Category: Cultivation

Strangers on LinkedIn, please leave me alone!

Sarat PratapchandranLeave a comment

LinkedIn strategists, consultants, experts, and a whole slew of people want to make us influencers in a single day. As noted marketing expert, Seth Godin says, drip by drip…be authentic…these things take time, effort and genuineness. Here are ways not to connect with me on LinkedIn.

Saw you in the best practices group. (A common gimmick)

If so, let’s talk! book a call now, https://calendly.com (For what? Why?)

Let me know if that sounds interesting to you & we can connect over a Zoom call and discuss this further. No rush if you are busy. (Ploy to get me into a Zoom call!)

This is not for everyone, but I thought you might be interested. (I am special, right?)

I noticed that we are in the same group and thought it would be a good idea to start a conversation. (Another plain, boring gimmick)

Just circling back to see if you would still be open to grabbing a few minutes for feedback. (Please don’t grab me!)

From one CEO to another CEO, I’m reaching out to you as a fellow LinkedIn Open Networker (Ego, Ego, Ego- aren’t we exclusive?)

I like to get to know people in my network, and as a first step of getting to know each other, I’d like to invite you to have a Zoom call. (Clearly a LN consultant’s line!)

Hey…Just checking to see how you’re doing. Summer is almost over, so my 5 year old started kindergarten. (Touchy feely stuff doesn’t work here)

Gift from my 5-year-old daughter (Poor kid! Did you need to go so far?)

Sorry for just following up on this now, been swamped myself … was on your site and noticed you guys may have some ADA compliance issues on your website. OK if I drop in some insights on what I’m seeing? (Desperate? I already have problems. Leave me alone!)

I see we share some mutual connections (Aren’t we on LinkedIn?)

Thanks for connecting. I was just going through your profile and found it to be interesting. (Really?)

I’m in the process of expanding my network of successful professionals. It will be great to connect with you. We can share knowledge and experience in this fast changing world. (I move slow in a fast changing world. Leave me alone!)

I am getting back in touch as I believe we would both benefit from the chance to connect outside of LinkedIn. Do you have time in your schedule to talk? (Can’t connect with you inside LN, so why outside?)

Simple marketing ideas work

Sarat PratapchandranLeave a comment

I recently tried a simple marketing concept at work.  A well-regarded faculty member was celebrating his 60th birthday and he didn’t want his friends, relatives or former students to send him presents or wish him well on his birthday.

Instead, he wanted them to donate to a scholarship endowment to help students who faced hardships during their externships.

I talked to the professor and came up with a simple idea. Why don’t we highlight the professor’s age and encourage everyone to donate a minimum of $60 on his 60th birthday? Next, we focused on identifying the best medium to disseminate his message. The professor, a great Peanuts fan, had an office adorned with Schulz and his characters. We created a simple, yet humorous e-blast featuring a Peanuts character and a message from the Professor urging well-wishers to donate $60 to the scholarship.

We planned two dates to disseminate the e-blast. The first was send a week before his 60th and the other hit in-boxes three days before his birthday. The idea worked and over 50 individuals gave varying amounts to the endowment.

This effort generated many well-intentioned conversations. The Professor felt proud and said he couldn’t have got a better 60th birthday present than the response from his friends, former students and relatives. We made a simple iphone thank you video and emailed it to all who donated and they also received a hand written note.

Sometimes, simple marketing ideas generate larger conversations. They create deeper impact than complex, metrics driven content marketing.