I just lost a potential 5-figure sale over a 60-second task.
It was either a massive mistake … or a blessing in disguise. 🤣
Allow me to explain!
The 7 Figure LinkedIn Sales Funnel
The LinkedIn lead generation approach I’ve developed since 2012 (one that’s helped me generate more than $9M USD in sales) is pretty straightforward:
-
Target an ultra-specific niche audience using LinkedIn Sales Navigator.
-
Send a permission-based, 1-on-1 message offering helpful, free content that (A) shares my story to build rapport and empathy + (B) demonstrates my expertise by sharing tips specific to something that niche audience wants to accomplish.
-
Use that free content as currency to “buy” a prospect’s time, attention, and interest and pre-qualify them WITHOUT having to talk to them live.
-
If a prospect consumes the free content and wants to learn more / talk live, have the person fill out a quick 60-90 second long Typeform. The information a person shares on that form helps me figure out if having a live call makes sense – or if I know they would NOT be a fit for our “Done For You” services, and I should offer more free tips and/or lower-cost online courses instead.
Sounds pretty reasonable, right?
A Tricky Situation
This is where things get interesting. I recently had a 1-on-1 LinkedIn messaging exchange with a prospect who fit our “ideal client” niche perfectly.
We’re talking about a niche where we’ve consistently generated jaw-dropping results – our best client in this specific consulting space has done 7+ figures in deals over the past 12 months alone from leads we’ve generated for him on LinkedIn!
Naturally, I was intrigued when this prospect (who is in the EXACT same niche) wanted to talk more.
Here’s where things got tricky.
The prospect had some questions, and I answered them – specifically sharing all the success we’ve had in that niche … including specific examples of real people doing the exact same work as this consultant. I also shared walkthrough videos, content examples and more (free content for the win!).
“Okay, I guess I’m willing to take a call with you,” the prospect told me.
Ego Alert!
As soon as he wrote that, an unseen, emotional wrestling match began.
In my mind, the prospect was trying to grab the authority frame away from me. After all, authority and leverage is everything when it comes to sales.
And, with our agency, we don’t “sell” our services – we “select” clients based on fit.
So, by this prospect saying “I’ll take your call,” in my mind, he was acting like he was doing me a favor.
Wait, YOU will “take” MY call?
I wanted to send him this GIF and say, “In case you didn’t know, buddy …”
🤣
After all, I’m the guy who quit a safe, 6 figure day job back in 2012 with 1 client and enough money for 30 days. (At the time, I had no savings to speak of and my wife and our 3 boys – all under the age of 10 – at home to support. I’m nothing if not a great planner! 🤪)
Yet I also had a plan, and within 90 days I’d generated $135k USD in sales from prospects I’d sourced on LinkedIn.
All while, I might note, working from this “elite” home office setup, complete with a laptop perched on a empty box of Super Pretzels:
Fast forward a decade, and I’ve done nearly 8 figures in sales by myself on LinkedIn, and our agency has helped countless clients do many millions more as a result.
In fact, clients FIRE US for getting them too many leads too quickly.
In addition, I’ve lost countless hours of my life on “tire kicker” calls with unqualified prospects who just wanted to “pick my brain” or “explore mutual synergies” or “network” or whatever else.
That’s why I developed this pre-call Typeform as one last qualifying tool.
(FYI, I go into great depth in my book LinkedIn Riches – you can get a free digital copy here – of the psychology & strategy behind the Typeform questions and my entire lead generation / lead qualify process if you’re interested.)
Wrestling For (Conversational) Control
So, instead of just saying, “Sure, let’s hop on a call!” and giving the prospect my calendar link, I politely pushed back:
Glad you want to talk! So the first step (prior to a call) will be having you fill out this quick Typeform for me.
It should only take 60-90 seconds and will give me a better idea of your current situation / setup / etc. That way I won’t waste your time on a call if I don’t think we’d be the right agency to help you.
And if we do end up doing a live call, I can come in with some specific insights / ideas / strategies for you based on your unique situation.
Thanks [Name] and excited to learn more about what you have going on!
The prospect immediately pushed back:
“I’m not going to fill out a form to just have a conversation after you reached out to me,” he wrote.
And, in that sense, he was right – I had reached out first, offering free content / case studies / walkthrough videos of how we helped professionals exactly like him achieve 7 figures in sales on LinkedIn.
