[Infographic] Accessing Customers via the Social Sales Funnel

The internet has revolutionised the entire sales process, from the acquisition of leads to the transfer of funds. And chief among the drivers of change has been social media.

Before, businesses were limited in their access to consumers by their opening hours and the actual, physical location of the customer. Today, social media allows businesses unparalleled access to consumers: at home, at work, on the street—anywhere.

This complete upheaval has enabled brands to build a thriving online community that does their work for them. With a bit of the right nudging and some productive dialogue, one-time customers are transformed into true brand evangelicals, loyal fans and repeat customers.

How can a marketer make this kind of thing happen? Sales technology has luckily developed along with social media technologies. Reviews, peer recommendations, and other tools have emerged to supplement traditional advertising mediums.

Consumers tend to treat these marketing efforts as more trustworthy than traditional ads, which are sometimes seen as intentionally misleading.

Community building applications like HootSuite and its competitors can help social media marketers make the most of this new access. They allow coordination throughout all channels of social media that exist and include tools like multiple accounts and editorial calendars.

The most-treasured tool of the social salesperson is the remarketing pixel. These little invisible images allow marketers to virtually “follow” a visitor to their site after they leave the site, intelligently showing the consumer the products they failed to purchase on their first visit.

This infographic is a great introduction and strategy for accessing consumers through all of the new channels that have become available. Read on to learn how to leverage these new tools to your advantage.

Russel Cooke is a business consultant and journalist who recently relocated to Los Angeles, CA. Follow him on Twitter @RusselCooke2.