The Waterfall Technique [2 of 7]
Instead of cold calling, send an email.
That’s strategy #2 in our 7-Day Sales Challenge. And at first, it might not look like much of a strategy at all.
Frankly, I delete 97% of the emails that hit my inbox, most of which are junk or some kind of spammy promotion. You probably do, too.
So what are the chances that the person you’re trying to reach will open YOUR email?
This can’t possibly work, right?
But it does work. It’s how Bryan Kreuzberger, the founder of Breakthrough Email, won $20 million in new business from clients like Bank of America, Home Depot, and MasterCard.
And in Bryan’s Mixergy course, he says that the biggest mistake people make is emailing the decision maker at a large company.
“Normally, it’s like, ‘Sales guy, please cease and desist,’” says Bryan.
Plus, it’s difficult to know who the decision maker really is. “Trying to find the right person for me to talk with who’s actually the decision maker is a long process,” he says.
So how do you find the decision maker and get them to hear you out?
With the Waterfall Technique.
When Bryan wanted to pitch Best Buy, he wrote separate emails to the director of marketing, the VP of marketing, the CMO, and the CEO.
“I know the CEO of Best Buy isn’t the right person for me to talk to,” says Bryan. “But I can send them an email and they’ll just delegate it. And now [the person the CEO delegates to] has to take my meeting.”
This technique uses the company’s hierarchy to your advantage. The request is coming down from the CEO to the manager, much like water flows down a waterfall. And if the CEO asks an employee to do something, they have to do it.
In the case of Best Buy, the VP of marketing emailed Bryan back, asking him to present to six executives, who Bryan says he never could’ve found on his own.
Another quick tip? When you write the email, get right to the point. “You have three seconds before they decide what to do with your e-mail,” says Bryan.
Here’s an example of how he writes his emails:
Subject: Appropriate person
I’m writing in hopes of finding the appropriate person who handles multicultural media…
I also wrote to person X, person Y, and person Z in that pursuit. If it makes sense to talk, let me know how your calendar looks.
Best,
Bryan Kreuzberger
Breakthrough Email
“Your first couple of sentences should be consistent with your subject,” he says. “Since this is a cold outreach, trust is really important.”
Your challenge right now: In your notebook or Google doc, brainstorm about how you could incorporate cold emails into your sales process.
If you HAD to use this technique, what are the steps you’d need to take? Who would send the emails, and who would follow up with the decision makers? Which companies would you target first?
Take just a few minutes and write down your answers now, while the technique is still fresh on your mind.
Got it?
Alright. Next up, we’ll talk about a sales technique for your landing pages (and you’ll get a free checklist to help you boost conversions).
-Andrew
Founder, Mixergy