So no one told you social was gonna be this way!

I used to absolutely hate sitcoms.

But one day (my then) girlfriend (now wife, tells you a lot about our relationship) introduced me to Friends.

And life was never the same again. Great Nick I love Friends too, but what an earth does this have to do with social selling?

Well I’m glad you asked.

Every business needs 4 simple things.

Access to markets

"We have established we have useful products and services and now need to take them to market. Where can we take them and who are the businesses we should target?”

This is the market analysis piece and working out how we get into those markets.

Credibility in those markets

Once we have established where and who, how do we show them that we are a credible player? "How to we demonstrate this in ways that get them interested in us?".

Meaningful connection with prospects

We now have their attention; "how do we establish trust and build relationships within those new accounts?”. Well I’m glad you asked (see below).

Create Commercial Integration

This become a by product of doing those first 3 things well.. If we do well in the first 3 elements, it should position us perfectly to take advantage of this crucial next step.

4 key areas that any business leaders should be asking. As we try to answer these questions moving into 2022, it is impossible to avoid Digital and Social regardless of our sector.

By having a diverse team of people, all from different backgrounds and areas of specialisation we create a more 3 dimensional map of who we are as a business AND we create MORE opportunities for conversation (the building block of B2B commercial interaction).

It’s the exact same reason Friends had a (relatively) diverse(ish) cast of characters.

Let’s look at them

Ross Geller — Incredibly Affectionate (& Very Awkward At Times)

Ross is a character that most people generally tend to like for his affectionate nature, but most people never really rate him at the very top of the likability scale and would rather not relate with this character all that often.

This is because of the incredibly awkward nature that causes him to take numerous missteps in social events that generally make things harder for him further down the line. You could be sat on your very own Ross Geller and you’d never even know.

Monica Geller — Neat And Tidy (& Also Overbearing)

Ross' sister is easily one of the cleanest and most meticulous characters in the entire group, never failing to ensure that little to no problems come up when it comes to the day-to-day living in her house.

Chandler Bing — Extremely Witty (& Annoyingly Sarcastic)

Chandler is one of the most beloved characters on the show, in no small part due to the fact that he constantly manages to keep the jokes moving at a fast face with his relentless one-liners and dry sarcasm.

That being said, one has to admit that Chandler doesn't really turn off his comedic witticisms when he needs to, leading to situations that could've done away with his oppressively sarcastic behavior.

Rachel Green — Dedication (With A Pinch Of Airheadedness)

If there's one thing that people can say about Rachel, it's that she definitely does everything possible when it comes to achieving something she really wants.

Unfortunately, it's the manner in which she sets about to achieve these goals that can be rather odd at times, almost making people wonder whether she actually thinks twice about most things that are outright stupid before attempting them

Joey Tribbiani — Suave (But Stupid)

The lovable character of the group is also one of the most stupid characters on the show, but people don't care — after all, it's the stupidity of Joey Tribbiani that truly puts him a cut above the rest.

There's no denying the fact that Joey is easily one of the most memorable characters in Friends, with his ability to turn the charm on at any given moment being memorable pretty much every single time.

Phoebe Buffay — Extremely Eccentric (Almost To A Fault)

Phoebe is the lovable weirdo of the group — or "wonderfully weird" and never fails to entertain viewers with her zany and unique antics that have become a mainstay of her character.

Building out this colourful cast of characters that all work with the purpose and end goal of growth and revenue for your business.

Will probably be the smartest thing you’ll ever do in 2022.

Harvard Business review says -

Diverse teams are more likely to constantly reexamine facts and remain objective. They may also encourage greater scrutiny of each member’s actions, keeping their joint cognitive resources sharp and vigilant. By breaking up workplace homogeneity, you can allow your employees to become more aware of their own potential biases - entrenched ways of thinking that can otherwise blind them to key information and even lead them to make errors in decision-making processes.

So no one told you life was gonna be this way

Your job's a joke, you're broke

Your love life's DOA

It's like you're always stuck in second gear

When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month

Or even your year, but...

I'll be there for you

(When the rain starts to pour)

I'll be there for you

(Like I've been there before)

I'll be there for you

('Cause you're there for me too)