Using social media to gain new members

1. Using social media to gain new members Mike Schlossberg Pennsylvania State Representative Former Vice President, Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce @MikeSchlossberg – #ACCE2014

2. Social Media is the original Chamber... Chambers of Commerce facilitated networking before any other opportunity existed. That was the original selling point for Chambers of Commerce: it brought people together. That’s what social media does now. It brings people together and helps make connections when none existed. @MikeSchlossberg

3. Social Media is the original Chamber... The fundamental truth on social media for a Chamber of Commerce, or any business, is this: @MikeSchlossberg

4. If you can’t make money off social media, it’s not doing you any good. @MikeSchlossberg

5. So, who is on social media? • Facebook • 1.28 billion members, 1.23 billion who use monthly, 757 who use daily. • However, younger users (<24 year olds) is dropping. • Twitter • About 1 billion accounts, 255 million monthly users. • Majority of use comes from a mobile device. @MikeSchlossberg

6. So, who is on social media? • LinkedIn • 300 million users, 100 million of which are in the United States. • 120 million daily users. • Instagram • 200 million monthly active users. • 60 million photos uploaded daily. • Vine • 40 million total users, and rising. • Five vines are tweeted every second. @MikeSchlossberg

7. Staffing Models – Two Models Social Media Manager: One person is in charge of all social media, including all aspects of content creation, all pages, member sales, retention, etc. Hub & Coordinator: One person coordinates but each staffer manages their own pages, does their own sales/communications, etc. Best fit? Likely in the middle of these. Above all else: HAVE A PLAN. @MikeSchlossberg

8. Tracking in your CRM • Regardless of your model, track social media interactions and contact information in your CRM. • Set up custom fields for this and display social media in your member directory. • Great argument here for the “social media manager” model. • Manager can track all interactions. @MikeSchlossberg

9. Prospect Hunting Social media presents a wealth of information about potential new members. From a sales perspective, how are you using this information? @MikeSchlossberg

10. @MikeSchlossberg

11. Build a dossier • Compile the key information on a business or prospect before you meet them. Examples of such info include: • Recent events, as told by recent posts. • Information on key decision makers (educational background, interests, etc). • Business size, other groups they belong to, etc. • All of this will enable you to hold a more productive meeting. • The information will help you better determine how you can serve that potential member’s needs. @MikeSchlossberg

12. Remember: The reverse is true too! • As a potential new member is considering joining the Chamber, what do you think they are doing? Looking you up on the internet – and social media! • Always make sure you put your best foot forward: • Keep your social media platforms updated with fresh, interesting and relevant content. • Above all else, keep the content member-centric. @MikeSchlossberg

13. Member-centric content Member of the Day: Start every day by posting about today’s “Member of the Day” – allow each member an opportunity to plug a sale, promotion or announcement. Retweet/sharing: Retweet or share interesting content from your Members, or allow your members to Email you/text you pics or Vines that you can upload directly to your profile. Guest blog entry: Allow a member to make a blog entry on a subject of their expertise on your blog. @MikeSchlossberg

14. Member-centric content Welcome new members: As you get new members, welcome them on Twitter, or take a picture of their shop/staff and upload it. Job Openings: Post when your members are hiring. Members in the news: Post news stories that feature Chamber members – even if the story has nothing to do with your Chamber. @MikeSchlossberg

15. Member-centric content • Post value-added content: You can’t just post about yourself. Post interesting articles that relate to subjects that businesses will find useful. • Business news. • Policy news. • Local news. • Social media information (instructional, how-to, etc). • Multi-media content: Make sure to post images, videos, links & questions. • Helps you break through Facebook’s algorithm. @MikeSchlossberg

16. Sales-related content • It should be sparse; one out of every ten pieces of content, if that. • However, it’s foolish to avoid. • Testimonials: • Facebook/Google+/Blogging: Picture of member with text. • Twitter: Mention the business/person, a brief quote and link to a longer quote. • YouTube/Vine: Brief video with the member testifying about the benefits of Chamber membership. @MikeSchlossberg

17. Sales-related content • Member benefits: This is great for existing & future members. • Stress the specific benefit: how much money the member can save/new business it can gain, etc. • Make sure to have a specific call to action: “Click here to learn more” @MikeSchlossberg

18. Sales-related content • Screencast: www.screenr.com • Using just what is on your computer and a microphone, you can create a screencast – a Powerpoint, for example – on the benefits of membership. • You can also use this tool to show people how to use various member benefits, etc. • You can then record the screencast and put it on YouTube – and then to all of your social media. • Yes, this is free! @MikeSchlossberg

