We use social media like LinkedIn to make connections, establish business contacts, and build mutually beneficial relationships. Often, we must reach out to people blindly, so to speak, without any formal introduction or direct connection.
I’ve acquired these tips through experience and hope they will work for you as well as they have for me.
1. Persistence
If you reach out to someone and they do not respond back, first do not take it personally. Popular and successful people receive hundreds of messages daily from people looking to connect, get advice, need help, and everything else under the sun.
Mr. Louis David Spagnuolo, whom I’ve had the great honor and pleasure of meeting, is one of the most popular and inspiring people on LinkedIn, and he get’s flooded with inquiries 24/7, so start thinking about how you can stand out from the crowd.
Reach out as many times as it takes to establish a contact that you truly believe should be made… just don’t go overboard chasing after one contact because there are many others that you may click with sooner.
2. Timing
If you reach out and you get a response or your invitation is accepted immediately… this is great! This means your timing was right and the context of your message was on point.
However, if you do not get an immediate response or connection, you will not give up because of rule #1. Now, you must focus on the timing and context of your next message. Do not send a second message right away and do not wait too long either. One idea is to get to know their social media schedule so the next message you send will be at a time when you are fairly confident they may read it.
It took three years of effort before I connected with Mike Mann, a king of the domain name world, and it was largely due to persistence and timing.
Today Mike is a great collegue, I’ve worked with him personally, and was honored to serve as CTO of his company DomainMarket.com for a period of time.
3. Context
Take the time to learn about each person you want to connect with. The key is to findhow you can provide value to your contact. Compare their business and services with your skills and your experience. Think in terms of what you can do for them and not what you can receive. Think about how you can differentiate yourself and stand out from the crowd of other inquiries they receive.
As Mr. Louis David Spagnuolo puts it, “If you want a seat, first bring something to the table”.
This is where context comes in. If you explain yourself well, and within the context outlined here, and within the criteria your contact is looking for, then you will have done the work for your contact and they will instantly be able to acknowledge how you may be of immediate value and put your expertise to use.
Therefore, you must craft your message in the context of the need or desire you can fulfill. Your message should be about helping your contact to fulfill that need for free (gratis, pro-bono) if possible or on an introductory (trial) basis. Only then, with the right timing and the right context, are you most likely to get a response.
Once you establish your new connection, work as quickly as you can to iron out the details of your offer and then to fulfill the terms of your discussion or agreement. You may have one foot in the door but you are only one step closer to your goals. Once you have made a new contact, it is up to you to work even harder now to cultivate that relationship in the spirit of mutually beneficial success.
BONUS TIP: Pick up a copy of Napoleon Hill’s “The Wisdom of Andrew Carnegie As Told To Napoleon Hill” and study the 17 Principles of Success that many of your big contacts probably follow.
Please share your thoughts in the comments section below and I will be pleased to reply.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Sener Korkusuz is the Founder and CEO of EarthSkater.com, dedicated to helping small business owners succeed online with custom tailored eCommerce solutions. He is the Co-founder and CTO of the LinkedOpinions.com, a free tool used to survey your LinkedIn connections and the co-founder and CEO of the A7FL. The American 7’s Football League, The Game America Wants.
