How to Build Trust with Federal Buyers and Teammates | Social Selling 201

Social Selling has emerged as a powerful strategy to engage with federal agency buyers and teaming partners.

Small businesses who learn to embrace the power of Social Selling become the go-to experts in their specific domain.

It is just a process.  

How Can You Make Your Business 'Findable' and 'Attractive?

Today, Neil McDonnell demonstrates how to engage online with both known and unknown leads.

Next he explains when and how to engage to become 'findable' and 'attractive' to potential buyers. 

Watch the video to see how Neil engages with both known leads (such as chief data officers) and unknown leads by browsing the feed and commenting on relevant content.

There are over 185,000 federal acquisition personnel responsible for market research and purchasing decisions. So it is crucial to reach and connect with these potential buyers.

Visibility. 

How can you become findable by your customers?  Being attractive means matching the search intent of potential customers.

For example, if someone is searching for a plumber, you should present yourself as a plumber, not a painter. 

Social selling, particularly through platforms like LinkedIn, can significantly increase your visibility and help potential customers find you.

Engagement.

How do you increase your visibility, discover new leads, attract new relationships, build trust, and be seen as a subject matter expert? 

Engagement increases your chances of becoming  known, liked, and trusted by potential buyers, leading to more business opportunities. 

When engaging with posts, it's important to focus on content that aligns with your expertise and offerings, rather than unrelated topics (ie job postings).

6 KEY TAKEAWAYS 

1. Being findable and attractive is essential to success 
   • It's crucial to ensure that your online presence aligns with the search intent of potential customers.
   • For example, if someone is looking for a plumber, it's essential to present yourself as a plumber rather than another unrelated profession with plumbing mentioned in your marketing materials. 
2. Be visible or be invisible.
   • With a vast number of potential customers and industry players, it's impractical to physically reach out to everyoneBeing visible on social media platforms, particularly LinkedIn, can help  potential buyers find you. 
3. Social Selling creates networks. 
   • Social media, especially LinkedIn, can significantly increase your visibility and allow you to engage with buyers and industry peers.
   • By using social media effectively, you can attract new relationships, build trust, and position yourself as a subject matter expert. 
4. Engaging with known leads builds trust
   • Known leads refer to individuals you are already familiar with, such as chief data officers in federal agencies, in this example.
   • Engaging with them and staying updated on their posts can increase their awareness of you and potentially lead to future collaborations or opportunities. 
5.  Engaging with unknown leads builds familiarity
   • Unknown leads are individuals you haven't interacted with yet but may be relevant to your business.
   • Actively browsing the LinkedIn feed, finding relevant content, and engaging with it can help you discover and connect with new prospects. 
6. Building trust and expertise leads to government contracting revenue.
   • Through consistent engagement and valuable content sharing, you can establish trust among your connections.
   • Over time, this trust can contribute to potential customers viewing you as a subject matter expert, increasing their willingness to engage with your company. 

Remember, social selling is an ongoing process, and it requires consistent effort and adaptation to stay ahead of the game.  Embrace these strategies to become a trusted expert in the federal marketplace.

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