One of the mainstays of networking is the ability to comfortably connect with someone you don't know. And despite the phenomenal growth of social networking tools such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, the undisputed champion of personal connectivity is email.
Here are five tips to ensuring that your next cold email is warmly received and responded to:
- Do Your Homework: The internet is a wonderful thing in that you can find out nearly anything you'd want to know about your networking target. Like an investigator, follow the Google bread crumbs until you find a few gems that are personally relevant to your audience.
- Gently Pander: Somewhere between gushing admiration and indifference is the art of gentle pandering. By acknowledging the quality of someone's blog post, the insight of their recent presentation, or even the subtle brilliance of their product or service offering, you can naturally gain the appreciation of your reader. I'm not suggesting you kiss their ass, but I am suggesting you acknowledge them for their success.
- Introduce Yourself: First things first....do not share your life story and keep it short! Time is an increasingly precious commodity so you want to be brief and clearly explain who you are. Focus on how your area of focus is somehow related to them, be that geography, industry, alma matter, military service, common non-profit affiliations or other factors. Self-deprecation does work so have some fun with this portion of your message.
- Doing the "Ask": This is tricky part. In my experience, there is a direct correlation between the number of emails and the enormity of the request. If you're simply hoping to connect with them online, a polite gesture requesting a connection is appropriate in the first email. On the other hand, if you are trying to sell them on the merits of the DIY product you built in your basement, you should use this first email to simply introduce yourself.
- The Close: Thank them for their time and consideration and suggest how you'd like to proceed from here. This can range from a link to your website/blog/portfolio/social network to a request for availability for an initial phone conversation. And end your note professionally with "Sincerely", "Best regards", "With gratitude", etc.
Remember that the entire email should run about six or seven sentences in length. Once completed, read it as if you were in their shoes, and then ask yourself whether you would bother to reply.
Finally, do not set the "read receipt" option on your email software. This will likely irritate the recipient as it sends the message that you want to validate that they have your email - a no-no in cold networking. However, you should bcc yourself so that you have the original message should follow up be appropriate at a later time.
These tips aren't foolproof, but I will tell you that I have a >90% response rate when I've used these techniques. Like any soft skill, this takes practice, so get out there and start networking. You'll be glad you did.
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