Is it ok to send introductory e-mails as soon as you're connected with potential prospects on LinkedIn?
I am involved in IT outsourcing. What is the best practice to follow up with potential prospects on LinkedIn? How do I get similar prospects from Facebook? I think FB is considered for more informal communication, but what do you think? How can I reach out to my prospects via these platforms?
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Aug 4, 2014
Yes it create a good gesture and this habit give you lot of good connection on Linked in
Jul 28, 2014
If you have something of value to me please let me know. But do your research before and be clear and precise in your value proposition. If you want to introduce yourself please do not contact me. I am working on my business and only want to be introduced to salespeople who have taken the time to determine how they can be of service to my business based on my actual needs.
I find my buyers appreciate my research and my solutions better when I do not waste their time with blind introductions.
Jul 28, 2014
YES! I have made some great connections via linked in. It all depends on how serious the other party is about connecting and using this resorce
Jul 27, 2014
I think following up on LinkedIn as soon as possible is wise. You may not get anywhere, but it shows you're paying attention and wanting input and possible biz relationships. I agree that FB is probably a little too casual and harder to talk one on one re specifics. I've had some good prospects from joining some of the discussion groups on LinkedIn, though I don't get too carried away with it.
Jul 26, 2014
It boils down to who initiated the connection and why. If you have a genuine interest in working with your prospect and they have a need for your services, then an intro email would be welcomed. But if it's the same ol' spam everyone else does, don't do it.
Jul 26, 2014
I feel its appropriate and agree with everyone about being personal but equally important is to do your homework to ensure that the people you're approaching could in fact benefit from what you're offering. Many times over I've seen advertisers just trying to sell to everybody which is very annoying when in doesn't apply to what you do or your industry, so choose your targets wisely.
Someone has touched on the Canadian anti-spam legislation and although it shouldn't be ignored, I don't feel there should be a concern when it comes to Linked In. For starters Linked In is a business site designed for the purposes of networking, job seeking and learning. All who signed up know or at least should know this and thereby shouldn't be surprised when approached. Secondly, Linked In acts like a filter. When sending an invite, you're limited to only 200 characters or so and no URLs are permitted. In addition, your prospect has a choice of whether or not to accept you and when they do then they have "consented" for you to contact them. Otherwise, Linked In won't allow you to invite them again unless you know their email address.
There are also few exemptions to the law.
1) You're allowed to email someone if their email is visible to the public and there is no stipulation anywhere that states "don't me email me". What I do is, I'll usually take a snippet of the website or profile that displays the contact information, date it and keep it for my records so they can't argue it was never there if removed.
2) You're allowed to call your prospect to introduce yourself and ask politely if you can forward more information via email. If they agree then you can email them and I would record the conversation so that they can't dispute giving you their email and consent in the future.
3) You're also allowed to email the prospect if you were referred to them by a third party. Just clearly state at the beginning of your email how you came by their contact information.
4) This is a no brainer, but if you done business together in the past or met at social event and exchanged business cards then emailing them is also allowed.
Finally, I don't think it can hurt to have a small disclaimer at the bottom of your email that lets your prospects know that they can opt out from receiving future emails from you simply by letting you know. If they don't opt out then I don't see why this couldn't be considered as their consent to receive future correspondence from you.
Kind regards to all,
Tom
Jul 25, 2014
I'll address LinkedIn only. When you ask if it's OK to contact, what I hear is a bit of trepidation about presenting your services. Keep in mind that EVERYONE of us on LinkedIn has something to sell to others.
That said: Yes, it is definitely OK. Start by posting a brief outline of your services/products, then follow up periodically with updates, enhancements, improvements, price-changes. Keep in front of all of us. Before you post I suggest you determine as much as possible what size company you want to do business with. Then announce what you have with the intent of capturing the attention of that specific niche. As people "like" you, or join your group, message them immediately with your marketing collateral. Good Luck!
Jul 25, 2014
Absolutely. Reach out while you are "fresh" is someone's mind. Wait too long and they may forget how they meet you.
I agree with what many have said though. Keep in honest, personable, and not salesy. This is the top of your marketing/sales funnel and you want to establish a good relationship.
Jul 25, 2014
Ravindra... I think it is perfectly acceptable to send an introductory email that speaks to what you do, however as others noted below should ask them questions about their own business - and how the two of you can support one another. Then the key is to genuinely engage with them, not just wait for an opportunity to sell them. Here is the email I tailor/customize to a LinkedIn request.... and will say I get productive responses from it, including requests for meetings and them providing me information about them.
As always, run tests and see what resonates and engages. As far as Facebook... I am finding that it is getting far less effective and time consuming to engage with someone there. Though it will depend on someone's target market. Depending on the size of companies you work with, it may not be valuable. At least not as much as LinkedIn.
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Jul 25, 2014
Yes, absolutely introduce yourself but do not try to sell anything. So tell them just a little and ask them a question about their business. Show interest in them. If your profile is good and they are interested, they'll come back and you can start a dialogue. Once they trust you and you have a good dialogue going then they might be interested in hearing more about what you do.
Jul 25, 2014
First, LinkedIn is professional and Facebook, for me, Not i Even if they try to extent their businesses in that field. The most important point also is to target the right persons/companies as these people receive already a lot of messages/proposals from many persons (also often relations) about different topics. Is your system unique, a niche product?
Jul 24, 2014
Complete detailed answers to all of your questions require either hiring a consultant and/or undertaking various formal training courses. As a general rule when following up with potential prospects you should provide useful and/or interesting information. The goal is to develop a relationship without hard selling. A good strategy is to present interesting stories that transition in such a way that the prospective prospect identifys a desire, need or problem for which your product or service is the solution. Linkedin and Facebook in general can be very good platforms to reach out to prospects but are challenging to utilize successfully. If you would like further information on this subject matter including receiving newsletters in the near future go to: bizmoneysmith.com and provide your email address. The site is under development and will be significantly modified in the near future. You can opt-out of receiving communications at any time.
Jul 24, 2014
I think you should use LinkedIn Message Box.. It give more professional impact.
I prefer communication thru LinkedIn message box than email.
Jul 24, 2014
Thank you every one for great suggestions. I will go with the majority that not to bombard with introductory e-mails etc..
I have already started working on how to do subtle marketing...:-)
MosiacHUB is becoming great platform to learn Marketing, networking...
Thank you very much.
Jul 24, 2014
I say NO, I don't respond to introductory email as most of them may be a spam one. And more over direct contact would impact more rather than doing this kind of stuff.
Jul 24, 2014
Hi Thanks for your question, once we have assigned to job that job have tracked with over few project oriented platform will help us to project communications, example "podio". face book are just introductory only.
Jul 24, 2014
It is always best to add value through publishing/groups and comments first. Otherwise, it is little more than a cold call.
Jul 24, 2014
Once you are Linked or connected I would follow up right away through inMail. I may ask permission to add them to a mailing list.
Jul 24, 2014
It depends on the scenario and your approach. Is it ok to immediately send your CV / Resume or work history to a prospect? Not necessarily.
Is it appropriate to see what your prospect is looking for, briefly introduce yourself and mention why you think you'd be a fit to help them? Absolutely. Invite your prospect to look at your profile for reasons a and b. And maybe C. Keep your exchange in a private message, not a public board.
Make it personal; don't give the impression that you're a spammer or you'll never get in the door.