Blair Enns

Based on my own habits, I think I've come to the conclusion that email as an outbound lead gen channel is almost dead and social DMs are not dead but are endangered.

Here's what I do. I'm curious what you do...

<> Any unsolicited email that is clearly templated I mark as spam or mute.

<> Any interesting unsolicited email ("Yeah, I do have a problem in that area...") I first copy the email domain and paste it into my browser. If it dead ends or redirects I mark the message as spam. (I'm sorry, if you're using a burner domain to avoid being punished as a spammer then you're a spammer)

<> I accept most LinkedIn requests from people who are in my sphere, unless there's a generic message like "I'm looking to connect with others in this space." Not sure I can articulate why, it just strikes me as templated spam. You're better off not including a message.

<> I refuse connection requests from anyone in any kind of hacking role: AI outreach or authority building, etc. or anyone who is clearly a third-party lead gen professional working on the behalf of others.

<> When I accept a connection request and then get an automated message of absolutely any kind ("Thanks for connecting. Learn more about...") I take the time to remove the connection and mute/block the messenger.

<> I do the same to any unsolicited message that asks a bullshit sales question ("How's business?" "What are you working on?")

<> When a spamhacker adds an AI-generated comment to a post of mine, I call it out as such, wait a few days for a little public shaming, then I block them.

Other than this I'm quite happy and polite. ;-)

What sets you off and how do you respond?

I used content marketing almost exclusively to build my business, but I started 24 years ago when there was no noise and any decent content stood out.

(Even before that, when I was doing biz dev for an ad agency and I started emailing the articles I was writing, guessing at the email addresses, I had a 70% RESPONSE rate. Not open rate — that wasn't measurable yet — 7 out of 10 people would reply with a 'thank you' or comment. So, yeah, different era. 🙂 )

Today there will be AI-generated comments to this post (I will call them out) and more than one third of the content here is AI-generated.

My inbox, too, is filled with templated, automated solicitations loaded with faux familiarity "Hey Blair, I love that Win Without Pitching helps experts sell and price like the experts they are..."

Good for you, your robot can read my website and make a generalized comment which you turn into a lie. Nice start to this relationship you want to build with me.

If I were starting out today I would do some things the same way and some differently. I would STILL write every week because that's how I develop my thinking. And I would publish that writing even though I know it's a much longer game now. There's more noise but the noise is just that and if I eschew the hacks and write like a human, errors and all, steadily improving and finding my voice, I will break through eventually.

What I would do DIFFERENTLY is I would be just as consistent with my outbound, developing the same habit and devotion I have for writing.

That's easier said than done. I love writing and I dislike outbound marketing. Plus, the last thing I want to do is get lumped in with the spamhackers.

But *I think* I've found a way to build a daily ritual of respectful outbound, one that preserves my status as the expert, breaks through the noise, and — most importantly — where the act is the reward, therefore l look forward to doing it every day.

It's a thesis right now. I've done some small tests with clients (with encouraging results) but I've modelled it out and set a four-week challenge for myself to see if I can build this into a habit that I love as much as I love writing.

Want to do this with me?

I'm looking for 100 - 200 people to test this approach and see what we learn. There's a nominal fee to get you committed, but it's a simple protocol designed to see if you can build a small, sustainable habit of reaching out to one person every business day (in a certain way). There's no tech and no administrative burden. I've made it so simple that you're going to want to complicate it.

You can join me here: https://lnkd.in/gXsrRBj5.

If I can develop this habit, then you can too. And that would change your marketing forever.