Social media really does actively influence sales!

Perhaps you are a business owner that’s still not convinced that investing in social media can result in making more sales? If that is the case, then this personal anecdote is for you and very clearly illustrates how social media really can convert customers and drive sales.

La la la laaaaa we aren’t listening!

I’ve discussed in the past how critical monitoring your social media channels is.  Brand mentions are occurring all the time – dive in and respond at the right time and you can actively influence the buying decision and bag yourself a sale.  Don’t believe me?  Read on to find out what happened to me earlier today.

This very Friday afternoon, I Tweeted and included the hotel @ManchsterMal in the message.  I stated that I was thinking about booking a room last minute for that night as a birthday treat but that I hadn’t quite decided one way or another yet.

Clearly, I was primed, poised and ready to convert, also take into account the fact that i’ve booked with them in the past and have said positive things about them via social media previously.

Can you think of a better/easier sales prospect than that?

I was 99% of the way to making a booking with them, but doing what I do for a living, curiosity got the better of me and I decided to put the ball in their court to see if they do care about their customers and to find out if they are monitoring their social channels. Turns out that for today at least, they weren’t.

A potential customer, 99% of the way to making a purchase.  Lost.

All it would have taken was a Tweet back from Malmaison,with a playful ‘go on, you know you want to!’ or even the token offering of a free Birthday cocktail (worth what six or seven quid?) or similar, and i’d have booked the room straight away!

As it stands, there’s been no response from Malmaison Hotel Manchester, which tells me they aren’t monitoring Twitter for brand mentions and if they are, they aren’t willing to engage and don’t care about filling rooms.

Businesses take heed – Ignore your customers on social media at your own peril!  To read more about the importance of responding and engaging via social media see my article Companies step away from providing customer service via social media.