Facebook’s Impact on Salespeople

I noticed a great post by Mark Hunter on his "The Sales Hunter's Sales Motivation Blog." It's about the influence Facebook can have over a salesperson's sales efforts. He makes the simple, but powerful point that its influence can be good (if, for example, your friends post positive comments on each others' walls) or negative (if, for example, your friends post demotivating things).

First, I believe strongly that social networking plays a critical role in today's selling environment. However, there are important considerations...

Remember the old adage that "You are the company you keep?" If you hang around generally positive people, their attitude will rub off on you. If, on the other hand, you're around negative people, well...you know.

Success in sales demands a positive attitude!

With Facebook, that takes on even more meaning.  Here's what I mean: not only are we influenced when we're in the same room with our friends, but, with Facebook, their attitudes can impact us when we haven't seen them in years! The feelings and attitudes of others can be felt when you're in your office, at your house, or in a coffee shop. And, since there are 100 million active users accessing Facebook from mobile devices, the influence of our friends' is really felt everywhere. That means your salespeople are probably being influenced by their online comrades' attitudes when they're out on the road, too.

So, may I leave you with two questions? First, what role do your salespeople's Facebook accounts play? And, second, who are you hanging out with online and how are their attitudes impacting yours?

Stay positive (online and off)!

@JebBrooks