The Art of Subtle Selling: 5 Ways to be Less “Salesy” Online

We’ve all seen it… that salesperson online that gives the same spiel, sends the same copied and pasted messages, and overall, isn’t doing a great job of selling their product.

It’s hard to be a social seller in today’s online world (check out our other blogs for some ways to make it all a little easier!) and chances are, at one point, we’ve all been “that salesy person.”

So how exactly do you go about improving your selling strategy online – without sounding like an infomercial?

See our top 5 ways to improve the fundamentals of your social selling process below:

1. Use marketing tips and tricks (and psychology)

Remember, you are effectively a marketer when selling your product online. While you don’t need to head back to school and sit in a Marketing 101 course, there are some tips and tricks from the business that can help you improve your own practice.

For example:

• Use colors that send a certain message – there’s a time and place for neutrals, but bright colors generally catch the eyes of users!
• Make your product look and sound so desirable, potential customers feel they’d be missing out if they weren’t taking you up on your offer
• Hook your audience in using storytelling! Instead of a typical sales pitch, start with a simple anecdote. By the end, potential customers will be so interested in your product, they didn’t even notice it was a pitch.

2. It’s a two-way street, have a conversation!

Social media today is no longer a place where you can drop a post and abandon the app. Not only should you be engaging with other people and posts within your niche, you want to make sure you’re not talking “at” people online. When writing your caption, inspire conversation using Call-to-Actions (CTAs) and then reply to people who leave comments on your post.

3. Provide value first (yes, for free)

Before you even think about selling, consider what value you can offer potential customers online, right now, for free. It’s so important to build trust, first and foremost, so people will want to see that you can offer them something worthwhile before they consider spending money on your product. Your free-of-charge value can come directly within your content: through tutorials, tips and tricks, or answering questions people may have.

4. Realize that the only person who cares about your product is YOU

People don’t care what your product is, they’re way more interested in what your product offers them. Focus not on your product, but instead, how your product will make THEIR lives easier. Your copy should be consumer-focused, not product-based.

5. Know your ideal audience

It’s easy to become a robot salesperson when your pitch is geared towards anyone and everyone who comes across it. Identify and really refine what your “target audience” looks like. Why would they want this product? What are their demographics? What are their interests? All of that information should inform how you create your content and ultimately, how you speak to them.

While there is much more to being a successful social seller than just these 5 tips, it’s definitely a starting point to ensuring that you are being an authentic social seller online.