It amazes me how many folks send cold messages here on Linkedin – and *immediately* ask for a sale or a sales call.

Look, I’m not here to talk poorly on cold outreach.

In fact, I’ve done tons of “cold calling” and “cold messaging” in my career.

Here’s what I’ve found: asking people if they’re even a potential match *before* you start hard selling saves everyone time!

Moreover, if you receive initial interest, having a website, powerpoint, or other marketing piece you can point the prospect to – that s/he can review on his/her schedule – is paramount!

People don’t go from cold to hot immediately. They usually need to be “warmed up.” A valuable “lead magnet” achieves this!

This crucial step helps people decide if they’re *actually* interested enough to jump on a call.

In turn, the people you get on a call – if they were sent a marketing piece beforehand – will actually show up to the call pre-qualified! 

This saves you time. It’s also respectful to the prospect!

Nothing makes people more uncomfortable than being “hard sold” right out of the gate!

Sales is like dating; a little “romance” goes a long ways!

Just my two cents – as someone who’s built two businesses largely on the foundation of cold outreach.

-Jason