While working on business strategy with fellow entrepreneur and savvy business strategist Andrew Bourne earlier today, we were discussing the wayward hopes and dreams of all thise drooling over their social media prospects.   Seen as a panacea to cover up ineffective prospecting, inefficient sales strategies, and poorly focused selling programs, many business owners use incorrectly rely on social media as a resource for helping them grow their business.

For those who are relying on growth through social media by paying some expert to boost Facebook, Tweet and Blog followers without first carefully designing and redefining your overall growth strategy, congratulations on a wasted investment.  You cannot generate revenue through social media — you generate revenue through a sound business strategy that needs to include social media as a valued component.  Try taking your increased followers to the bank and see how much money your bank will give you for them — that is what they are worth!!

Before you explore the notion of bringing social media (let’s call it new media) and investing in these resources go through this exercise first:

1. Know your market  — who you best do business with and why your clients value your business relationship with them.
2. Know where your market is — do the people you sell to and engage interact in new media channels and, if so, where?
3. Know what your message, story, and interaction strategy is — you need to design a strategy that includes fundamental sales, marketing and new media activities as an interdependent strategy.  If you are not redefining your sales story in this process, skip the social media stuff — sales professionals prospect, solve problems, tell your story, and close deals –not social media.
4. Define how much time and effort you are committed to investing in this activity — your voice needs to be heard, if you are not doing the talking how can anyone know what you are saying.

There’s more; but, you get the idea:

• Social Media (New Media) tools are a valueable resource in conjunction with a well defined growth strategy and program.
• Social Media does not generate revenues, increase sales, or close deals.
• It is not a panacea.
• And, you cannot bank all your increased followers.  Sales is sales.  New customers are new customers.  Social Media does not deliver either without the focused existence of a well defined sales and marketing program.