Using your CEO's email to send campaign messages is one of the best approaches you can try to get more replies. It lends credibility and seriousness to your outreach, since the signature belongs to the CEO. While this strategy can capture prospects' attention effectively, managing responses later can pose challenges. You don’t expect your CEO to personally respond, but you still need to handle these conversations. How can you navigate this situation smoothly?
As you can imagine, writing "My [put your CEO’s name here] told me to" is not the best option, so we would like to present you some of the approaches we use to come out of it in style.
Use 'we' instead of 'I' when speaking to potential customers. For example:
We'd love to show you instead of I'd love to show you
This suggests team involvement, setting the expectation that the meeting might be with someone other than the CEO, such as a salesperson, to prevent disappointment.
After the prospect's reply, you can start your response as the CEO, requesting a "meeting/call with us'" and then smoothly transition to the handoff process as mentioned earlier.
After your prospect replies to the CEO's message, smoothly transition to another email from the CEO saying:
I'm CC'ing [salesperson’s name] and will let you two take it from here. You're in good hands!
This ensures a natural shift from CEO to salesperson. However, don’t transition too soon; wait until a meeting is booked to maintain authenticity. Acting too early may seem fake or rushed. Even if prospects suspect you aren't the real CEO, it's crucial to maintain the act to keep their interest.
Last but not least - you can act like your CEO all the time, without the “switch” to a salesperson. There are w few things to keep in mind, though:
- CEOs have less time, so keep your messages concise and direct;
- they aren’t driven by quotas, so avoid pushy sales tactics and instead engage as a professional wanting to connect with other professionals;
- ensure your communication reflects genuine interest → while writing a message, ask yourself if it’s something your CEO would write.
Employing the CEO's persona in campaign messaging can indeed be an effective strategy. However, if you choose the option 1 or 2, it's crucial to ensure a seamless handoff process. This approach aids in managing expectations for the meeting and alleviates concerns about potential confusion.
NOTE: If you’re not sure how to create an interesting sequence to send from your CEO’s email, check this article: CLICK!