It's not a transaction yet!

“How many leads and sales did we generate?”, “what’s the ROI?”, “Social is useless!!”. How many times have we heard or said these comments when we talked about Social media programs?? We’ve all been in this situation either as a client or a vendor trying to explain and justify why Social Media programs are important, and it’s not about leads and sales…

As a retail business, of course it’s all about leads and sales, but when it comes to Social Media programs, being on Facebook, You Tube, Twitter, or other channels is all about the interaction with people. I said people instead of consumers because Social is the channel that allows us to interact with people at a personal level that could lead to a business activity. It starts at a personal level!

Having been in the digital marketing industry for more than 20 years, and having to adjust and stay up-to-date on all the technology and marketing trends, I can say that leads and sales are always going to be what retailers measure as success. However, we can’t ignore the trends related to mobility, social, and artificial intelligence. Each trend has its own advantages and disadvantages, and maybe some of the retailers don’t believe that these trends will impact them, but look at what happened when the internet era took off in the nineties. Lots of retailers didn’t believe in “internet leads” and were (and some are still) skeptic on the ROI. Twenty years later, I don’t know of any retailer that is not focused on the internet lead volume and CRM efforts. In addition, ten years ago, mobility was just a word, and retailers didn’t take any discussion related to mobile phones and app usage seriously. Now, “Mobile First” is what everyone focuses on. Retailers are now thinking about mobile marketing, texting, mobile phone privacy rules and regulations, apps, and more…

Social Media is one of the trends that is still not being taking seriously. If you’re a retailer and have a social presence, I hope you’re not counting leads and sales from your Facebook or YouTube channel. You can’t compare Social Media programs to your advertising programs on AutoTrader, Yahoo, or Google. Your advertising programs and dollars on these marketing channels are out there for the CONSUMERS who are looking for you or your product. While your Social Media dollars are out there for PEOPLE who are NOT looking for you! That’s the difference, your audience on Social channels isn’t looking for you at that moment, but if you try to interact with them at a personal level by highlighting social events or activities in the area, you may build a relationship that LEADS to a visit to your retail store when they’re ready to try or buy.

So, don’t count leads and sales from your Social media programs. Set your expectation that you’re reaching an audience that is not looking for you, and if they find your brand or product interesting and compelling, they will engage. Social Media is an interaction channel, not a transaction channel. As a retailer, It’s important to use Social Media programs and be out there even if you can’t measure success as leads or sales.

For more questions or information, please contact me.