Turning a stranger into a friend

Making a complete stranger become a close companion

More often than not, we focus on making a rapid sale rather than first cultivating a relationship with the customer, which, as you probably predicted, is the most vital component of any successful business. The most essential thing that any business should look forward to is having a repeat customer who comes back with another potential customer who is convinced they should do business with you. It doesn't happen overnight, but eventually you'll reach this level of customer satisfaction. It is the outcome of using a gradual approach, or what some people refer to as "baby-stepping" a potential customer. According to a popular proverb, the most effective kind of marketing is covert, and the same can be said for sales. The finest sales don't look like sales.

You want to turn a glance into a stare, is the analogy that I usually return to, but there are many more that do a better job of explaining this concept. A glance means "I looked at you for a split second and I'm aware that you are there, but I'm concentrating on other things." On the other hand, a stare is something that is done on purpose. Now, we want to turn that glance into a stare, and then we want to turn that stare into a "hello," and then we want that hello to turn into a conversation.

As I indicated in my previous article, the question is: how can you get out of the friend zone? How do you convert simple "likes" into actual sales? This may appear to be an insurmountable challenge at first, but after a little practice, you'll find that it's actually rather simple.

You can get things started by contacting the people who have "liked" your social posts and expressing your gratitude to them for doing so. While you are doing this, you may put in place a lead magnet in which you offer them information that is not only incredibly useful but also completely free. You want to earn their trust so that they will make a micro commitment to working with you, such as spending the time to register for a free subscription so that they can download a free template that is customized to their requirements.

Today, initiate a conversation with five people who like you on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn, and follow their development as you lead them through your customer journey. How many of the people who have liked your page end up purchasing something from you? I am looking forward to hearing about your outcome in our next article, "Turning a friend into a lead," next Tuesday.