The other day I was having lunch with my friend Mark and he told me that he has salespeople wanting to meet him all the time. Unless they propose a way that he use their product to better accomplish what he wants to do he doesn't call them back.
If you are trying to contact someone for the first time, spend a minute and do some basic research on the person and company before making the call or sending the email or text.
These days with social media and search engines the ability to do research is easier than ever.
Below is an email I received from someone trying to cold email me:
From: Christopher C#### [mailto:####@########.net]
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2012 1:22 PM
To: Everet Kamikawa
Subject: LinkedIn-PCRecruiter
Katie,
Good Afternoon! While out prospecting on LinkedIn I came across your profile, and it caught my eye as someone who may have an interest in HR/Recruiting Technology. My name is Chris C#### with M### S##### T#######, developers of ######### Recruiting/Talent Management Software. We work with clients all over the world, and have been providing software and related support services for over 14 years! I'd like to share some of the insights I have gained over my career and am interested in learning more about you, your business, and your current technology solutions, to see if ###### may be of interest to you. Let me know if we could connect at some point over the next few weeks to talk-I would welcome the opportunity! I look forward to hearing from you soon!
Even if you haven't bothered to research who I am, what errors do you see and what ways can this email be more effective?
Here are some I found:
1. My name is not "Katie." For those of you who think Chris sent me this by mistake, I would argue that if that was the case, he would have sent an email immediately afterward apologizing for sending it to the wrong person. We've all done that at some point and I wouldn't have given it a second thought. He didn't send that email so now I just think he's brand new, maybe lazy, had someone blindly grab email addresses from LinkedIn, or an idiot.
2. Why is it so exciting that you've been providing services "for over 14 years!" Why do I need to know that? Providing good customer service after the sale IS a buying criteria for me, however it isn't the first one. Chris doesn't take the time to ask or find out what are my buying criteria. If he is "fishing" and hoping that telling me they have been around for 14 years will make me excited enough to contact him that is a pretty weak lure. Price, Benefits, Features or better yet asking a question about a pain that their product can solve would be better ways to get me to take the bait and respond.
3. I don't care about insights gained over your career, at least initially. I'm not going to set up an appointment to hear you prattle. If I don't think you can help me I'm not wasting my time.
4. If you were interested in learning about me, you would have mentioned some fact about me that you found out-it isn't like I'm hiding. Show me you've looked me up.
I'm connected to several businesses. Find out what they do and tell me an idea of how you think your product can help me. I may or may not like the idea but I will give you credit for trying. If the idea is reasonable enough it might open a dialog even if it isn't exactly what I want.
5. If I'm looking to buy a product I don't mind research on my own. You tell me that your company developed this product and that you've been doing it for 14 years but don't tell me what the product does. How do I know I might need or want it? You are trying to blindly contact me. Tell me in one sentence what your product does and include a link so I can go take a look.
This is even more important because it is obvious you didn't research what I do.
6. Finish the email with your contact information again. If you "are looking forward to hearing from me soon" give me ways to do that!
In this case his email appears, however some programs will not show the email address. Make it easy for me to find your contact information without having to scroll around or re-read your email. I may not like to talk via email to salespeople when I first talk to them (that is true for any salesperson looking to contact me for future reference). Don't forget to include a link to your product/company and even your LinkedIn profile so I can research you before I contact you to see if we have anything in common and that I know you are a competent salesperson.
7. Sign your name. I want to know how to spell it for future reference and that this email was written by a human and not just cut and pasted and blasted out by a computer.
I'm sure Chris' intention was to get me to talk about his product and call him back. I'm doing neither, however I am talking about his email. Thanks Chris for your attempt to contact me.
Lets see if you've read this and learned something. Good luck with getting clients from future emails, and I mean that in a helpful way.
Ev
A Heck of A Nice Guy
Even if you haven't bothered to research who I am, what errors do you see and what ways can this email be more effective?
Here are some I found:
1. My name is not "Katie." For those of you who think Chris sent me this by mistake, I would argue that if that was the case, he would have sent an email immediately afterward apologizing for sending it to the wrong person. We've all done that at some point and I wouldn't have given it a second thought. He didn't send that email so now I just think he's brand new, maybe lazy, had someone blindly grab email addresses from LinkedIn, or an idiot.
2. Why is it so exciting that you've been providing services "for over 14 years!" Why do I need to know that? Providing good customer service after the sale IS a buying criteria for me, however it isn't the first one. Chris doesn't take the time to ask or find out what are my buying criteria. If he is "fishing" and hoping that telling me they have been around for 14 years will make me excited enough to contact him that is a pretty weak lure. Price, Benefits, Features or better yet asking a question about a pain that their product can solve would be better ways to get me to take the bait and respond.
3. I don't care about insights gained over your career, at least initially. I'm not going to set up an appointment to hear you prattle. If I don't think you can help me I'm not wasting my time.
4. If you were interested in learning about me, you would have mentioned some fact about me that you found out-it isn't like I'm hiding. Show me you've looked me up.
I'm connected to several businesses. Find out what they do and tell me an idea of how you think your product can help me. I may or may not like the idea but I will give you credit for trying. If the idea is reasonable enough it might open a dialog even if it isn't exactly what I want.
5. If I'm looking to buy a product I don't mind research on my own. You tell me that your company developed this product and that you've been doing it for 14 years but don't tell me what the product does. How do I know I might need or want it? You are trying to blindly contact me. Tell me in one sentence what your product does and include a link so I can go take a look.
This is even more important because it is obvious you didn't research what I do.
6. Finish the email with your contact information again. If you "are looking forward to hearing from me soon" give me ways to do that!
In this case his email appears, however some programs will not show the email address. Make it easy for me to find your contact information without having to scroll around or re-read your email. I may not like to talk via email to salespeople when I first talk to them (that is true for any salesperson looking to contact me for future reference). Don't forget to include a link to your product/company and even your LinkedIn profile so I can research you before I contact you to see if we have anything in common and that I know you are a competent salesperson.
7. Sign your name. I want to know how to spell it for future reference and that this email was written by a human and not just cut and pasted and blasted out by a computer.
I'm sure Chris' intention was to get me to talk about his product and call him back. I'm doing neither, however I am talking about his email. Thanks Chris for your attempt to contact me.
Lets see if you've read this and learned something. Good luck with getting clients from future emails, and I mean that in a helpful way.
Ev
A Heck of A Nice Guy
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