Nice photo. Good-looking guy with flawless hair getting a beard trim. I wouldn't be surprised if they served him a whiskey when he walked in here.
This hits home. It makes me want it. (In fact, I'd probably be willing to set aside price and focus on the cut.)
This is what so many others miss. They instinctively begin talking about discounts and price, as if that's the only lever they have. It's like me walking up to someone I want to meet and saying, "BUT I'M A REALLY NICE GUY! I CAN TAKE YOU OUT TO A NICE DINNER! HAVE YOU BEEN TO MASA? IT'S SO GOOD. EXPENSIVE, YEAH, BUT I COULD TAKE CARE OF YOU."
Ugh. Such a turnoff.
Effective communication means connecting with your audience. It's about meeting your audience where they are, being playful, and being candid about what you want, as well as what you can offer.
And you do not have to mention price upfront!
I know it seems obvious. But if you pay attention, this simple idea can change your life.
For example, say you needed to email an important person out of the blue.
(Why would you want to email someone out of the blue? You and I have heard people talking about the power of building relationships. Imagine having a "brain trust" of people you could call on and ask for help, people who want you to succeed. You start with one person. And yes — people want to help you if you approach them in the right way.)
This is trickier than you might think. We know people who've tried to schedule a call with a busy person, and after repeated back and forth scheduling emails, the busy person simply gave up and said, "Sorry, I just don't have time."
Your goal is to minimize the back and forth and make it easy for the busy person to find time to talk to you.
Here are five important things to keep in mind when you write the email:
- You (the lower-status person who wants to talk to the busy person) should initiate the call, but provide your phone number in case they want to speak to you right now
By the way, don't get offended by my use of the phrase "lower-status." Let's be candid: If you want something from someone else, in this situation you are lower status.
Whether it's less famous, less wealthy, less successful, less important, or less busy, that's just the way it is. Remember, YOU want something from THEM. It's important to recognize this and work around the busy person's schedule. That means:
- Don't make them think
You can't ask them to work around your schedule, but at the same time you want to make it easy for them to say "yes." Don't make them come up with a bunch of times that work. Instead, offer them a couple of different options for times that would work for the call. That respects their schedule and leaves the final decision in their hands, but doesn't require a lot of thought.
- Send the email when they're the most likely to read it
You wouldn't believe how many people email complex questions to a busy person on a Friday afternoon.
Why? Why would you send something requiring lots of work to someone on their way out for a weekend?
The answer: "Oh … I didn't think about that."
If you don't think about the busy person, you lose.
To maximize your chance of getting a response, email a busy person when they're most likely to read and process it.
In other words:
-Do NOT email a busy person on Monday morning
-Do NOT email a busy person on their birthday (unless it's a simple happy birthday message)
Instead, think when they're most receptive. Maybe at lunch? Maybe Sunday night when they're prepping for their week?
- Formatting
Bad formatting can scuttle even the most helpful, interesting email.
Use paragraph breaks and bullet points liberally to make your email easy to read.
Also, send it in plain text rather than HTML so it can be easily read on a mobile device. For VIP emails, I like to send myself a test to make sure it's readable and any URLs are clickable.
- Use correct grammar and spelling
Lazy typos signal laziness. Use proper punctuation and capitalization.
Don't use lower case "i"s or texting abbreviations. An email should be more polished than a text message.
Always proofread your email. Let the reader focus on your well-crafted message, not the fact that you still do not know the difference between "its" and "it's."
You would think I wouldn't need to say this, but I do.
If you keep those in mind, you've got a great shot at getting a positive response, but let me give you an example of these principles in action.
Let's say a college student (low status) needs to email the CEO of a business (high status). A great email would look like this:
