The Golden Rule in Sales

The Golden Rule in Sales

Chances are you’ve been on the receiving end of a bad sales call or email in the past few weeks. The only people who still call me these days want to sell me something.

Typically, the call will start with them confirming whether I am <all my full names>, at which point I know what direction this will go. Not even my mother uses all those names; they simply exist on my ID.

The same goes for email. Dear Elna, I hope this email finds you well. (I didn’t know the email was looking for me). Let me introduce myself (oh, I didn’t think I needed to sit down for introductions). Why do these unnecessary and bad iterations of cold emails and calls exist? Laziness? Assuming it’s the way it should be done? If the Golden Rule of life (as some refer to it) is to “do unto others as you would want them to do unto you,” then why don’t we sell unto others as you would sell onto ourselves?

One out of a hundred may have worked, so they drone on and give sales professionals the lousy rep some deserve.

If cold emailing is typically the first way you reach out to a prospective target, then the necessary care needs to be taken when sending this email. It's the first impression and they tend to last (or worse, be immediately forgotten). Would you walk up to a person and use that language to introduce yourself and your services? Probably not.

90% of introductory sales emails I’ve received don’t do this:

• Say what they can help me achieve
• Say how they can help me achieve it
• Explain why I need their help to achieve it

I'd also add that most of these emails are robotic and devoid of any personality. Are interesting people sending uninteresting emails?

Many services out there allow you to send B2B cold emails on mass, allowing for testing to see which ones ultimately perform best and they come with their own set of recommendations for success. It's a spray-and-pray approach. But whether you are using that or doing it the traditional way (that being you typing and sending it yourself), a well-worded, clear initial email is the most significant predictor of success.

It's what you say, not how you send it.

So, on to the practical tip for the week:

When cold emailing, do:

• Add a bit of personality to your email; people buy from people they like
• Let go of platitudes and generic intros (like emails finding you well)
• Get to the point quickly
• Keep your intro short, or leave it out altogether. You do after all sign your email off with your name and business title (it serves the same purpose)
• Tell them how you can solve their business problem
• Add a soft call to action (don’t ask for an hour meeting straight away)
• Spell their name correctly (I know, I can't believe I am saying this. But Dear Elba, Elma, Elena, Elana…. I've seen them all.)
• Format your email nicely (not one where the name is in a different color, clearly showing it was copied and pasted and only the name changed).
• Refrain from adding a read receipt; it’s creepy.
• Add social proof if possible (a connection you have in common, a link to a press release where you are mentioned, a brief mention of work done for a similar company)
• Add a compelling subject line. Keep it short, simple, and interesting. For example: Cut production costs by 30%, Save weeks on your data analysis, Enhance consumer connections… Avoid just putting your company name in the subject line.

This is just the tip of the iceberg; I can carry on, but I’ll save your eyes for today.

If any of this resonates with you, I’d love to hear about it; just hit reply. If you feel any points are missing, do the same. Have friends or colleagues who can benefit from my weekly read? Ask them to follow me on LinkedIn or subscribe to my newsletter here.

Yours in selling unto others as you would sell onto yourself,

Elna