LinkedIn is the largest professional networking platform in the world. That means it is the perfect place to connect with the who’s who in business. I have been using LinkedIn for a long time and I know its benefits firsthand. However, there is one thing that has really got me thinking (after it annoyed me beyond words), and that is my overflowing inbox with spam messages.
Maybe you have gone through this, maybe not, but I will share my experience here; I recently accepted a connection invite and the next thing I see is this.
**Hi Jim, Thanks for the connect!!
Hope you are doing well, I just had a look through your company portfolio and I must say I’m very impressed, I would like to take this opportunity to share our company profile and our expertise in IT services. So I am inviting you for an online presentation, just to showcase our abilities in various IT services. We are not looking for any immediate requirement, in future if you have any requirement you can consider us. Please let me know your leisure time so that I can schedule the online presentation. Once again I like to remain you that, this online presentation is just to introduce my company and to build a healthy rapport with you. Kindly revert me if you have any clarification.
My response: I sent it to our SR director of Development – if he is interested he will reach out to you
Thanks, Jim, I am just sharing my contact details below. If I want to contact your SR director also, I can do that with your permission. Again I need to thank you for spending your precious time. Thanks,
My response: – if he is interested he will reach out to you, I have nothing to do with IT (Trying to be nice)
**Hi Jim, if you could give me about 20 min time slot in your schedule? I can arrange a meeting to discuss our company profile. Kindly share your email Id, so that I can send you a calendar invite. Thanks,
My response: I have nothing to do with IT
(Expecting that they got my “not interested” message and will keep their word…wait for it… another inbox that was even longer)
Hi Jim, Thanks for your candid response !!
This corporate presentation is just to introduce my company profile, IT services & our projects for about 15 min, so in the future, if you have any requirements you can consider us. So if you have any leisure time, please let me know. I will not text anymore and disturb you until you text me. Have a great day !! Thanks,
My response: Thanks – Not interested though. Have a great week
Now you get it, using the above example let’s look at three lessons we can learn on how to do effective sales pitches on LinkedIn,
1. Do your due diligence –
Before sending a generic sales pitch, research properly. You can look through the person’s profile and take a further step by visiting their website for more information. If the above “connection” looked through my profile and company, they would know that we did not need the services they had to offer.
2. Listen –
active listening is one of the most important skills a sales representative should embody. It is not limited to the actual hearing, and in this case, it meant following and understanding what I wrote. I was kind enough to tell the person I was not interested, but they just ignored me and continued to push their sales agenda. How rude!
3. Develop a relationship –
LinkedIn is a networking platform, meant for making meaningful connections and learning from each other. Believe me, marketing will happen automatically after developing a direct relationship with your connections. The connection may not buy from you but could be a credible referral source in the future.
LinkedIn will continue being a great business-to-business networking platform that could be an invaluable marketing asset when used well. Change your strategy with these three tips and experience better results with a bigger meaningful network.
Don’t get me wrong I get tons of great connections who understand it, here is one I recently got over the weekend. I am actually excited to learn more about this person below and see if we can work together someday.
Hello Jim,
Thank you for connecting with me on LinkedIn. I look forward to communicating with you and learning more about your business. If I can be of any assistance in introducing you to people in my network please do not hesitate to let me know.
Best Regards,
XXX
Have you been through a bad LinkedIn experience? I would like to know how you handled it.
This blog was first published on LinkedIn
