Today’s newsletter is a bit special.
Today’s newsletter is the last one in this format. As of next week, I’ll share the newsletter with an upgraded visual, and some additional content to help you book more meetings. I’d love for you to take 20 seconds to tell me about what you’d like to see in Tactical Selling.
How this sales rep used negative-psychology to book a meeting with me
In today’s newsletter, I will share how a sales rep used two psychological biases to book a meeting with me. I receive a ton of messages from people trying to book a meeting with me, and in most cases, I ignore them. Here is what this sales rep did differently:
Step 1: The trigger
Here’s a screen capture of the first message the rep sent out.
Omid used a clever approach to reach out to me by replying to my weekly newsletter and complimenting my work instead of directly asking for a meeting. Omid knew that, as a creator, I would appreciate feedback on my newsletter. This short email earned him a reply.
Step 2: The ask
With the conversation open, Omid accepted to write a testimonial, but he asked for something in exchange:
Note that Omid did not immediately pitch his idea. Instead, he asked for a “selfish favor”. This approach is brilliant because I am not in a position to say no, especially since he agreed to write a quick testimonial about my newsletter.
Step 3: The pitch
After receiving the authorization, Omid pitched his product and requested a meeting.
I like this message for a few reasons:
- Short description of what Omid is building (even if it’s not really clear in this email)
- Asking for 25 minutes is a good pattern interrupt (in general people ask for 30 min)
- The PS gives credibility by mentioning other creators
- No link
Despite the great message, I didn’t feel like responding because I wasn’t sure if it would be a waste of 25 minutes of my time. So, I ignored the email.
Step 4: The negative psychology + reciprocity trick
This is where Omid demonstrated his outbound prospecting skills. He waited for two days, giving me enough space but not waiting too long. On August 24th, he submitted the testimonial and sent the following message:
The message and its timing are brilliant for a few reasons:
- Omid employs reciprocity by writing a nice testimonial about Tactical Selling
- He labels the situation by assuming my silence was a polite way of saying no
- He doesn’t push for a meeting or try to convince me of anything, instead telling me it’s fine (negative psychology)
As a result, I accepted the risk of wasting 25 minutes of my time because Omid gave me something (the testimonial) and played along instead of trying to persuade me.
This is how Omid booked a meeting with me. He understood that the goal of an outbound message is to start a conversation and navigate it until a meeting is set.
Hope this helps.
Cheers,
Thibaut Souyris
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