Thought Leadership: Social Media Selling
Kathy Schultz-Johnson, Nu Skin Social Business Director for the West, shares thoughts on Social Selling.
Person-to-person selling— leveraging the power of word of mouth—has been the basis of Nu Skin’s business model since the company’s inception. For decades, people have been sharing their enthusiasm for Nu Skin, and now it’s increasingly effective to do that through technology. Instead of selling solely in person, many sales leaders are creating relationships online and extending their business to the platform of social selling. “We’ve had social sellers for 4-5 years now at Nu Skin...tons who have been very successful with hundreds of followers. You don’t need to be a big influencer to do this,” says Kathy Schultz-Johnson, Nu Skin Social Business Director. “Sometimes it’s easier when you have a smaller following,” she says, “because you can build a ‘real’ relationship.” One Team Elite leader described an in-person gathering with her team like a meeting with best friends because they really knew each other from their interactions on social media and had the opportunity to curate strong connections.
If the idea of becoming a social seller makes you feel intimidated or uncomfortable, Schultz-Johnson shares some advice: “It’s okay to be a beginner. You have to be willing to make some mistakes and fall forward. It’s going to be really awkward and uncomfortable at first, but the more you love something and share it, the easier it will get.” She also warns, “Be prepared for people to not follow you—and that’s okay.”
To best engage those who do follow you, make the most of video, video, and more video. “People love to listen and feel the connection that comes from talking videos,” Schultz-Johnson advises, “The more you can do on video, the better. We all want to be entertained, and we want to be entertained fast.” She emphasizes the importance of grabbing the attention of viewers within the first 5-10 seconds with something of value like life hacks, tips, entertainment, applying skincare, etc., and saving longer messages for a more devoted audience. “We’re only going to watch someone’s five-minute video if we’ve watched 10-15-second videos of that person and are invested.” She also recommends being clear upfront that you sell the product you are highlighting or demonstrating, so viewers don’t go straight to Google to buy the item. Equally important is including a shop link that’s attached to your platform with the shortest possible purchasing path. The fewer the steps, the greater chance of a sale. Finally, taking advantage of analytics to understand how to serve your customers based on what they need and not just what you think they want deserves your full attention.
Even though the format of social selling is new and trendy, its formula for success is not much different from traditional selling of Nu Skin products today—or even 30 years ago. According to Schultz-Johnson, “The Nu Skin business is all about relationships...and selling based on personal recommendations. Social selling just takes that into a social platform.” Ultimately, leveraging your social networks to attract customers simply helps you move one step closer to reaching your sales goals.
