Leslie Venetz on Earning Prospect Attention Through Genuine Relevance

In a recent LinkedIn post, Leslie Venetz challenges common, often superficial, approaches to sales outreach, arguing for a more genuine and value-driven method to capture prospect attention. Venetz contends that mere superficial connections, such as attending the same college or living in the same area, do not inherently entitle a salesperson to a prospect’s time.

The Pitfalls of Superficial Personalization

Venetz expresses frustration with emails that rely on weak personalization tactics. “When you write emails with such superficial personalization they – at best – add no value. At worst – they guilt folks into taking a meeting because of a shared lived experience. It’s BS,” the post states emphatically. This highlights a core concern: that such attempts at connection can feel disingenuous and ultimately fail to resonate, or worse, manipulate the prospect.

The author emphasizes the importance of earning a prospect’s attention rather than assuming it. As Venetz puts it:

“Earn the right to your prospect’s attention by saying something relevant and valuable.”

This principle forms the foundation of Venetz’s advice, suggesting that the initial interaction should focus on providing immediate value and demonstrating understanding of the prospect’s world, rather than leaning on flimsy commonalities.

Strategies for Building Genuine Relevance

For those seeking a deeper understanding of personalization at scale and signal-based selling, Venetz points to her book, “Profit Generating Pipeline.” However, she also offers immediate, actionable advice for improving email relevance. Venetz outlines three key methods:

1. Association

This strategy involves identifying an association that current clients are part of. The salesperson should then mention the association, explain its relevance to the product or service, and name the clients who are also members. This leverages existing connections and shared affiliations to build credibility.

2. Event Participation

Venetz suggests obtaining lists from relevant industry events. The outreach can then include a specific insight from a speaker or a takeaway from a conversation at the event. This demonstrates engagement with the prospect’s industry and current professional landscape.

3. Leveraging Board Connections

A third tactic involves using LinkedIn to find prospects who share a connection with one or more board members. The outreach can then reference the board member and a relevant project or accomplishment achieved with the help of the salesperson’s product or service.

Avoiding the “Too Salesy” Trap

Crucially, Venetz warns against overt pitching. She provides an example of what not to do: “If your emails sound like Bob Smith at ABC saved 32% on his taxes with our services – you’re not going to get replies. That is way too salesy.” Instead, she advocates for a softer, more insightful approach. A suggested template illustrates this:

“Bob Smith at ABC shared [relevant insight]. He’s also a Member of the [Association]. It seems like quite a few [industry] are asking how they can ROI or COI related to [relevant insight].”

This revised approach focuses on sharing insights and contextualizing them with client success and industry trends, rather than making a direct, benefit-driven claim. As Leslie Venetz concludes, the goal is to craft emails that genuinely invite replies by offering meaningful content, positioning the sender as a valuable resource rather than just another vendor.