HiddenText Ltd

I received a LinkedIn connection request from a person in a similar but indirect field to mine, they were in RISK. Looking at their profile it looked a bit sales-y but a year ago, they moved from telesales to Credit Risk Specialist within the same national agency, so I said yes to connection.

BUT THEN … the message of doom …

This is verbatim (with vendor details removed to protect the innocent) what I received within a minute of connection.

Great to connect! You popped up as a recommendation with many mutual contacts that use us for their [INSERT SERVICE], so I hope you don’t me reaching out mate. I was looking to see if you were familiar with [COMPANY] at all?

Dissection

I wanted to, as an ex-sales trainer, to explain why this strategy fails/failed at the first hurdle and in one message.

You popped up as a recommendation with many mutual contacts

Flattery will get you everywhere, surely? A recommendation, possible, with many mutual contacts. If you are going to say that, you need to make sure you have done your homework. The answer is that between us, we have ONE 1st line LinkedIn connection, which I unfortunately would not class as MANY.

Tip 1: If you are going to say something, ensure it is accurate.

that use us for their [INSERT SERVICE]

So Cyber Security is my thing. If this information is true, and the “many contacts” are using this person’s services then this message has given me part of the supply chain that would be useful to an attacker. Plus there is a likelihood of NDAs in place etc. so in fact this could be deemed by an argumentative lawyer as a breach of that NDA.

Tip2: Don’t mention indirectly clients’ details

so I hope you don’t me reaching out mate.

Friendship takes time, even casual acquaintances take time. More importantly, friendship is a two-way thing. So to, within the first 50 words, be asserting or assuming that friendship exists is going to put the back up of the reader.

Tip3: Mate, friend or chum … not in your first message! Ensure you have a working relationship with that person before you introduce pally conversational terms. Also be careful which term you use – some people can get offended VERY easily!

I was looking to see if you were familiar with [COMPANY] at all?

I suppose that the funny part of this message is that the company they are contacting me from is one of the biggest in the finance sector. Indeed, it was quite comical! However, we know where this is going to go to next … a sales pitch. That’s right. When this person stopped being a “Telesales Agent” in January 2020 what they in fact meant was that they were still going sales. So why hide the job title?

Tip4: be proud of being a salesperson, be good at it and don’t shy away from it. If you are as good as you are implying then sales will happen. Sure. it is a numbers game, but there are better ways of doing it. Play smarter.

Sales Tips

I know I might come under some flack for this, but here are some sales tips that are going to win you more business than a LinkedIn connection request.

1. Know your target.
   Before you connect, know who you are speaking to, why, what services are relevant for discussion, what ‘might’ be relevant and those which are not relevant at all.
2. Don’t digitally connect.
   Pick up the phone and dial, arrange a call where you can discuss things. Email, social media is just a way of getting information from A to B, you cannot SELL by it.
3. Be polite and respectful at all times.
   You may be last deal of the month away from your target, but that doesn’t mean you can be bullish, arrogant, aggressive etc. In fact, all that will do is minimise your market. You amay also want to think that the person on the other end of the phone could be a future boss!
4. Learn from every interaction, no matter how brief.
   If you shake hands, learn how hard they grip your hand. Be respectful to remember it. Are they left or right-handed? Do they work better in a morning/afternoon/evening? How do they address you in communication. Learn about who you are talking to.
5. Sales takes time.
   Time can be seconds, minutes or hours, days weeks, months or years. Time is there and you have to acknowledge that. So learn your sales cycle. If a sale is normally a 4 week period from initial conversation to close, don’t hurry it.
6. The potential client is always in control. Always.
   They will tell you when they are ready to close. They will pay you when they want. They will hang up on you if they don’t like you. The client is always the key asset, not the order form. Therefore, pay more attention to them that your commission cheque.
7. Not everyone, even the apparently dream client will want to buy your services.
   Doesn’t matter how good they are, bargain-priced and perfect solution, if the client says no, the client says no. Respect that decision and don’t try and circumvent the person you are speaking to. Companies talk, contacts talk and it will come back to haunt you.
8. People buy from people.
   So don’t be the same as a bad sales person. Don’t be the same as a great sales person. Be the best YOU can be. Use what you know, use your experiences, use your knowledge – don’t fake it, don’t lie or else it will mean that their view is that you are a liar and the company they are buying from hires fakers. Be genuine to them and more importantly, be genuine to yourself.

I hope these 8 tips and the 4 above give the sales people in the world some guidance as to better practices you can follow. If you are unsure, try doing some more sales training, try being sold to as well and learn from others’ mistakes too. I’d also recommend some NLP, body language training as that will definitely come in handy. But please, no more blind emails or blind social media connection requests, this will only serve to damage your personal brand and that of your business.