http://bit.ly/CRMchecklist - - - - - Download our FREE CRM Requirements Checklist Document – including Discovery Questions Summary page After a while, all the white papers and best practices on sales and lead generation start to sound alike. Very rarely do you get actionable advice on how to leverage current technology to win sales and beat the competition. Let’s face it, the sales and marketing professions have changed over the last several years. No longer is it simply about building relationships by listening to the customer. There is too much competition and distraction in the world to rely on relationship building alone. You also have to add value and demonstrate your relevance with every prospect or client interaction. This article is about how you can make the most of each and every business opportunity. By incorporating technology in the form of a Listening Dashboard, to give you a competitive advantage, you will end up enjoying the long-term relationships and repeat business that is every business person’s goal.

1. Listening for
Sales Opportunities
Using Social Media to Get and Keep Your Competitive Edge in Business
Brought to you by Dean Holmes LIVE and Jigsaw

2. Listening for Sales Opportunities: Using Social Media to Get and Keep Your Competitive Edge in Business
Summary page
After a while, all the white papers and best practices on sales and lead generation start to sound alike. Very rarely
do you get actionable advice on how to leverage current technology to win sales and beat the competition.
Let’s face it, the sales and marketing professions have changed over the last several years. No longer is it simply
about building relationships by listening to the customer. There is too much competition and distraction in the
world to rely on relationship building alone. You also have to add value and demonstrate your relevance with
every prospect or client interaction.
This article is about how you can make the most of each and every business opportunity. By incorporating
technology in the form of a Listening Dashboard, to give you a competitive advantage, you will end up enjoying
the long-term relationships and repeat business that is every business person’s goal.
How do you go about doing this though?
It’s not that difficult. This guide will show you what tools to look for and how to use them.
So what is a “Listening Dashboard”?
Your customers and prospects are talking about you and your brand every day. You probably already use Google
to search for information. Now think of Google on steroids, where the information you want finds you, regardless
of the format or the source. You don’t have to do anything except set it up and tell it what to bring you.
The Listening Dashboard is a web-based tool that allows you to stay on top of your prospects’ business, industry
and competition. It allows you to listen to and watch what they are saying and doing. It’s FREE and easy to
setup within minutes.
By using the Listening Dashboard regularly, you will be out in front of the competition, and you will know more
about your prospects and their perspective on business. It will make you look sharp when talking with
prospects and meeting new customers.
What will you get out of a Listening Dashboard?
• Hear what people are saying about your brand across the web, blogs and forums
- Uncover new sales leads whenever people talk about keywords related to your brand
• Get close to the true Influencers within your industry, access each article they write
- Look at new blog posts across 1000’s of influential industry leaders in minutes
• Monitor your competition, keep track of their every move
- Gather intelligence to beat the competition by following discussions in real-time
- Gain access Breaking news and the latest updates on Wiki’s
- Look at Delicious stories that share intelligence
• Discover fresh news and content from industry thought leaders that you can share with prospects
and customers
- Watch for Digg stories that are within your brand keywords to find new content
• Listen and participate more efficiently on Social Media to generate leads and followers
- Follow relevant Twitter streams and use a Google Search Widget to track searches on industries
- Connect LinkedIn with Netvibes and watch for leads around your brand
- Use Twitter to find leads based on keywords you set and engage with prospects
• And much, much more all in an easy to setup Dashboard that’s free
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3. Listening for Sales Opportunities: Using Social Media to Get and Keep Your Competitive Edge in Business
How do you set up a Listening Dashboard?
With just two simple steps your personalized Listening Dashboard can be created.
Step One
• Gather your RSS feeds that you typically read
• Go to http://alltop.com and search for additional feeds like http://bizjournals.alltop.com
and click the RSS button in the url to add this as a feed
• Look at Google Blog Search http://blogsearch.google.com to find more blogs of interest
• Look at http://listorious.com to search for people who are influential on the keyword for your business
• Take a look at http://wefollow.com and search for influencers
Step Two
• Go to http://netvibes.com
• Setup an account
• Type in a industry or keyword that you want to track and hit submit
• Import your Google Reader OPML file http://www.vimeo.com/2015594
• Watch other videos on how to setup various tools to monitor your brand http://www.vimeo.com/10719873
• Watch how to track all mentions of brand, prospects and competitors http://www.vimeo.com/9673477
• For more information go to http://www.vimeo.com/netvibes for an overview
Here is a snapshot of a “Sales Dashboard”.
Here is a snapshot of a web search by keyword to stay on top of information
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4. Listening for Sales Opportunities: Using Social Media to Get and Keep Your Competitive Edge in Business
Here is another snapshot of how to find content to share with prospects
Using the Listening Dashboard
So exactly how do you use this information to speed your time to market intelligence? Here’s how:
• Check in daily, maybe more frequently depending on the industries and prospects you are targeting
• Look for interesting articles to share with your audience
• Comment on Blogs that are within your keywords or industry to drive awareness and possible leads
• Once you have your call list, search for those prospects in a Google Search widget
• Watch for mentions of your industry, brand or competitors in Twitter or another social network
• Look for content like research, white papers, or best practices that help build your understanding of a
prospect’s industry
• Engage with others on a LinkedIn widget, participate in conversations, offer your perspective and
answer questions
• Watch for key messages that help you align your products and services to the industry challenges of a
prospects business
Listening Leads to Sales Success
Success in business comes when you have an unyielding desire to provide value at every touch point in the
prospect and customer relationship. It does not come from those powerful “closing lines” or cheesy “closing
questions” you get from sales and marketing seminars.
Today’s technology and the access to information instantly can be your competitive advantage as well. When
you create your next sales plan, use your new Listening Dashboard. You too, will find that the quality and speed
of information gathering and insight building will be the most important component to establishing trust and
credibility with a prospect or new client.
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5. Listening for Sales Opportunities: Using Social Media to Get and Keep Your Competitive Edge in Business
Need Help Creating Your Own Listening Dashboard?
Email us to request a Listening Dashboard template.
About Dean Holmes Live
Dean Holmes Live creates Social and Community strategies that have far reaching affects on brands, both big
and small. For years, we have been preparing thoughts, ideas and technology framework to afford clients the
thought leadership needed to bring their organizations into a Social and Online environment.
Contact us now
About Jigsaw
Jigsaw is the world’s largest database of up-to-date, downloadable and complete contact and company
information. We help companies increase effectiveness of their lead generation efforts, improving productivity
and reducing sales cycle.
Contact us now
Contact Us:
Dean Holmes LIVE!
Tel: 757-301-1814
deanholmes.me | dean@deanholmes.me
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777 Mariners Island Blvd., Suite 400
San Mateo, CA 94404
Tel: 650.235.8400
www.jigsaw.com | enterprise.jigsaw.com
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