. And just like any relationship, social networking takes time and commitment.

“The more trust you build, the more value you release, and the more wealth you create.” Says Shoshana Zuboff in a Business Weekly viewpoint. This story really spoke to me via a @Victorio_M tweet. Thanks Victorio! Obviously it spoke to me enough to finally blog this year!

When online networking evolves from "What can I sell you?" to "Who are you? What do you need? How can I help?”, things change. It may never get past “Who are you?” You may find out “what they need” is not what you offer. And help may come in the form of content generation or advice rather than “selling” your product. Be ready for that. If you are not, then you don’t understand social networking. Trust is not built in one tweet or even one handshake. If you love what you do it is easy to generate content about it. It is easy to talk to others with similar interests. Let your connections find out about you. Learn from them. Put out content that relates to your audience and your products. What you sell is only a slice of the information pie. And if your audience sees how that slice can help them then you may get a sale. You will get SEO. And without a doubt, if you are a people person, you will meet incredibly smart, talented people in your industry and the industries you sell to.

"Who are you? What do you need? How can I help?” ~ Zuboff, Business Weekly
Yes, I'm on twitter @designtwit and @awardframes