How Cold Emailing and LinkedIn DMs Helped Me Learn Client Outreach

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When it comes to entering people's DM on LinkedIn and sending them cold email, it has become one of my daily habits in looking for clients and it has come with its own ups and downs. This is quietly shaping how I think about freelancing clients and communication, and as time goes on, a few clear lessons have emerged. The first lesson is that personalisation is very important.

When sending a cold email, you must personalise it so it doesn't look generic. That's very important. When I send a message that looked like it was copied and pasted to the same hundred people, it gets ignored.

But when I mention their name and their company, where they work, it shows that you have taken your due diligence in searching for who they are and knowing more about them before sending them any cold email.

But when I mention something specific like their role, a post they made or a problem their business might be facing, the response rate always changes and it's at positive side. People want to feel seen, not targeted and everyone actually wants to respond to something that they feel that is directed at them.

Even one or two tailored sentences can make a huge difference. I've also learned that the first line matters more than the full message. Many people only see the preview on LinkedIn, before they decide to open or ignore.

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If my first line starts with, I hope you are doing well or a long introduction about myself, it usually dies there. When I lead with something relevant to them, notice you are hiring for so-and-so, or I saw your posts on this platform, they are more likely to read on because you are referring to what they have actually said before. Another big lesson is that clarity beats cleverness.

I used to overthink my message trying to sound impressive. Now I focus on being simple and direct. Who I am, what I do and how I might be useful.

One clear offer is better than a long paragraph filled with buzzwords. People are busy. If they can't quickly understand what I'm reaching out for, they move on.

Follow-up is another area where I've grown. Many replies do not come with the first message but from the second or third sent politely after a few days. I've learned not to take silence personally.

Silence means they are busy, they are on holiday and stuff like that. People forget and they get busy. They open message at the wrong time and they don't have time to reply so there's a need for proper follow-up.

A respectful follow-up can revive a conversation that might otherwise be lost. Most importantly, I've learned that every code email is practice. You are getting to learn better.

You will get to see feedback. There are some times when you send a cold email to someone and the person will tell you that oh this looks generic so you have to work on your code email. Even when I get no reply, I'm refining my messaging, understanding my market and becoming more confident in how I present my value.

This goal is not just to get a client today but to build a skill that will keep serving me for years. Another thing I want to talk about is consistency. It is very very important.

Posted Using INLEO