One question with ongoing significance for direct sellers today is this: does the direct selling model work as well as it used to in this increasingly digital age?
Direct selling organizations and their field consultants depend on somewhat intangible elements, such as reputation and community sentiment, to make inroads with prospective customers.
Today, those customers expect to be engaged and expect their demands to be met in the places where they socialize and shop: social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
So, the question of whether direct sellers can continue to successfully engage prospective customers in a rapidly changing landscape becomes a question of whether direct sellers are properly leveraging their inherent strengths. This is, after all, an industry built on personal relationships between individual consultants and their customers.
The good news is that in this digital age, a premium is placed on brand trust and relatability. Suddenly direct sellers have an edge thanks to their consultants, targeted and relevant content marketing, and the effectiveness that comes when you combine the two.
First, your consultants bring value to the table via their established social networks. While the ease of virtual interaction might make it less common for consultants to engage with customers face-to-face, it has also expanded consultants’ reach far beyond what was once possible.
Making numerous and wide-ranging connections in their communities is a far simpler proposition than it once was. Combined with the strength of your brand, product, and messaging, you can drive more profitable levels of engagement and conversion.
The content of that messaging and its ability to be highly customer-specific is the second inherent strength that direct sellers bring to today’s environment.
The idea here is that direct selling companies can refine their brand image in the public sphere by leveraging dynamic content that is regulation-compliant and designed to move prospective customers closer to a buying decision. Combine this with a delivery format with a proven track record of engagement – such as a branded email newsletter service – and you’ll find yourself generating a substantial return on your investment.
Lastly, how is a content marketing strategy an inherent strength of direct sellers as opposed to any other retail operation? Direct selling organizations have both the strength of their brand and the social appeal of consultants to build a connection that has the customized, individual feel that today’s customers crave.
In the digital age, a brand is no longer simply the name of a manufacturer – it is a platform and a voice. In the case of a direct selling organization, it also has a recognizable face and thus an opportunity to leverage targeted content more successfully than corporate entities.
By combining a social strategy of digitally plugged-in consultants with targeted content will position your brand as personal and relatable. With this strategy, direct sellers are poised to thrive in the digital age and beyond.