Clients who have worked with me know that I place great emphasis on teaching them how to lead and manage their network to generate informational interviews with target decision-makers. How do you do that?
The process entails asking your network members to arrange an informational interview for you with a key player at one of your target organizations. To do so, they must have a strong, personal relationship with the decision-maker who will agree to sit down with you because a good friend is asking him to do this.
During the process of that informational interview you will discover whether the target organization has needs that you can address. The next step is for you to develop a proposal to fill that need that you can pitch back to the decision-maker.
But how do you reach that key player if there is no one in your network pipeline who can refer you for an informational interview? The answer is found in a tailored, direct mail piece you write to the decision-maker.
The letter contains three basic parts. The first sentence of the first paragraph contains a “hook” that grabs the reader’s attention. It should show you really understand the business of the target organization and have the experience and skill set to make an impact. The second paragraph contains a summary of your achievements as they pertain to the decision-maker’s organizational niche. The third paragraph alerts the reader you will be following your letter with a phone call to set up an appointment.
A personalized direct mail piece allows you to reach a key target executive when there is no one in your pipeline who can introduce you. If you are interested in utilizing this tool in your search campaign, call or email me and let’s get together. I’d love to meet you!