Where do you start?
Do what detectives do – search!
How do you find their email address or their phone number?
There are several ways.
- you may meet someone new at a networking event. Ask for their business card and their permission to contact them. Take the initiative.
- you may be told by someone about them and that they could use your services. Ask the “someone” to introduce you by email.
- email a colleague who you think knows them and ask for an email introduction
- you may just have someone’s email address. If they have a website, it’s always the name after the @ symbol. For example my email is trudy@smallbizbuilder.com and my website is http://www.smallbizbuilder.com
How do you find their contact info?
- If you don’t have their card, go to their website and choose the About Us page. If you like what you see and think you may want to have a relationship with this person, go to the Contact Us page and send them an email or phone them about what you are thinking.
- You may see something in a blog post or an article they wrote. Look up their website and send an email message via their web site.
- You might receive an email and reply to the person who wrote it. Check them out on their website first.
- You could find a blog post by them and put a comment on it.
- read someone’s name you saw in an email but weren’t able to attend their webinar.
- same as above only you heard the person speak and want to comment on it or learn more about them.
There are lots more ways to meet people without physically going out.
Add more and tell me about them. Comment here.
What do you put in your email to them?
Sometimes what you have to say is a question. Sometimes you agree with what they’ve written and sometimes you don’t. Sometimes you just want to give them the electronic equivalent of a “pat on the back”.
You never know whether the person will phone, email or do nothing, or how long it may take. And you never know what they will do with your information. I got a phone call to me to help promote an event in New York City, a call about becoming a regular writer for an ezine that originates in Texas and a thank you and let’s keep in touch in Toronto just to name a few that happened.
You have nothing to lose if you do it – so ………. Write or call them. Just remember to be interested, compelling and positive.
Originally posted March 13, 2012