Cold DM is NOT ick if you come from a place of helping.

Hey there!

Welcome to the maiden issue of Just Sendin It. I’m feeling pumped. Hope you’ll do too when you read this email (and the next ones.)

Anyways, let’s head straight into it!

✍️ What I’m doing at the moment:

The first quarter of 2024 has been relatively quiet. Money-wise, my financial income from freelancing was way better than last year’s. But that was when I had a full-time office job, and freelance writing was just a side hustle.

Now that my side hustle has become my main squeeze, I kinda miss my income around this time last year. 😅

That said, I’m basking in my newfound freedom and have officially adjusted to the freelance world. I can do things at my own time, at my own pace, whenever and wherever I want, without asking for anyone’s permission.

That alone is so worth it.

But if I want to achieve the same income level as this time last year, I’ll need more clients. Maybe a part-time in-house marketing or writing role. Or a fractional consultancy.

Thankfully, things are starting to look up. Here are some movements in my freelancing biz:

• An agency client I’ve been working with for years has given me a new client with 10 articles monthly. That’s a bigger batch of articles than I typically write for them (usually four or eight pieces per client).

• A new client who found me on Twitter also increased the volume of articles. We’re now working on six articles in April, up from four last month.

• A relatively new client has agreed to two articles per month.

• I sent DMs to my contacts the last couple of days. A few of them are headhunters who previously reached out to me. Three have responded with potential contract roles. I’ll be jumping on a call with one next week.

• I’m creating a few digital products to help freelancers grow their businesses and build trust-based relationships with their clients. (So stoked about this. Watch this space!)

• Planning to send cold DMs over the next few days to send out fillers to the universe that I WANT more writing/consultancy jobs.

💡Speaking of cold DMs…

I’ve been getting cold DMs that look identical if not entirely the same. Surely I’m not the only one getting these on LinkedIn and X?

When people say cold DMs are ick, these are most likely what’s in their mind: salesy, impersonal, and templated (not to mention AI-sounding).

The worst part is they’re selling me something when (1) I don’t even need them, (2) I don’t even know them, and (3) they have never talked to me before.

I’m not one to love sliding into people’s DMs.

In fact, I lean more towards an organic approach: sharing insights and my experience on my social accounts. Especially LinkedIn.

Then, eventually, clients find me.

Whenever this happens, I feel magical and highly favored by the Universe.

That’s not always the case, though.

Personal brand-building is a long game and not within our complete control, especially if we have bills and mortgages to pay.

So, DMs and cold pitching become a “necessary evil.” I use air quotes because I don’t see them as necessarily evil, but a core part of running a business.

Here’s the thing: Organic brand-building strategies are a long game, but so are cold DMs.

Sending cold DMs is meant to prepare us for the rainy day—not when we urgently need a client.

What I’m trying to say is, we need cold DMs whether we need new clients or not. This is how we cast a wider net for client acquisitions. The sooner we roll up our sleeves and do the dirty work, the sooner we can turn our cold leads into warm connections.

When the dry spell comes and we find ourselves needing new clients, we can reach out to warm leads. Only then can we see the “I am highly favored by the universe” magic unfold.

Help, not sell.

I’ve sent several cold DMs since I started working over a decade ago. I started as a Business Development Associate at a PR agency and my main task was to get more clients.

I was writing cold emails even before cold DMs were a thing. Most fell on deaf ears. Admittedly, they were cringey and impersonal.

However, the ones that got a response almost always turned into a signed contract. Those were more relevant and personable.

So here’s my #1 tip: Write something that will compel people to read and respond to you.

People are busy. Even if they “read” our messages, they don’t have the responsibility nor the obligation to respond to us.

Unless we share something worth the extra clicks on their keyboard. Most of the time, it’s when we’re able to answer the question, “What’s in it for me?”

Personalized, helpful content without any ask is the way to go.

