Why your calendar's full ... [🐝U]

You know those LinkedIn messages …
The ones that hit your inbox 4 seconds after you accept a connection request.

The ones that somehow promise to 10x your revenue… without knowing what you do.

Lately?
They’ve gotten worse.

Feels like every algorithm change has unleashed a new wave of desperation.

I’ve been flooded with spammy connection requests that feel like they were sent by a bot on a Red Bull binge.

You know the ones that start with:
“Hi {First Name}, I help businesses like yours 10x revenue…”

You may get lucky & they try generic compliments first …

Please don’t be this person.

No context.
No curiosity.
No clue who I am.

Just a drive-by pitch & sometimes a generic compliment.

That’s not networking.
That’s digital door-knocking.

We don’t want to be that person.

When you’re building a business,
You don’t need more conversations.

You need better ones.

Conversations where the person already understands your value.
Conversations where you’re not defending your price.
Conversations where it actually feels like a fit.

Imagine doing this live at a networking event.
They walk up to you, see your name, & launch into a pitch this …

Even the dreaded, “So, what do you do?” is better than that.

I don’t know about your DMs,
but most of the LinkedIn connection requests I get don’t come with a note.

& to be fair, I do that too
Mostly because I’ve been avoiding paying the Premium subscription fee.

The difference …
When they accept, the first thing I do is …
→ thank them for accepting
→ tell them how I found their profile (usually an event or comment )
→ ask a question about the thing/place I found them.

Want to know what I’ve never done?
The dreaded cold pitch-slap

Most of the people WITHOUT LinkedIn Premium don’t do it.
Most of the people WITH it do ….

Not all.
Most.
Just enough to make me NOT want to subscribe

I’ve actually started a LinkedIn thread with screenshots of this nonsense.
Hop on over to share the cringe-inducing comments that these “marketers” try on you.

& yes, it is “marketers” …giving the entire industry (& an otherwise useful Premium subscription a bad rap)

The good news is I know what to avoid.
& if I’m in a “mood” might reverse-pitch back

Quality > Quantity (Always)

I used to think more calls meant more clients.

So I said yes to everything.
Every “quick chat.”
Every “can you send a proposal?”
Every calendar notification felt like momentum.

It was just motion.

That motion without momentum is expensive & exhausting!

What we actually want is simple:
Right-fit people raising their hand.

People who already:
→ Understand the value of what we do
→ Can afford our help
→ Are motivated to act
→ Aren’t secretly shopping for the cheapest option

In other words…
Discovery calls that don’t feel like interrogations, therapy sessions, or unpaid consulting.

& you’re never going to get them if you lead with your stuff instead of learning about them

My friend Keith Gilmore does it right…
& he’s got a simple 2-step system for the place we all struggle with…

Our website!
(Yes, the ! is necessary.
Because if “avoiding updating your website” were an Olympic event…
I’d at least medal.)

You can get more right-fit appointments from your existing web traffic

who it’s for → service-based business
your “pain point” → you’re getting the wrong people on your free consultation & discovery call … & you’re tired of wasting your time talking to people that won’t buy from you

“But what if I don’t have a website?”

I don’t know exactly what Keith is going to cover.
That’s actually why I’m showing up.

Every time I talk to him or read his posts & comments I find value.

But I do know that we met through Marcus Sheridan’s IMPACT+ community
(Marcus is behind They Ask You Answer framework this newsletter’s built on)

& that I’ve always found a way to apply what I learn on 1 platform or industry into another.

Nothing only works in 1 specific place.

But getting the right people to show up for our discovery calls
without that sleazy used-car salesman feel

That’s something we all want more of.
& the easiest way to “do a better job” on Discovery calls
is to have them with more right-fit people.

This STILL happens to me too …
not as much as when I first got started
But it’s still frustrating.

You block off 45 minutes.
You prep notes.
You reread their intake form and think, “This could be a good one.”

10 minutes in, you realize they’re shopping for the cheapest option.
By minute 16, you’re answering questions they could’ve Googled.

& by the end?
You’re wondering why you got your hopes up again.

Last week,I had a call booked with someone who looked perfect on paper…
By minute 25, they casually mentioned, “Well… with the economy the way it is…”

We hadn’t even talked budget yet.
& I already knew where this was going.

Sound familiar?

It wasn’t anger.
Or even disappointment.

It was clarity.

The old version of me would’ve tried to “save” the call.

The current version just finished it professionally…
& protected the next 45 minutes of my life.

I’m sure they’ll find someone to fit their lack-of budget
& if they don’t, I’d guess nothing’s going to happen with the project.

If it does, they’re not going to get the results they wanted.
Then they’ll blame “marketing”

Then by the end of the call, you’re torn between wanting a stiff drink or throwing a blanket over your head

It’s easy to see why we pounce on the “can you send a proposal” question then get ghosted

I didn’t even know Keith was planning anything.

So I took that as a sign…
If I can eliminate just 1 bad call a week,
that’s over 100 hours a year I get back.

100 hours of real work.
100 hours of positive energy.
100 hours not questioning whether I’m the problem.

I realized it’s not that I need better “sales scripts”.
I need better pre-qualification.

I’ll be there on March 5th … listening & learning to see what I can do to free up my time on tire-kickers so there’s more room for those that value the help.
→ on my website … finally
→ in my LinkedIn profile

& I asked Keith if I could share this with you.
or because I’m getting paid to promote it (I’m not, FYI)

Bring your questions.
Bring your skepticism, if you want.

Just don’t bring cold-pitch energy.
I’ve had more than enough cold on the property to last me a lifetime.

Make it a great “pitch-less“ week!
EG

PS:

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Thanks for being here. 
Seriously! 
I do appreciate your support.

PPS:
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