Leverage Social Media for Explosive Business Growth

In the digital age, there’s a common phrase in social media circles – "The tools have changed, but people remain the same." The tools we use to communicate, connect, and transact are drastically different than they were a few years ago, but the fundamental principles of business remain just as relevant. Business owners, regardless of their industry, still need to build relationships and trust.

Scott Stratten, a name many of you will recognize from his viral presence has made a significant contribution to understanding how we can use social media marketing to transform our businesses. His book UnMarketing and the concept of the "Hierarchy of Buying" are key ideas that can help business owners make meaningful, long-term connections with potential customers. And while Stratten’s ideas may have been groundbreaking when first introduced, they remain more relevant than ever. Here's how you can use Stratten’s "Hierarchy of Buying" and the power of social media marketing to grow your business today.

Becoming a Recognized Expert

Let’s start with the middle of the pyramid – becoming a recognized expert. This means you’ve earned a reputation in your industry as someone who’s knowledgeable, helpful, and reliable. Over time, your potential customers will seek you out, even before they have a need for your product or service.

But how do you use social media to achieve this status? It’s simple, yet it requires work:

Creating Traction – Consistency is key. You can’t expect overnight success. Even world-class musicians spend 15 minutes a day practicing instead of cramming all their work into one session. Social media works the same way. Stratten himself tweeted 7,000 times in his first serious month on Twitter. You don’t need to go that far, but setting aside daily time to nurture your network is essential. Pick a single platform where your potential customers are most active, and master that platform before diversifying.

Building Momentum – Once you’re gaining traction, the next phase is momentum. This is where you start reaping the benefits of your efforts. Use tools like Hootsuite to streamline your social media interactions. Set clear expectations for your audience—let them know if you’re only available during specific hours. Manage your time wisely to avoid social media becoming a drain.

Expanding Your Platform – After achieving momentum, it’s time to expand. Once you’ve mastered one platform, move on to others like LinkedIn or Facebook. Your brand is now ready to spread its reach even further.

By following these steps, you’ll become a recognized expert and build your reputation. But here’s the real magic—what comes next.

Cultivating Relationships

The next tier in the pyramid is cultivating relationships. This group consists of people who you’ve already connected with but haven’t made a purchase yet. They may not need your services now, but they will at some point in the future.

The key here is long-term patience. Relationship building takes effort. The results won’t come immediately, and you won’t always see a clear return on investment from these efforts, but successful people know that relationship-building is crucial. When you position yourself as a recognized expert, the people who need your services will come to you when the time is right. You’ve already created a network of potential future clients.

This approach is what Stratten calls "UnProspecting." You’re not pushing your services on people; you’re helping them without any immediate expectation of return. Over time, these relationships pay off.

Referral by a Trusted Source

There’s one thing we all know to be true: a referral from a trusted source is worth more than a thousand ads. But what if you could generate referrals from people who have never been your customer? Social media allows you to create a referral engine like never before.

Here are the 7 Deadly Social Media Sins you must avoid to generate referrals:

Greed – Stop making it all about you. If you focus too much on your business and self-promotion, you’ll turn people off. Be genuinely helpful.

Gluttony – Don’t obsess over the number of followers or likes. Quality is far more important than quantity. Focus on building meaningful relationships.

Sloth – Social media is a conversation. If you’re not responsive, people won’t trust you. Stay engaged with your audience and be quick to respond.

Envy – Don’t compare yourself to others. No matter how successful others seem, stay focused on your own path.

Wrath – Keep your cool. Negative, hostile behavior online will damage your reputation and your chances of getting referrals.

Lust – Social media is for business, not personal relationships. Keep your focus on building your professional network.

Pride – Success is great, but arrogance is a turn-off. Stay humble, and always be ready to learn from others.

Avoid these sins, and you'll generate more genuine referrals than you thought possible.

How to Use Social Media with Satisfied Customers

At the top of the pyramid are your current customers. As Stratten points out, it costs far more to acquire a new customer than to retain an existing one. So, how can you use social media to nurture and strengthen these relationships?

Social media makes it easier than ever to listen to your current customers. By engaging with your followers and monitoring online conversations, you can get immediate feedback on how people feel about your business. But there’s a right way and a wrong way to respond to criticism.

The Wrong Way: Take the Dark Horse Cafe incident as an example. After a customer tweeted about the lack of outlets for laptops, the cafe’s response was dismissive and defensive. This kind of behavior, especially on social media, can turn loyal customers into disgruntled ones and damage your brand’s reputation.

The Right Way: Tufts University responded to a complaint from a student about a rotten apple with an apology and a genuine attempt to fix the problem. By addressing the issue and taking action, they turned a negative experience into a positive one. It’s simple, but effective.

Master the art of turning negative experiences into positive outcomes, and you’ll turn disgruntled customers into lifelong advocates for your brand.

Hierarchy of Buying

Applying Scott Stratten's "Hierarchy of Buying" with social media marketing is one of the smartest things you can do to grow your business. By becoming a recognized expert, cultivating relationships, avoiding common social media mistakes, and nurturing satisfied customers, you’ll create a network of loyal advocates who will help grow your brand.

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The time to make meaningful, long-term connections is now. Get started today.