Asking for Help Online – Do It Professionally

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Asking for Help Online – Do It Professionally

 

Asking for Help

Asking for Help

 

I’ve written in the last few days about the 2012 Top 50 MLM Bloggers Competition that I’m exited about.  While my primary Network Marketing company doesn’t meet the technical definition for an MLM, it is still a direct sales organization where you gain leverage by finding and helping others do the same that you are doing.  Most people would look at it and say “MLM.”  I’m okay with that.  I think properly designed and run MLM’s are the best opportunity the average person will ever find to generate a lifestyle type income.

Regardless, in addition to emailing my list, I’ve sent some Facebook message to my friends online and off asking for their help with the competition. 

One of the responses prompted this short post.

 

 

Note: My mission is to help Network Marketers who are struggling to move online, especially those buried by overwhelm. You will find information that will HELP you find leads and access to the finest mentoring system on the Internet today (Ann Sieg’s Renegade Team and Inner Circle). You will learn how to avoid the bright shiny things, effectively use blogging, Facebook and LinkedIn, A free 30 minute coaching call is yours for the asking.  Take action today!  When you are ready Join the Team   

Asking for Help – HOW-TO

Today I messaged Ori Bengal for WordPress Made Easy fame.  Ori is one of the people I really respect and whose course I learned a lot from.  It was simple, straight forward and his videos explained things in a way that locked them in place for me.  This was over a year ago and we have communicated off and on since then.   His response to my message was a welcomed vote, along with a suggestion that I blog about how I went about asking for his help. 

In his words:
 …your writing in the message you sent is excellent as well… one of the best “Can you do this for me” emails I’ve seen in a while on fb….. That may be a good article to write right there– how to ask for favors w/out being annoying or needy.

With that in mind i thought I’d share what I sent and my thought process.  I may spark a thought the next time you need to write a request.  I don’t claim to be the expert here, I just did a fairly good job on this message.  (According Ori, a little better than “fairly”.)  This type of request is certainly not natural for the introvert in me.

I’m going to digress for a second.   Mrs. Myers-Briggs, who developed the Myers-Briggs Personality Inventory, made an interesting observation years ago.  She wrote words to the effect that “an introvert, when discussing a topic that he or she is passionate about, is indistinguishable from an extrovert.”  Her example was the total introvert who loved Radio Controlled (RC) airplanes and was at a meeting of RC enthusiasts.  You would never see the introvert.   I felt the same way about sending these vote requests.  I was in my zone and it didn’t bother me at all.  The same message asking for a donation for XYZ would have been an agonizing experience.  Think about that when you need to leave your comfort zone.  If you are dealing with your passion that comfort zone might extend a LOT further than it normally does.

Okay, back to the main point of the blog post.  I’m going to print the message and in bold give you my thought process.

Before I do, let me clarify one thing in this message. I am part of Ann Sieg’s Daily Marketing Coach (DMC+) Mentorship program.  I was sending this message to a few of the other members.  That will give you some context to the message.  (BTW: You can learn more about the program by clicking here: Daily Marketing Coach  )

***************

Hi Ori,  – informal greeting – we are friends here and I want to establish that

I figured I’d send this even though Eric just published Marsha Godwin’s post about the Top 50 MLM Blogger’s competition. I’m just not sure how many will get to it before the deadline next week. I’m reaching out to some of the folks I’ve known a while in the DMC+ group and I feel like I’ve known you for quite a while. Some of this is out of context for most of you, but it serves as an introduction.  I was deliberately easing into the topic of my request.  The “I feel like I’ve known you for quite a while” was not in my boiler plate.  I try to personalize this first paragraph.  In the few cases where I didn’t personalize the message I felt guilty AS SOON AS I PRESSED THE SEND button.  I immediately stopped sending and went for a walk.  If I can’t be personal, then I shouldn’t be writing.  Given that we have Google, Web sites, Facebook, LinkedIn and much more, there isn’t anyone I am linked to that I can’t find something personal to say.  If I didn’t do it, it was because I was tired or lazy.  At that point I needed to stop.  Pure boiler plate is SPAM and I apologize to any who might be reading this and who got one of those.  I hope you can see that this point applies to YOU too.

I would really appreciate it, if you could leave a comment. In this case each comment counts as a vote and all of the team members need votes. I’ve commented on all of the team’s entries! Oh Hale Yes!  – I asked for a favor and put it in the context of a larger group.  I am supporting the whole group.  It is not just about me.

