How to set social media goals to drive sale leads

One of the complaints many business owners have about social media is that it does not drive sales. That is wrong. Social media can drive sales as long as you set goals for your program and understand how to track performance over time. Be Realistic Lofty goals such as, "I want a million likes on Facebook," will get you nowhere. Be realistic. Set goals that are attainable and measureable. For example, if you're hosting an industry event to bring sales prospects together, create a Facebook event or use a tool such as Eventbrite to collect RSVPs. Set a goal of 35 percent attendance and do follow-up communications to those who can't attend to find out why. This will help you create better events in the future and help keep prospects in the sales funnel. Help Your Customer by Asking Them Questions Instead of having a simple form fill on your website that includes the typical data you want to collect, ask your target audience "What's their biggest frustration?" or "How can we help you today?" By asking questions along the sales path, you'll eventually get your customer to tell you what they want from you. Then it's up to you and your team to deliver. Where's the Traffic Coming From? Google Analytics is a great tool to help you determine where your customers are coming from. By analyzing website data, you'll be able to determine which social networks are driving the most traffic over short and longer periods of time. Once you determine which networks are performing the best, focus your energy there because that's where the fish are. Don Martelli is a vice president and director of digital integration for Schneider Associates, Boston. He can be reached at dmartelli@schneiderpr.com or via Twitter, @BigGuyD.