Have you ever felt ready to give up on prospecting because you weren’t seeing results? You’re not alone. Many freelancers quit just before the seeds they’ve planted begin to sprout. In this episode, we explore why consistent prospecting is crucial, even when it feels like nothing’s happening.
In this episode, I explain why timing is everything in prospecting. I share powerful analogies and strategies to shift your mindset. And I offer a practical, habit-building approach to make prospecting a seamless part of your routine. If you’ve ever doubted the effectiveness of your outreach efforts, this episode is for you.
What You’ll Learn
- Why only 5-10% of prospects are ready to say “yes” at any given time.
- How to stay consistent even when it feels like you’re getting nowhere.
- The “garden analogy” for understanding the slow but steady process of prospecting.
- Why a mediocre message at the perfect time can outperform a perfect message at the wrong time.
- How to build a prospecting system that works for you, using small, actionable steps.
Key Takeaways
- Timing Beats Great Copy: Even great emails won’t land if the timing isn’t right. Learn to accept this reality and focus on staying visible for when the timing aligns.
- The Dip is Your Friend: Seth Godin’s concept of “The Dip” explains why most people quit right before they succeed. Don’t be one of them.
- Consistency Beats Perfection: Imperfect but steady action is more effective than sporadic perfection. Build habits that make prospecting automatic.
- The Four Laws of Prospecting Habits:
- Make it Obvious: Create cues and systems to make prospecting part of your daily routine.
- Make it Attractive: Pair prospecting with something you enjoy and celebrate small wins.
- Make it Easy: Break down outreach into manageable steps, like sending two emails a day.
- Make it Satisfying: Reward yourself for consistent effort, not just responses.
Actionable Exercises
- Start Small: Commit to sending just 2-3 prospecting emails a day for the next 30 days.
- Track Consistency: Use a simple tracking sheet to monitor your efforts daily.
- Celebrate Wins: Keep a journal of small victories, such as completing your outreach for the day.
- Try the “Garden Perspective:” Imagine each email as a seed—focus on the process, not immediate results.
Memorable Soundbites
- “A mediocre message at the perfect time beats a perfect message at the wrong time.”
- “Success in prospecting isn’t about perfection—it’s about showing up consistently.”
- “Prospecting is like planting a garden. The magic happens beneath the surface before you see results.”
Deploy a Powerful Prospecting System in Just 21 Days
I’m starting a new prospecting workshop next week. We’re going to work together over 21 days (Mon-Fri only) to help you implement effective prospecting techniques and habits that actually stick. We’ll roll up our sleeves and actually create your prospecting plan and assets together. And I’ll be there every day to give you direct and personal feedback.
You’ll implement the material day by day, one baby step at a time. And you’ll come away with everything in place, all ready to go.
Would you like to join us? Email me at [ed at b2blauncher dot com] and I’ll respond with all the details.
The notes that follow are a very basic, unedited summary of the show. There’s a lot more detail in the audio version. You can listen to the show using the audio player below. Or you can subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Key Topics and Bullets:
- Prospecting Challenges
- Persistence and the “Dip”
- Email Prospecting
- Marketing Sustainability and Balance
- Consistency in Marketing
- Skill Development and Mindset
- Building Prospecting Habits
- Workshop Details
- Prospecting Laws
- Mindset Shift
- Actionable Prospecting Steps
- Workshop Information
- Marketing skills are essential alongside writing skills; avoid relying on passive
- 21-day program focusing on prospecting systems and habits with daily manageable
- Commit to a strategy timeline, create a conducive environment, focus on consistency over results.
Timestamp Overview:
0:00 Ed– I had a conversation just a couple of weeks ago, actually, a few weeks ago, right before the holidays with a coaching client of mine. And she had been doing consistent prospecting for almost a full month, sending out emails regularly, following up the whole 9 yards. I mean, she, you know, for what she had done, she had done it right. But she was ready to throw in the towel. And she said something to the effect of, Ed, I don’t know. This isn’t working. I’ve sent over 40 emails, and I’ve gotten nowhere. Maybe I just need to try something different or I need to completely change my approach. I’m a little exasperated. And here’s what fascinated me about this conversation. She was actually closer to success. I don’t know for sure, but I bet she was much closer to success than she realized. But like so many other writers, she was ready to give up right before the magic typically happens.
04:47 Ed– You water them constantly. But for weeks, nothing seems to happen above ground. Now does that mean that you’re doing something wrong? No. It doesn’t. There’s tremendous activity happening beneath the surface. We can’t see it. Those seeds are developing strong root systems that will eventually support the healthy plants. Things are happening.There’s chemistry going on there. There’s biology happening. Right? Prospecting works the same way. Those emails you’re sending, those are seeds. And just like in gardening, you can’t rush the process. There’s only so much that’s within your control. And the idea is that if you do those things consistently and you do them well, you know that you’re going to get some plants sprouting from the ground. You know, eventually, you’re gonna get some fruit.
