LinkedIn and Facebook Tip: Don’t Pounce During a Connection Thank You!

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Do No Pounce in the Connection Thank You PageRecently I’ve been becoming more active on LinkedIn and in Facebook.  As I went through 80 some odd responses that had piled up since I approved a number of connection requests (and made several) I couldn’t help but notice that the majority of the “Connection Thank You” messages where blatant attempts to pounce on the poor sucker now that I have his attention.  I didn’t feel like being a poor sucker or a rabbit, I felt like the mighty warrior and I slashed those messages to ribbons.  Neither one of those responses is what the marketers were looking for.  Let’s look further….

 On-line social networks are about building relationships and if you were meeting someone in person, the last thing you would do is start with “Hi, My name is Hale.  Let met tell you about my services.  I know you need what I have and I’ll give you a great deal…..”  It’s hard to believe that so many people forget that when they move to the on-line space.  I know that some of it is a trying to create a sense of urgency, but I firmly believe that much of it is pure laziness.  Every swing is designed to be a home run and then move on to the next sucker errrr ah, person.

I won’t bother to show you examples of the bad thank you’s.  If you have been in this space at all, you’ve seen them.  Instead let me give you a couple of decent ones.  

LinkedIn Connection Thank You:

Hi Hale:

Thank you for the LinkedIn connection.

If there is anyone in my network that you would like to connect with please don’t hesitate to ask for a referral. It would be my pleasure…

David D.
Hxxxx Hxxx Cxxxxxx
561-555-5555
david@xxxxxx.com
http://XXX.com

This is a pleasant intro that offers ME something and opens the door to further conversation.  I sent this person a response noting how unusual his approach was.  The lazy marketer would say that there is no Call To Action and I would respond that the first time you meet a girl is not the time to ask her to marry you.  Relationships start slow.

You can use a more time-consuming AND MORE EFFECTIVE technique as described below

Facebook Personal Message Connection Thank You.

If this case I’m not talking about a friend request.  I talking about reaching out with the Personal Message system.  The point is that if the person messages you back DO NOT pounce on them!

  1. Open with something you have in common.
    You need something you have in common to talk to a person.

    • I have a boxer, you have one too, let’s connect BTW I saw your comment on XXX page, I’d really like to connect.
    • I see you live in Kalamazoo, I grew up there or I live there too.
  2. Listen and be assertive – use a “voice” that is slightly more assertive than they are.  You need to be in control of the situation, but do not overpower them or be overpowered by them.  Insist on getting to know them even if they suddenly ask you to “get to the bottom line.” CARE – Be 100% interested in the other person and their pain.  Your business is to give them something that will improve their lives.  You are not trying to convince them to “buy” something. You are building rapport and working on the “Know and Like” part of “Know, Like and Trust.”
  3. Always end with a Question  (Lead the conversation
    with these questions)

    • Jessica Higdon almost always starts with the question “What do you do?”  (If they come back with “I do x. What do you do?” DO NOT make your pitch here.  You are still in the GREETING stage and you don’t know what they want or what their pain is yet. You might say “I help people work from home which is really important now based on the way the economy is going.  Tell me, why did you get into what you do?”  Remember  normal people say things like “I’m a teacher” or “I work for IBM” You need to be “normal people” – don’t be weird.) Jessica also likes a question from the book “Endless Referrals.”  After she knows a little about what the person does, she asks “How will I know when a person would be a  good prospect or client for YOU?”   This question is about benefiting the person you are talking to, not YOU.
    • How long have you had your boxer?
    • You can ask leading questions like “How is the economy affecting your business?  I have some friends in your business and they have been hit really hard.  Is that happening to you?”
    • Are you marketing primarily online or offline?  For how long?
    • Follow up is critical.   If you had a conversation going and it lags, restart it.  People get busy!!
  4. YOUR BLOG – This can be a VERY powerful part of the conversation.   You want to have written posts that address many of the pains and questions  that people have. When one of them comes up you can say “Hey, I wrote a post on my blog about that a while back.  Here is the link….” You have just established yourself as an expert.
  5. The Greeting continues until they have shared something personal or painful in their lives. DO NOT  move to the next step until you are talking to the real  person instead of their “formal persona”.  You need  to hear their wants, needs and pain.

        You can read more about this technique in my blog post on Facebook Connections   

The take-away here is to remember – when you are first talking to anyone – DO NOT POUNCE ON THEM.    Especially do not pounce during a Connection Thank You.  You will get relegated to the discard pile in a hurry.

Minor rant today, but Connection Thank You Responses can be the start of the a long relationship or the abrupt end of any chance at a relationship.  Chose Wisely!

 

 

 

Until Next time, you have a Great Day!  Oh Hale Yes!

↓ ↓ If this post gave you some ideas – Go ahead & comment below.  ↓ ↓

Hale Pringle

Hale Pringle Ed. D.

Hale Pringle – Hale Yes!

 

Skype hale.pringle

Email:  Hale@HalePringle.com

 

Connect with me of Google+, Facebook or Twitter

P.S. If you are working to move your business online and it all seems overwhelming, I can help! My team and I are currently working with best “Earn Money Quickly From Home” Program I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen them ALL!) I strongly urge you to take a look at http://HalePringle.com/ds. You can also take a look around http://HalePringle.com, especially the resources menu option. You will see that I specialize in list building, am a Certified Trainer with Ann Sieg and am an award winning blogger. I’ve also written three books on AWeber (AWeber: Quick Start) and over 20 others. You can email me or give me a Skype call. I’ll give you the benefit of my years of experience and many thousands of dollars in training and searching the rabbit hole called Internet Marketing and especially selling physical products online.

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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!”