Social media have become the valuable sales tools — if you use them correctly.

In a recent CustomerCollective article, sales blogger David Cancel offered “30 Brilliant Social Media Marketing Tips from 2011“. Here are the best ones for sales:

1. Write posts with your audience in mind, not your company.
2. Stop worrying about quantity of posts, and start providing your audience with quality content.
3. Show appreciation for the social media users who constantly retweet or repost your offers by providing some type of small incentive or discount.
4. Test the response rates when posting at different times of the day.
5. Think of your social media feeds as a fun place for customers to meet and discuss relevant issues. Do not use social media as a billboard.
6. Use social media analytics to find out who your key prospects are, and what their common interests are beyond business.
7. Create specific metrics to measure the success of every campaign.
8. Use social media to generate instant feedback about products/services.
9. Hold contests to ensure customers get in the habit of visiting your feed on a daily basis.
10. Offer something of value in return for “like”-ing your company.