I was reviewing your profile and we should connect

Fed up getting these un-targeted posts

“I was reviewing your profile and we should connect” (so I can bombard you straight away about how I can sell you my stuff…….whether you need it or not).

Even better their job title says they generate leads!

So, they will sell your details to lots and lots of people!

Feel like a moving target?

Trust me – it’s not the way to do it!

PLEASE STOP

If you were thinking- “well there are so many people doing it–maybe I should”

PLEASE DON’T

There are many ways to do this properly- it is a lot less scattergun, enjoyable and a lot more successful.

It may take more time and effort.

You may have to create win: win situations.

You may have to create proper business relationships.

You may even sell and get more business.

You may get more business referrals

You may help each other.

Now as a Business Mentor I appreciate it is hard for many just now, and the throw as much paint at the wall may eventually work, but what does it do to you and your #brand going forward?

Certainly, when the bombard email arrives for me it was the delete and unfollow.

BUT then I thought – maybe this could be an opportunity that I was missing.

Now I work mentoring business owners in Oxfordshire and Berkshire, so why don’t I do some research on them to see if we could work together and maybe I could support them on how to do this so much better.

How many of us receive LinkedIn requests like this?

How many of us receive LinkedIn messages like this each day?

Whilst many of the ones I see are from the sales team, many were also owners “who work with apparently lots of businesses” and as a Business Mentor, I thought I would try to help them to with their ‘marketing’.

So, I replied with the following:

“Thank you for contacting me. All the services I use and in turn my clients are all referred to trusted business partners who refer to us within our group. The referrals are built upon mutual trust and reciprocation. If you have clients who could benefit from this – then I would be more than happy to have a discussion to explore how we could work and grow together”.

Now I thought this was a very nice and personal reply.

Surely, we all want to work in this way?

Again, I was WRONG.

Two things happened,

90% simply ignored me – I guess it was throwing more paint at the wall and hoping something sticks. But I have responded and engaged – is that not what you want?

10% reverted with a message which bore no resemblance to the one I sent.

I simply don’t understand why people think this is effective sales and marketing. The world has moved on and what we want, expect, value, and cherish has all been altered by our recent experiences.

Trust and mutual benefit are more important in a business relationship and should work for both parties.

Most businesses thrive and survive on referral and personal recommendation. Brand and reputation are everything. This approach kills it.

Question: If asked, would your customer say great things about you and your brand. We would all hope they answer YES- so again why do people take this approach?

Why would you not want to help your existing customers get more business?

But it’s all about them selling their services to me – with no interest in me and my business or that of their customers.

So if you are a business in Oxfordshire or Berkshire and would benefit from support for your business – please do get in touch and we can discuss how we could work together for mutual benefit!