19. Social Media Sales Funnel Formalize: Like, follow, connect, etc. Track: Add relevant information to your CRM. Engage: Comment on information they post, like their status, etc. Turn: At appropriate time, turn the conversation to a subtle sales pitch. Don’t be overt. Pitch: Have a real world conversation about the benefits of Chamber membership. Sometimes, this can occur exclusively online – other times, any of these steps will stop and become integrated into the real world. Do this for as many businesses as you have the capacity for! @MikeSchlossberg

20. Social Media Ambassadors • Have ambassadors? Train them for social media use – or, even better, have an exclusive set of social media ambassadors! • Assign your ambassadors a group of members, give them their social media contact information, and have them connect and comment. • This can be for existing or future members. • Training is necessary: Offer your ambassadors free training in how to use social media, including technical and “cultural” aspects. • This is an added benefit to being an Ambassador and will surely be useful to them in the real world. @MikeSchlossberg

21. In the future: Facebook & Twitter Buy buttons Facebook and Twitter are both testing “Buy Now” buttons. In the future – sell memberships, sponsorships, event tickets & more. @MikeSchlossberg

22. Member Recruitment - Facebook • Like EVERY business: Even those that are future members. • Gives you insight into what these businesses do and what they are looking for. • Creates opportunity for interaction. • Events: Advertise your free/low cost events. • Use the invite function from your personal profile. • Fill out all relevant information and add pictures from previous events, if possible. @MikeSchlossberg

23. Member Recruitment - Facebook • Facebook advertisements • Can offer on a Pay Per Click basis. • Can target based on demographics (age, gender, sexual orientation and keywords like “business owner” and “entrepreneur”) • NO extra cost associated with creating different ads based on targets (women/minorities, LGBT, young professionals). • Cost per click may differ. • Can create extremely targeted, hyper-relevant ad campaigns. @MikeSchlossberg

24. Member Recruitment - Twitter Retweet relevant local content: Your goal is to appear useful and valuable; not just to make a sale. Follow and engage: Find every business owner possible and follow them. Engage as appropriate. Not just to make a sale – have a conversation. Think Dale Carnegie! @MikeSchlossberg

25. Member Recruitment - Twitter • Appropriate hashtag use: Multiple studies show that tweets that use hashtags get more retweets and click-throughs. Use (appropriate) local hashtags. • Lists: Can create Twitter lists based on any subject that you want. • Lists can be public or private; as such, you can create a private, “future member” list. • Use these functions to organize prospects/members, and view these lists periodically. @MikeSchlossberg

26. Member Recruitment - LinkedIn • Connect with anyone who wants, but actively seek connections with prospects. • Do not automatically move into a sale pitch! • Use the information in the contact’s profile to see if you can’t build a relationship later down the line. • Before actively using LinkedIn for sales, determine activity levels. • Many people have a profile because they’ve been told they have to have an activity level…and then never use it again. @MikeSchlossberg

27. Member Recruitment - LinkedIn • Create a Chamber group and invite all Chamber members to join. • Keep an eye out for excessive self-promotional material and set guidelines – some people will spam your group all day! • Use “looked at your profile” to build connections. • Join local groups and make positive contributions. • Helps can your name – and the name of your Chamber – out there. @MikeSchlossberg

28. ROI – Tracking Time and Money • ROI is notoriously difficult to measure in social media and sales. • Tracking sales made by social media alone isn’t enough. • Like any other marketing: People have seen your social media updates and been influenced to join your Chamber without even realizing it. @MikeSchlossberg

29. Metrics to track Size of groups is important, but… …interactions is much more important. Track likes, mentions and conversations. Track conversations, in particularly, in your CRM. Staff perspective: Track time spent managing social media. @MikeSchlossberg

30. Questions? @MikeSchlossberg

31. Contact Mike Schlossberg michaelschlossberg@gmail.com @mikeschlossberg Facebook.com/mikeschlossberg Visit http://politicalfails.wordpress.com for more information, or if you want to talk further. BLATANT SELF-PROMO: Keep an eye out for my book, Tweets and Consequences: 60 Social Media Disasters in Politics and How You Can Avoid a Career-Ending Mistake, coming out in late August/early September. And please reach out if I can be helpful to you or your Chamber when it comes to social media! @MikeSchlossberg