Part 5 of 11 - excerpts from my book Stop Pitching & Start Connecting.

Myth #5: Social media doesn't lead to in-person connections

Blatantly false!!!

Social media is being used daily to drive in-person meetings, strengthen communication between existing business relationships, and forge new ones. Now, if you’re looking at it as a dating mechanism, I have no idea what kind of results it will produce (although I do know someone who met their wife on Match.com). 

If you’re looking to meet thought leaders and people you can connect with, who may be looking for what you have, social media WILL lead to real, genuine, mutually beneficial relationships, IF you do it right.

How do you do it right? Make connecting 90% of what you do. Practice subtle marketing. And provide great value, always.

Social media is driving new business relationships everyday. Are you missing out on this golden opportunity?

Part 4 of 11 - excerpts from my book Stop Pitching & Start Connecting.

Myth #4: Social media takes too much time.

I spend less than 30 minutes a day on social media. I often feel that this is some of the best time I spend networking during the day. Most people who use social media effectively are maximizing their time management, crucial for any entrepreneur or work-from-home professional.

If your time management stinks, you’re not going to go far anyway, with or without social media. 

Fitness/wellness expert and entrepreneur Chris Freytag says, “Budget your time - time manage your social media. I might go in once a day and spend 15 minutes to answer questions. I could spend that time watching TV, but I use it to connect with people.” 

I want you to leverage your time and feel good about using social media sites. Time management is the key.

Part 3 of 11 - excerpts from my book Stop Pitching & Start Connecting.

Myth #3: Selling on social networks doesn't work

Well, technically this isn't a myth. It's true. So it's an objection. An objection I hear often from networkers. They say, "I've tried to sell on Facebook and Twitter. It doesn't work." Correct!

So what does work? Connecting instead of selling. Building trust. Developing relationships. Adding value. 

My good friend and leadership coach Steve Gutzler told me, “The biggest mistake I see people making on social media? They are doing more harm than good, not to others, but to their own brand and purpose.” 

Likewise, social media and marketing expert Luke Dancy says, “The biggest mistake I see is the hard sell. Buy, buy, buy, isn't going to work! People want to learn something, be entertained or feel like they matter. If your customers feel like they're being sold something all the time where is the connection?” 

Make connecting and adding value your top goals with social media, and the selling take care of itself. 
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Part 2 of 11 - excerpts from my book Stop Pitching & Start Connecting.

MYTH #2: Social media is only for shut-ins and social misfits.

I was told something like this back in the late 1990’s about the Internet. All it was used for was online chat rooms and adult content. Well, I think Amazon or Google would tell you differently. The Internet changed the business landscape forever.

The same goes for social media. There are millions, if not billions of social, successful, optimistic people on social networking sites right now just waiting to meet you. Smart, opportunistic businesses are using social media to connect and communicate with customers. 

We are in the Connection Economy and social networking has made it easier than ever to connect with people. Are you making the most of it? 

Today I begin an 11-part series of excerpts from my upcoming book, Stop Pitching & Start Connecting.


MYTH: Social media just wastes time.

Your lazy brother-in-law (or fill in the blank of a relative, friend, or someone you know who spends all day posting memes and quotes on social media) might be a time waster on Facebook, but successful entrepreneurs and businesses will tell you it’s not a waste of time. In fact, they will tell you it’s essential to do business successfully today. 

Almost anything can be used as a time waster. Look at television, perhaps the biggest vehicle for time wasting the world has ever known. Is there value on television? Absolutely. Should you spend more than an hour a day watching it? Not if you want to make your dreams come true. 

When used correctly, social media will expand your warm market and lead to real, in-person relationships. 

Why are you starting your business? Why are you in business for yourself?

If your answer is, "to make money," you've got to dig deeper. We all need money. 

How will the money change your life? What will it allow you to do? What will you accomplish? How will you impact lives for the better? 

Answer these questions, then formulate your goals. 

If you're not using technology to help you meet new people, communicate, and grow your business, you are losing the race. 

Spend just 15 minutes a day learning a new technology, and you will be using it gracefully in a matter of weeks.

With all the free training available, in almost every form (video, audio, written, hands-on), there is no excuse not to get the help you need.

"I've never seen 'someday' on a calendar." ~ Carrie Wilkerson

Here are five simple steps to be able to tell your story in 90 seconds or less:

1. Where were you?
What was going on in your life before you found this opportunity/business/product? Here is your chance to create empathy right from the start.

2. What did you hear?
Who introduced you to this opportunity and what did they tell you? Edify the people and company you work with in this step.

3. What action did you take?
Did you start taking the products, go to a meeting, or start working with a great leader or mentor? Show that you took a step of faith and that it's easy to get started building your own business.

4. What were your results?
Here's the big one - talk about the good things that happened and continue to happen based on your actions. Focus on benefits (not details) so that you reach your listener's subconscious and emotions. Financial benefits, health benefits, life benefits. 

5. Where are you headed now?
Work your invitation into this last piece. Paint the vision and then paint your prospect into that vision. Speak benefits, victory, and hope.