Category: digital storytelling

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?)

Will AI kill keyword gurus in 2020?

Sarat Pratapchandran1 Comment

letter oneThe Internet grew. New terms like search engine optimization (SEO) created thought leaders, book publishers, keyword specialists, and gurus of search.

Our vocabulary created many enterprising business models in the last decade.

We promised the corner cupcake store owner higher rankings on search engines. She got data on traffic, visits, referrals, direct hits, and examples of organic growth, half of which she never understood.

We became experts in search making money on similes, metaphors, and the unused thesaurus. But one thing remained clear: websites that created authentic, fresh, valuable content gave search engines a run for their money.

Today, Artificial Intelligence (AI) makes coffee for you, runs your inventory, manages your supply chain, and delivers profits. AI will easily drive your web traffic to the top spot of search engines.

You don’t need a digital marketing agency, a search engine specialist or a keyword expert. The middleman will vanish.

Firms like WordLift, Woorank and Alli AI are helping businesses get higher search engine rankings without an intermediary. If you have reached maturity in online marketing you will rely more on AI this decade rather than search engine experts.

But folks like me will depend on books like Word Power Made Easy, by Norman Lewis. There is a difference between original and artificial in our vocabulary and that will never go away.