This can look like the following:

• I saw your LinkedIn post on <topic> and I can’t agree more. <Insert your insight or personal experience here.>

• Loved your tweet about SEO. I had a look at some of your recent articles, and I enjoyed reading them. Writing you to suggest <insert suggestion> to make sure they address Google’s recent updates…

• I saw a news about <brand> on <publication>. Congratulations on the product launch! I’ve always been a fan of the brand and your brand tone + style. In fact, I previously wrote about one of your campaigns on X/LinkedIn/blog. (Only do this if you’re sincerely a fan and you’ve actually written something. But you get my drift.)

Sending a DM without any ask may sound counter-intuitive, but only if we’re coming from a place of selling. If our mindset revolves around building relationships and sharing value, it’s not.

While cold DM is notoriously known as the “faster way” to land clients, in practice, that’s not the case at all.

Cold DM is done not to sell right away. It’s a fundamental part of a long-term strategy: letting people know we exist and building relationships with them.

So send that DM without any hint of selling.

Offer a solution without making the other person feel like an idiot for overlooking a problem.

Here’s another example of when I responded to a YouTube/IG creator’s question relating to IG reels and algorithms:

Engage in online discourse.

Participate in conversations on LinkedIn and Twitter, as well as Slack channels and Facebook Groups.

I regularly engage in discourse on Superpath Slack either by contributing on channels or private messaging members in relation to something they shared on a shared channel.

I join free webinars because I learn and meet people there.

I like Sparktoro because it gives me a sense of relevant channels I can tap into. They’ve literally just launched v2 of the platform, and it’s looking way better than the original. I can’t wait to dive deep!

My favorite tactic, though, is having a list of brands, influencers, and thought leaders on a post-it note plastered on my monitor. That’s my wishlist of people I want to work with, so I make sure to follow and engage with their content regularly.

Whenever I comment on X or LinkedIn, I let them and their network know I exist, and that I have insights to share about the topics they cover.

Build your luck surface area by adding value.

I wrote about building luck surface area—increasing our chances of striking oil by expanding our presence and visibility. We can do this by writing in public, attending networking events, and even talking to strangers.

I enjoy commenting on Facebook groups about freelance writers, content marketing, and solopreneurship when someone asks a question, and I have experience with their questions.

The key is to provide value, not just comment “this is nice,” “commenting for reach” or my ultimate pet peeve: “following.”

Here’s a great example from a DM Justin Welsh received on X.

Note that this guy previously reached out to Justin about his tweet on landing pages and offered a suggestion to improve them. This DM was sent a few months later:

I love this outreach so much. It’s highly relevant for the one receiving the message.

In this case, Justin just tweeted about refreshing his website. Then, because this guy previously sent him a DM, Justin sees that they had interacted before.

Long game.

And while there’s a document shared, which many will consider a lead magnet, it’s something that can prove useful for Justin. It’s not a random light-touch “here’s a lead magnet.”

What makes it different is the context; the sender obviously comes from a place of helping, not selling or wanting Justin to sign up for a lead magnet or newsletter.

Spoiler alert: Justin worked with the guy under a $50,000 contract.

Here’s another sample from the same chat I had with an influencer:

Leverage your expertise to add value.

When the person engages, show your expertise by providing value in the context of their problem or question.

Once again—help, not sell. You can never go wrong with this mindset.

In this chat, I’m not trying to sell her anything. I genuinely came from a place of sharing what I know, having followed her since 2019!

But if we want to look at this from purely the intention to offer a service, if and when she happens to post something about looking for a social media content strategist in the future, I can confidently take a stab knowing that these interactions are there for context.

It’s like having one foot in the door, having demonstrated expertise in the past. Hopefully, this would make me a low-lying candidate if and when I reach out for a social media role.

👀 Content I enjoyed this week

Most freelancers, including me, have fallen victim to freelance scams. I know the freelance world is crazy at the moment. But please, qualify potential clients with impunity.

Here are red flags from Kaitlyn Arford:

And here’s a related post on cold DMs from Manu Castillo:

Thanks for reading! Hope this has been helpful.

I appreciate your time so much. I’d love to hear from you so feel free to reply to this email.

See you on the next one!

Tina