This 60 second video got me more than $ 10,000 in business from a guy who’d never heard of me before:
How did I do it? Before I invited him to connect, I spent about 14 seconds looking over his LinkedIn profile. I noticed he went to the University of Pittsburgh and graduated in the 1980s. I’m a huge sports fan, and I remember the Pitt Panthers being great in football (with Dan Marino) in the early 1980s, and also Pitt having a nice run in college hoops during the mid-to-late 1980s with Jerome Lane, Sean Miller, Charles Smith and others. And of course, the seminal moment in Pitt Panthers basketball became “Send it in, Jerome!” You don’t see that happen every day.
Personalized Pitch
So when I reached out to this prospect on LinkedIn, I personalized my invite and played up the Pittsburgh sports angle. Keep in mind, I had NO IDEA if this guy was a sports fan or not – I just figured it was worth a shot trying to connect a passion of mine (sports) with a thread of his story (his time at Pitt).
By taking 14 seconds to scan this prospect’s profile and personalize my invitation, I got an instant response:
I was at that game! You can’t believe what it was like inside the arena! Hey, did you know Dan Marino was among the group of athletes at Pitt who recruited me to go there on a scholarship? Oh yeah, and what is it you do again? Debt Collection Agency Marketing? Hey, you know, we’re looking at doing a company video, and maybe some Facebook marketing. We should really talk!
A couple of phone calls later, I had $ 10,000 in business secured. My new client told me, “You know what really sold it? Send it in, Jerome!”
Know. Like. Repeat.
If you get nothing else from this post (other than a classic college basketball highlight), REMEMBER THIS: We want to do business with people we know and like.
By taking the time to research and appeal to my LinkedIn prospect’s passions, I instantly became someone he wanted to know, and once we connected live on the phone, I became likable because we had a lot in common (we’re also both soccer fanatics) and I happened to offer a high-quality product/service that his business needed.
It’s much easier to do business with someone who becomes a friend than someone who remains a customer. It’s also much harder to stop doing business with a friend than it is to leave a vendor.
Getting to know my clients, and actually caring about them as human beings is not only good for business, but it’s also the right way to live my life!
YOUR TURN: Do you have any similar stories? If so, share them in the comments!
Digital & Social Articles on Business 2 Community(26)
