Let’s talk about how frankly awkward selling on social media can feel. To be fair, I don’t know many creatives that enjoy the selling part. Most of you probably got into business because you’re good at creating fabulous handmade products, not because you needed an outlet to channel those “I NEED TO SELL STUFF TO PEOPLE” feelings. No one has those.
So… HOW THE HECK are you supposed to sell on social?!?
Well, the MOST important thing to understand is that EACH social media platform is being used by its users VERY differently. It’s called user-intent marketing, but let’s not use that term because it’s boring. What it means though is important and it’s simply that people don’t come to Instagram for the same reason they come to Pinterest for example and your job is to meet them where they’re at. Quite simply, you need to give the people what they want.
Selling on social becomes real awkward, real quick as soon as you post something that feels like it doesn’t “belong” there on a platform. To avoid that altogether, you have to give people what they came to the platform looking for.
What do they want? I am so glad you asked. Let’s look at the 3 main platforms: Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. Let’s start with Instagram.
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People come to Instagram for three main reasons: inspiration, discovery, and entertainment. Notice how I did not say “shopping”?
This could change in the future because Instagram is putting a lot of effort into new features like shoppable feed (with more probably to come), but even with that, people don’t open the Instagram app to shop. They want to relax, have fun and feel inspired.
Even when they shop from the app, it’s usually more of an impulse purchase because they stumbled upon a really cool product while scrolling. It’s also usually because they’ve engaged and interacted with that brand many times on the app before they purchased. We’ll circle back to what it means for you in a second.
Facebook is very similar to Instagram in that people using this platform are passive. That sounds a little bit harsh, but it’s just to say that they’re not actively looking for a solution or a product.
They’re again in a state of discovery, entertainment, catching up with friends and family, procrastinating on doing some work or participating in Facebook groups. They want to be inspired by posts that resonate with them. What they don’t want is being SOLD TO.
Pinterest is different. Unlike Facebook and Instagram, the platform is purchase or solution-driven meaning that people come to Pinterest ACTIVELY looking for a product (“I NEED A NEW BAG”) or a solution (“HOW TO PLAN A BIRTHDAY PARTY for a 5-year-old”). They’re in planning mode, shopping mode, and are action-oriented.
In fact…
So they don’t go there or be entertained or catch up with friends and family.
What does this mean to you, in terms of how to use each platform and sell without being awkward?
When it comes to Pinterest, GO FOR IT. Pinterest was made for selling so you actually can’t look or sound too salesy on there. The struggle is more with Instagram and Facebook because you actually don’t want to SELL per se on those 2 platforms.
In there, you want to engage with your potential followers by bringing them content that creates a connection between YOU as a brand, and them and their lifestyle instead. You want them to look forward to your posts so they remember YOU when it’s time to shop. You want to focus on engagement rather than on clicks and sales because they will naturally follow.
Of course, from time to time you can post a caption that’s pretty direct, like “I am very excited to announce that we’ve finally launched our winter collection and I think you’re going to looove it!” but always make it sound like you are talking to a friend. Be real and authentic.
Here’s what I recommend you do next to REALLY understand what I am saying here and become so comfortable at selling on social you pretty much do it in your sleep: read this article called “The #1 Reason Your Handmade Shop Social Media Marketing Is Not Working” where I dive deeper into the topic AND share tons of examples with you of what a GREAT selling on social caption or post looks like. It’s honestly packed-full of tips and examples and I am sure it’ll be really useful.
Until next time, au revoir!
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