The Ultimate Cheatsheet for Selling on Social Media

Are you ready to sell on social media? This ultimate cheatsheet for selling on social media cuts through the clutter by giving you actionable tips and strategies for using social media to make sales.

This post will show you my ultimate social selling cheatsheet on how to find and attract leads, build relationships, move your social media followers into your marketing funnel, and finally, how to make the sale!

But first, it’s important to answer the question…

UPDATED: May 29, 2020

What Is Social Selling?

At least on the surface, the answer is obvious: It’s selling on social media.

However, there’s a misconception that you can simply pop up a post or ad on social media, and the sales will come flooding in.

While this can happen, it’s the exception to the rule!

And as mentioned above, it’s about getting people into your marketing funnel so you can build up to a sale.

So in this post, I’m going to show you exactly how to do this. And don’t worry…I’ll also share some tips for getting quick sales too!

The Ultimate Cheatsheet for Selling on Social Media

If you’ve been wondering how to sell using social media, keep reading. The following are 13 ways to start selling on social media, today!

1. Optimize Your Social Media Profiles for Sales.

Before you can even start thinking about sales, you need to make sure people can first find you on social media!

First, make sure your social media profiles are completely filled out. There is some evidence that these profiles rank better in Search than those that aren’t complete.

Next, make sure you’re using relevant keywords and hashtags in your headline and description. For instance, I use #Speaker, #SocialMedia and #Author in my Twitter profile. I also mention live video, as that’s something I’m passionate about, and that my prospects are often searching for.

Wondering which hashtags to include in your profile? Check out my post, How to Find Great Hashtags to Market Your Business.

Finally, make sure you’re adding a website link to your profile, as this is THE way people are going to find out more about you. You can link to the homepage of your website, but if you’re aiming for sales, I have a much better suggestion for you. More on this later in the post 😉

2. Find Leads Using Social Media Monitoring Tools.

Agorapulse is a great tool for staying on top of mentions and keywords!

Many of the conversations taking place about your products, business or industry aren’t going to happen directly within your earshot. This is why social media listening is so important as next on our ultimate social selling cheatsheet.

Monitor mentions of your name, your business name, your products and any other keywords related to your business. Search for relevant hashtags to find conversations already happening in your industry. Jump into those conversations and provide answers, guidance or helpful information where needed. Being useful is one way to start to build relationships with your target market.

3. Share Testimonials with Your Audience.

According to Nielsen, 70% of people trust online consumer opinions. Reduce the risk your prospects feel by sharing positive reviews and testimonials on social media.

Create eye-catching quote tiles or simply share written testimonials via a post or story. Or even better, create and share a short video testimonial!

Wondering how to get these testimonials? Check out my post, How to Get Powerful Testimonials from Your Customers.

4. Show Up Regularly and Share Valuable Content.

Show up regularly with live videos, posts and other content your audience wants and needs.

I hope by now, this one goes without saying…but I’ll say it again anyway!

You cannot simply show up randomly on social media and expect to sell your stuff.  You need to become a trusted source of information and support before people will trust you enough to buy from you.

Whichever social media platform(s) you decide to use, have a regular posting schedule, and share stuff your audience wants and needs. Answer their most pressing questions, and address their most critical needs.

THIS ultimate social selling tip is the way to build relationships that will ultimately result in sales!

5. Use LinkedIn to Leverage Shared Connections.

LinkedIn is a great tool for researching new or potential clients or customers. Rather than having to make cold calls to potential clients, you can leverage shared connections to get referrals or personal introductions.

You can even do LinkedIn Lives now, where you can really up that “know, like, trust” factor, and promote your products, services or programs.

For more LinkedIn tips, see my post 7 Ways to Use LinkedIn to Create Sales.

Need to need to boost your LinkedIn marketing game right now? Then, start with your profile! Check out my latest workshop on how you can optimize your LinkedIn profile to attract more connections, leads, and customers.

6. Create Pinterest Boards to Attract Targeted Leads.

Create boards centered around topics of interest to your customers to draw in targeted prospects. Ask yourself what problems your target market is struggling with, and then create boards that help solve these problems.

For instance, I have boards called “Video Content and Tools”, “Money Mindset”, “Email Marketing”, and of course, “Social Media Marketing”. My prospects search for these topics, find my boards and pins, and come to my website – where they can buy my products or services.