But, in my mind, I was reaching out to (A) educate him and (B) qualify him, not try and immediately hop on a call with him just because he was in a niche industry we’re crushing it in.
He, however, saw my outreach as “solicitation” and “selling” – and told me so in his reply.
Mistakes Made + Lessons Learned
Here’s where I forgot a key lesson from Les Giblin’s amazing book How To Have Confidence and Power in Dealing With People:
“The one unforgivable sin, as far as human relations are concerned, is to trample on another person’s ego,” Giblin writes. “Human relations is the science of dealing with people in such a way that our egos and their egos remain intact.”
Look away, Les – egos were getting trampled all over the place here! 🤣
The prospect’s ego was being trampled because, in his mind, I was saying, “You’re not important enough for me to talk just to right away – I need you to fill out a form first to see if you’re even worth talking to.”
My ego was trampled for the reasons I outlined above (“Don’t you know what I am!?” 🤣)
And a key lesson here: When making a “request” like I did, it’s all about how familiar a prospect is to you and your personal brand.
For example, if you are the world’s biggest Tony Robbins fan, and were given a chance to meet with Tony 1-on-1, would you fill out a 60 second form if Tony asked you to do so prior to the call?
Of course you would!
Case in point: I had another conversation with a prospect who had read my book, watched several of my videos, is on my email list and listens to my podcast.
He filled out the Typeform without hesitation, and, after I offered him a live call, the prospect thanked me, saying: “I know you are very busy and in high demand.”
What I Could Have Done Differently
In this case, it was obvious the prospect I had been messaging with was NOT familiar with me or Nemo Media Group.
Now, what I could have done is offer him an “introductory call” with someone else on our team – a 15-20 minute “get to know you” call to introduce NMG, show him (in real time) what I already tried to share via our walkthrough videos, etc.
I even debate this, though, because do I want to waste my team’s time if someone won’t fill out a 60 second form for us prior to a live call?
Especially if I’m framing this request as a benefit to the prospect? (To save YOU time, and if we do have a live call, we can come in with specific insights / ideas based on your unique situation, etc.)
Regardless, I made another mistake – I went deep in explaining and “defending” my approach.
I tried to educate the prospect in my reply – “Hey, here’s why I do this and why you should too … here’s why this approach is so helpful …”
I’m sure all the prospect’s ego heard in that was, “I’m smarter than you, now let me Nemo-splain this to you …” 🤣
The prospect wrote back another message using language that I was a “seller” who was “soliciting” him and that he wanted to “just have a conversation” without “sales tools” like Typeform.
Instead of pivoting, I doubled down with another message as to why my process was right. (Ego!) 🤦♂️
Long story short: I forgot what I teach my own sons – “Win the argument, lose the sale!”
Analyzing and Adapting
One thing I love doing is copying / pasting my sales call transcripts and 1-on-1 chats into AI and asking it to act as my sales coach.
In this case, the AI pointed out a bunch of mistakes it thought I made and then said this:
The irony is, your process IS good – but knowing when to break your own rules is what separates good from great salespeople. This prospect actually gave you a gift by showing you where your process breaks down with certain personality types.
Now, I’d argue the bigger lesson / issue here is familiarity with and affinity for my personal brand / company / etc.
After all, a second prospect couldn’t wait to book a call, happily filled out the Typeform and even thanked me for even taking his call.
What do these AI robots know anyway!? 🤪
Final Thought – Listen to Les!
Either way, it was a great lesson and reminder that sales and lead generational isn’t always “paint by numbers” or a math equation.
As Les Giblin notes – “There is something deep in the heart of every man and woman that is important and demands respect. Every human being is a unique, individual personality, and the most powerful drive in any person is to maintain this individuality, to defend this important something against all enemies.
“This is why you cannot treat people as machines, as numbers on a register, or as ‘masses,’ and get by with it. Every effort that has been made to deprive human beings of this individual worth has failed.”
Thanks Les – now where was that advice when I was in my LinkedIn inbox the other day!? 🤣
Ready for a Calendar Overflowing with Qualified Leads?
With our LinkedIn Authority Advantage service, you’ll:
✅ Wake up to a calendar full of qualified calls
✅ Only speak with hyper-qualified leads
✅ Create a lead machine that runs without ads, spam or endless content
👉 Click here to get started! (Takes 60 seconds)
