How We’re Landing 6-Figure Clients On LinkedIn

In the past 90 days, we’ve signed three major clients at our performance marketing agency using a method we call account-based marketing.

Account-based marketing means we focus on selling to individuals rather than organisations. And LinkedIn is the perfect tool to do this.

Our ROI using this approach has been unreal; we think it’s hitting somewhere between 50 & 100x. And the good thing about this approach is it works for all businesses – just make sure you know your numbers before you start.

Here’s how it works.

Outreach #1 – We send key persons at companies we’re interested in working a connection request on LinkedIn with an intro message.

Generally, our connection requests are accepted, and sometimes we have a quick back and forth yarn before leaving them to it.

We don’t try to sell them anything at this point, and we don’t spam them. Nothing turns off your prospective customers faster than inbox spam.

Outreach #2 – We’ll reach out again somewhere between 60 and 90 days later. This time we check-in to see how they’ve been doing, remind them who we are and tell them what we do. Most importantly, we subtly (check screenshot for actual message) ask if we can send them a gift box.

So far, our hit rate has been strong here 27/30 have asked for the giftbox and given us their contact details.

In that gift box is a QR code that they can scan to claim a digital gift (like a free subscription to Blinkist). The QR code takes them to a landing page on our website, which also has more information about how we help our clients.

Outreach #3 – Without asking them for anything, they now know about us and are interested in what we do. Almost everyone agreed to jump on a call when we followed up again a week later to get feedback on the gift box.

Three of those people have now signed big accounts with us.

There are a couple of things you should be aware of with this approach. The platform doesn’t matter; you can do this anywhere. But you need to tailor your messaging and outreach flow to make sense for whatever outcome you eventually want to reach. For us, that’s getting people on a call.

And your giftbox needs to be decent. We’re spending ~$100 on ours with thoughtful gifts, not just cheap gimmicks like a branded pen and notepad.

Key takeaway: People buy from people. Building relationships takes more time and effort but gets better outcomes. And don’t spam – it just doesn’t work.

The Difference Between Busy And Productive People

Last week we increased our managers rostered hours by 5, but they only eeked out an extra hour of work.

They work hard and like to get sh*t done, so a lack of effort isn’t the issue. A colleague even said, ‘they’re running around like a headless chook’.

What’s happening here is they’ve fallen into the trap of busywork.

Busy work is the stuff you do that feels like you’re making progress – But actually doesn’t create much value. Like, responding to emails, talking to people, running errands etc.

If you recall, on Eisenhower’s productivity matrix, this work should be delegated or deleted.

I used to make this mistake all the time (I still do occasionally), and the solution is prioritising the stuff that matters – the urgent and important work.

There are two ways you can do this.

1. Set yourself an hourly rate, and don’t do any work worth less than that (use this spreadsheet to help). Managers should be aiming for the $100 bracket and higher.
2. Each morning or the evening before, write down the important things you need to get done for the day. This list should never be more than 3. It’s a good day when you get that stuff done, and anything else is a bonus.

Key Takeaway – Productivity is not the volume of work you complete; it is the value of your work.

“The advantage of a bad memory is that one enjoys several times the same good things for the first time.”

~ Friedrich Nietzsche

Where We’re Learning

• 5-Minute Stretch Routine -> An easy stretching routine for the laptop class, that helps combat rounded shoulders and sore necks.
• 70 Years Of Wisdom -> 103 Pieces of advice from Kevin Kelly (founder of wired magazine and author of ‘1,000 true fans’) who just turned 70.

Adaption: How Businesses Survive

The expected lifespan of a Fortune 500 company today is just 18 years. Only 60 fortune 500 companies from 1955 still live. The survival rate for small businesses is far worse; 96% fail within two years. The half-life of a U.S publicly-traded company is 10.5 years.

In some sense, businesses are biological and are exposed to the same ‘survival of the fittest’ test that all of nature is. It seems hard to believe that Google, Facebook, and Tesla will all face the same fate we do one day.

And if we’re to believe Darwin’s theory of evolution is roughly true. Then the organisms and systems that adapt best to their environments are the ones that survive.

As the Greek philosopher Heraclitus said, “The Only Constant in Life Is Change.”

Those of us who embrace this change and adapt our businesses to the ever-changing-environment and needs of the people we serve will live to see another day.

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