For more on this, see my post How to Finally Monetize Pinterest.

7. Find Out What Your Prospects Want to Buy.

Clothing retailer Poppy Barley uses polls like this to find out what their customers want.

Social media is one of the best ways to know which products or services your prospects actually want to buy. Stop guessing, and start asking!

Encourage your followers to ask questions, share new product ideas or give feedback on existing products or services. You can create a simple survey using a tool like SurveyMonkey, or use the built-in Twitter, Facebook or Instagram poll feature to get instant feedback.

Then use this information to offer products or services they’ll actually buy! For guidance on this, see my post, 9 Ways to Find Out What Your Prospects Want to Buy.

8. Offer Free Lead Magnets to Get People Into Your Funnel.

My 27 Fun & Creative Social Media Post Ideas guide is just one of the lead magnets I use in my business.

This is one of the most important strategies on this ultimate social selling cheatsheet.

As you build your social media community, you also want to focus on growing your email list. Offer an amazing free product (eBook, webinar, a resource guide, etc.) in exchange for an email address.

Since email is where the sales happen (and where 60% of consumers prefer to receive promotional information), it simply makes sense to build your list! #truth

Check out my latest workshop if you'd like to additional traning on how to build your email list with social media and turn followers into subscribers so that you can increase your sales.

Once you move people onto your email list, send regular emails with valuable content, deals, and promotions. This will help you become a trusted source of information so that when it does come time to buy, YOU are the first one they think of!

Wondering whether your lead magnet is up to snuff? Check Your Lead Magnet for GREATNESS in 60 Seconds!

9. Let your followers buy directly from your Instagram posts.

Did you know you can set up a virtual storefront right on Instagram? With Instagram Shopping, your followers can actually click on products in your posts or stories and be taken directly to your website to buy.

There are a few caveats to this:

1. You need to convert to a business account
2. You need to sell physical products (no services!)
3. Users in certain countries aren’t yet eligible.

For all the deets on shoppable posts, check out my post, How to Sell on Instagram without Spending a Dime.

10. Get Sales From Your Instagram Profile.

We all know Instagram can be a little stingy when it comes to letting us link to stuff.

BUT, with Tailwind’s Smart.bio, you can actually turn your Instagram profile link into a branded landing page where people can see your content and buy your products.

For instance, here’s what my Smart.bio link looks like:

And when you click on it, you’ll see this:

Pretty cool, right?

And the best part is Smart.bio is FREE!

11. Add a Shop to Your Facebook Page.

Want to sell stuff directly from your Facebook page?

It’s easy to set up a Facebook shop that lets you do just that.

Here’s how: Go to your Facebook page, and click on the “Shop” tab. If you don’t see it, you may need to add a shopping template (you can do this through the Settings link).

You’ll then get a pop-up box that looks like this:

The catch – as with Instagram shopping posts – is you have to have a physical product to create your shop.

But what if you don’t have physical products? Or what if you want to sell products or services on your website, rather than on a Facebook shop? Then you can….

12. Link Your Facebook Page to An Offer.

This is what we do with my Facebook page. You’ll notice I have a “Shop Now” button on my page. This button doesn’t link to a Facebook shop, but rather to an offer I’ve set up for my fans.

To do this, simply click on the button – it doesn’t matter what it says right now…because you’re going to edit it.

When asked which button you want people to see, choose “Shop with you”, and then “Shop Now”.

Finally, select “Website link” when asked where you want to send people. Drop-in a link to the offer or page you want to link to your button, and you’re good to go!

13. Let People Buy Directly From Your Pinterest Pins.

Last on my ultimate social selling cheatsheet is previously called “Buyable Pins”, Shop the Look pins let people buy directly from your Pinterest posts.

They simply click on the product they’re interested in (each buyable product has a little white dot on it), and are taken directly to your website to make a purchase.

So, what’s the catch? Shop the Look pins are only available in certain countries, and if you have lots of products, you’ll need to work with a Pinterest partner to get things set up. The good news though, is if you don’t have too many products, you can manually tag pins from your website yourself!

Final Thoughts

I trust this social media marketing cheatsheet has shown you that social selling doesn’t have to be spammy or complicated. Using social media to sell is all about showing up, being authentic, and giving your audience what they want…which can include your products, services or other offerings!

What’s your best tip for selling on social media? Share below!