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Generating New Business From Social Media

11/12/2013 by Aviation Times

New business is the Holy Grail for all kinds of enter­prise and as the competition to secure new business increases aircraft operators have to review the ways in which they approach and prospect for new customers.

Some commentators and opinion formers remain skeptical about the value of Social Media in delivering new business but consider these recent news headlines;

$500,000 PRIVATE JET FLIGHT BOOKED… VIA iPHONE APP

FlyMeNow soars to 250k Facebook fans

Headlines like these demonstrate that Social Media has arrived as a source of new business, it can no longer be dis­missed as irrelevant. Step back in time and consider the growth of Amazon and itunes over the last 15 years, and the sub­sequent demise of the highstreet book­store and record shop. Can you afford to ignore social media and see your book­ings and sources of new business fade away?

The key change that has taken place is that social networks are where consum­ers engage with each other and their fa­vourite brands. They don’t go to Facebook or Twitter to specifically buy things. But, they are very open to discovering, ex­ploring and researching products there. This phase of the buying cycle is known as “consideration” and this is where you should focus your activities. Driving dis­covery, building loyalty and getting po­tential customers deeper into the sales funnel.

The good news is that social selling isn’t a clean break from traditional selling; it’s an evolutionary step. Social sellers do not need to abandon traditional methods such as email, phone calls or face-to-face meetings. Instead, their time on these tra­ditional channels becomes far more pro­ductive when supported by deliberate use of social media. Social selling eliminates some of the most wasteful parts of the tra­ditional sales process (such as cold-call­ing) and enhances the activities that good salespeople already do to create wins and drive revenue.

It can be argued that the typical pas­senger on a business aircraft will prefer to keep their life private and not post details on social media. This will be the case in many scenarios but a little bit of digging will help to uncover corporate websites, LinkedIn, twitter and facebook accounts which can provide details of where execu­tives will be travelling, frequently many months in advance of the event. Also don’t forget to “look around the edges” the other people on the flight. Who they are, what their involvement is with the lead passenger, why and where they are travelling. These passengers may provide a whole wealth of information via social media accounts that can lead to accurate predictions of future travel requirements.

Today’s business purchasers openly express their aspirations and their needs through social media. For attentive sales­people, this information is manna from heaven. It allows them to discover shared interests or relationships that can turn cold calls into warm introductions. In ad­dition to empathy, social media fosters in­sight. Because online social profiles make the customer’s business needs, and the seller’s subject knowledge, more trans­parent, the two parties can build a rela­tionship through valuable exchanges of information, not just idle chit-chat. And from there opportunities can be found to present flight solutions that neatly fit the new client’s requirements.

by Peter Bradfield