If this is something you would prefer not to do, that is totally okay. I’m just practicing my marketing. Natasha says that we need to unabashedly market ourselves on this one, so I’m working on doing just that.  – There is no pressure.  If the recipient didn’t want to extend the favor that is totally okay.  It won’t affect our relationship at all.  At least not from my end.  I also made it sound in part like a homework/challenge (which it was).

I think it would be cool if DMC+ had 10 of the top 20 spots. Don’t you?  – again this is out of context for some of you, but I made sure to say that “this is NOT just about me.”  I also tried to elicit a “yes” from him.  I probably should have had more of those.  These are called “trial closes” and the more the recipient says “yes”, the more likely they are to say “yes” to what I really wanted from them.

Thankx.

Here is my link: http://top50mlmblogs2012.thatmlmbeat.com/hale-pringle-dealing-with-internet-marketing-overwhelm-and-providing-blogging-tips/

The Thankx funky spelling was deliberate to keep the tone light and the link was necessary.  I wanted to ask for the absolute minimum possible effort  on his part.

*******************

Reading over my comments, I can see how some people might say: “that is manipulative.”   Yup – guilty as charged.  I sent the message with a purpose in mind.  I wanted his help.  I was asking for help in a professional way using some copywriting techniques.  I will note that there is not one lie or one half truth in the request.  I was making a Call to Action as best I could, while putting the minimum strain possible on our future relationship.  I believe in the old saying “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well.”

As simple as this message is, it is probably the 10th or 12th draft.  Every time I sent the message to a new person, I read through it.  If my natural speech pattern supplied different words from what I had written, I changed what I had written.  I suspect I tweaked the basic message every time I sat down for the first 6 or 8 times.

I also read it out loud and without thinking about it much I applied these basic rules (and probably a couple of others I can’t put my fingers on).

  • If I can’t read it and sound natural, it isn’t me. I have to change it.
  • If I pause in a place where there isn’t punctuation, I need to add punctuation. 
  • If I blow past a comma or semi-colon without pausing, the punctuation has to go. 
  • I need other eyes on the message.  I got at least one “you know this could be taken two different ways.” 
  • I need to get away from the message for a while (more than a day is best).  Then, in effect,  I become another set of eyes.
  • I am especially sensitive to the word “awkward.”   When I feel a sentence or sequence is awkward,  the section gets a complete re-write.

I don’t ask for help often, but when I do I want to be seen as asking for help professionally.

As a side note, being a realist, I am prepared for the “How could you do this?” response.  Since I’m ready for it, it won’t bother me (much 🙂 ).

I hope this little exercise helps.   If this sparks something – pro or con, I’d love to hear about it.  Put your comment below!!

That’s a wrap on “Asking for help – Do It Professionally”

 

Until next time, you have a Great Day!

Dr Hale

 

 

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Hale Pringle

Hale Pringle Ed. D.

 

Hale Pringle – Hale Yes!

Skype hale.pringle

Email: HaleYes@HalePringle.com

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About Hale Pringle

Dr. Hale is an Internet Entrepreneur and Network
Marketing expert. His greatest pleasure is
helping people and he does just that, drawing
upon the immense resources that he has gathered
over the years in his unquenchable thirst for
knowledge.

Dr. Hale lives in beautiful, sunny Florida with
his wife, two dogs and a cat. His four children
are grown and are scattered around the state.

An eternal optimist you will hear him say
regularly: “Is this a Great Day?” The answer is
always, “Hale Yes!”

If you need help with your online marketing or a
network marketing opportunity Dr. Hale is the go
to man. “Hale Yes!”

Comments

  1. Great post Hale, loved the bit about how you knew you needed to stop, walk away and come back to the task later. Sometimes that’s just what it takes isn’t it? To step back from what we’re working on, rest if we’re tired, and clarify our intentions if needs be. I believe our intention is picked up energetically. In reaching out to connect with anyone, online or off, to ask for anything, it makes all the difference to be grounded and centered within ourselves first. Then, if our request is met with a refusal it makes that much easier to take. When we aspire to do whatever we do as well as we can, we tend to naturally come across professionally. If we keep learning we’ll always create new opportunities to do better, that I think is all part of this wonderful adventure called life.

    You write about tweaking your basic message 6-8 times. I get that. I’ve absolutely done that with this message by now!

    • Thanks Abi. I remember how surprised I was to read (years ago) that Asimov had said that his stories were on their 10th or 12th draft before they were publishable. I had thought that the pros did an outline and then wrote their piece and sent it off for publication. Now days I know better. Thanks again!

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