08:35 Ed– Put yourself in your prospect situation. Maybe their inbox was full that day. Maybe they were traveling that week. Maybe they accidentally deleted the email. Maybe they got distracted and moved on. Maybe they started reading it, and they were going, oh, wait a minute. We could actually use somebody like this. But then they got a phone call or maybe they got pulled into a meeting, and then they just left your email, and then it just got buried in an inbox, and they just missed the whole thing and forgot all about it entirely. This challenge is worth what Seth Godin, author of Seth Godin, calls the dip. It’s that valley between initial excitement and eventual success. And in prospecting, it’s particularly brutal because the feedback loop is so long. But here’s the fascinating thing about the dip. It’s actually a positive signal because the dip is what keeps most people from succeeding. It’s the reason why that client spot you want will eventually open up because most of your competition is gonna quit somewhere in the dip. The dip is what keeps the pool of talent as clean as possible.
12:44 Ed- It can feel like pushing a boulder uphill. It often does, and it can be exhausting. I agree 100%. But here’s the thing. When you need to fill your pipeline quickly, nothing gives you more control over your outcomes than direct outreach, than email prospecting. Think about it. You can choose to send out 100 emails this week to direct prospects and agencies and possibly have a new client by next week.
15:35 Ed- The point, and this is crucial, you have to commit to executing that balanced strategy consistently. And this is where I see a lot of writers get into trouble. They get busy with client work. They let their marketing slip, and suddenly they find themselves back in panic mode when a project ends or a client leaves. So what happens? They scramble to find work. And this type of anxiety ridden marketing, this cycle of throwing spaghetti at the wall with a lot of anxiety, that’s all they know.
17:38 Ed– I’m talking about time, energy, and consistent effort. Okay? So if your experience with prospecting and marketing in the past has been negative, there is a chance that it’s just not something that you like to do. Maybe it’s not something that comes natural to you. To some people, it is a much more natural and enjoyable task than to others, and that’s okay. Let’s just get that out of the way. It’s true. It really is. So I don’t want you to feel like if you’ve had a negative experience that, you know, there’s something wrong with you. There’s not. There’s not. And maybe you’re just not great at it, and you don’t. We all have preferences. Maybe you don’t really enjoy it, and that’s okay. But that brings me to something I see far too often. I see writers who are out there hoping that their LinkedIn profile will magically attract clients or their website will somehow get discovered or word-of-mouth will keep their pipeline full or the right person will stumble across their portfolio. And all those things or some of those things can happen when they do what’s wonderful.
23:45 Ed- You could create a streak tracker, like a consistency streak and track that. And, basically, every time you do what you’re supposed to do, you check it, and you don’t wanna break that chain. Right? You don’t wanna break your streak, and it’s visual, and it’s on your wall. In that way, you don’t miss it. It’s there. It’s obvious. It’s it’s it it just feels so satisfying to, you know, check off that task. You could celebrate sending the emails, instead of just waiting for positive responses.
24:50 Ed- This is how you break through all of those blocks. Now before we wrap up, I wanna share 2 final thoughts that might help you maintain momentum when things get tough. 1st, stop thinking of prospecting as this huge high stakes activity where every email has to be perfect and every response or lack of response means something about you or your business. Instead, I want you to think of it as an ongoing experiment, a process of planting seeds that will sprout when the time is right. 2nd, there’s no such thing as a free lunch. So what I mean by that is if you don’t do consistent prospecting, you have to do other things to market yourself well and consistently. There’s no getting around that.
28:38 Ed- So I want you to celebrate the fact that you’re showing up every week, and don’t worry about the responses. Don’t worry about the results. I know you’re still going to, but try to take the focus away from the outcomes. So remember what we talked about at the beginning that only 5 to 10% of prospects are at any given time ready to hire somebody like you. K? You can’t control when a prospect will need your services. You can’t control when they’ll be ready to hire someone, but you can control whether you’re on the radar when that moment comes. And that happens through a series of consistent actions, through showing up, through maintaining the habit even when it feels like nothing’s happening. Because here’s the truth, the magic of prospecting isn’t in crafting the perfect email.
30:55 Ed- Before you go, I have one more thing to share with you that I’m really excited about. If you are ready to take your prospecting effort to the next level, I’m excited to announce a new prospecting workshop that I’m doing starting next week. It’s completely online. And over 21 days, if you work with me on this, if you join the workshop, you’re gonna receive daily lessons. When I say daily, it’s just Monday through Friday. No lessons on the weekends. Daily lessons and assignments designed to help you build effective prospecting habits that stick. This workshop is all about action. It’s all about accountability and results, and it’s perfect for freelancers who are ready to transform their business. Now we’re gonna roll up our sleeves over that 3 week period and actually create your prospecting plan. I’m gonna show you how to do it step by step. If you’d like to learn more about the workshop, just send me an email to ed@b2blauncher.com, and we’ll reply with all the details. The workshop begins very soon, next week, Monday, January 20th. So don’t wait. Don’t overthink it. This is a very, very affordable workshop. You get a lot for what you pay for here. Huge value. It’s one of the most powerful things I do every year, and I think the timing is perfect right now to join us. So thanks again for listening, and I’ll catch you on the next episode.
By the way… whenever you’re ready, here are 4 ways I can help you grow your freelance business:
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