Dina Calakovic is a Croatian-born wordsmith. She's been turning words into Paying Clients, and helping her clients do the same. Dina has built her brand from 700 to 85,000+ through targeted content & power writing principles. Her scroll-stopping copy consistently advises an immediate halt to cold outreach when trying to develop new business.
We sat down to find out why she feels so strongly about this, and attempt to unravel the secret to her captivating content.
Cold outreach. What's your perspective?
I am very against cold outreach. In general, it doesn't work, and you will lose money, time and reputation. So I would never recommend anyone to do cold outreach. You want to be in a position of power; you want the client to reach out to you. One way to accomplish that is social media content.
For example, on LinkedIn, quality over quantity is paramount. A common mistake that people make is generating as much content as possible instead of focusing on quality. Showing you provide quality products or services will get you, quality clients.
To generate leads on LinkedIn, you have to become a synonym for value. Use the 80/20 principle: 80% of the time, you will educate your audience, helping them solve their problems and achieve their desired results. 20% to 10% of the time, you will ask for a sale.
Some try to sell 100% of the time - this acts as a repellent. You are bringing no value; just pitching, and that swamps people. Knowing your target market means knowing how to create valuable content for your audience.
You have to know the ins and outs of your target market - problems, pains, wants, fears, desires, what keeps them awake at night, what they want to accomplish. You need to know all of this to provide quality content and solutions to solve their problems. Researching them is the most powerful technique in copywriting.
The reader needs to know that you are on their path - this is where conversion happens. They need to know that you understand the problems in their head and have solutions for them. Showcasing this understanding builds trust as you continually help them. Then, there is a high chance they'll convert into a paying client.
For me, 95% of my clients are via LinkedIn. They follow my content for some time, and then they decide to reach out. You cannot win over high-ticket service clients instantly, and you won't have someone contact you for a high-ticket service or product from a LinkedIn ad. You have to build trust slowly.
Again, You have to become the synonym for value. And integrity is the most crucial thing; If you want to position yourself as an expert in your industry, the only way to do that is only to sell when you are confident that people will benefit from your expertise and not when you need the money.
Always act in your clients best interests, and the client will come to you.
What's your advice for a business development professional needing a pipeline boost urgently?
No matter what, focusing and niching down always works best. I like the analogy of someone looking for and applying for work - Instead of sending hundreds of resumes, it's better to focus on five, do research and then offer yourself as a solution for their company. This focused approach will have a higher success rate than sending out hundreds of resumes randomly. Niching down is always the better solution.
How much money should be invested in good copywriters?
Pay a bad copywriter, and you will see. Copy is everything. Everything you do to converse with the customer is Copy, from emails to websites to LinkedIn content to your business proposal.
Everything that you write regarding business is Copy. Take, for example, your website; You can invest in appealing design and background developers, but the website's words are always what's going to sell. Competition is savage, and every business is online, and you have to stand out - which is not easy when everyone does everything.
For your business to stand out, get the best copywriters and people who over-deliver in every way. Choose someone who will ensure the sale from grabbing attention on LinkedIn within one second (not everyone can do that) to holding that attention and triggering an emotion or a response, which will, in turn, provoke action.
You need good copywriting every step of the way to conversion.
Should a copywriter be able to fulfil writing differently for LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram for their client?
I created content workshops for this. Content for LinkedIn is different to Instagram, which is different to Facebook. You can't cover everything in one course. First, you need to know your target audience. If you have a high ticket product or service, go to LinkedIn; and for a low ticket - Facebook or Instagram. Know your product or service and where to place it.
With LinkedIn joining the gold rush of the creator economy, what does the future look like on the platform?
LinkedIn is a platform where everything is relationship- based. People like to do business with people. You will always have more success from a personal touch.
In 2024 you will have more success if the CEO of your business posts quality over quantity on LinkedIn through his profile rather than through the company's profile page. When comparing effort, you will always get more business from a personal profile.
Those apprehensive about using LinkedIn for business development, where should they start?
Post quality posts once per week that bring value. And engage with other people's content. Build genuine relationships, and this will bring inbound leads. Don't post every day for the sake of posting - always focus on the quality. Only pitch if you get an inbound lead. Posting every day to make noise is a big no-no.
How do you see us communicating on social media channels five years from now?
Content will have low or high engagement based exclusively on the value it provides. Long-form, short- form, text-only posts and posts with texts and images...If you are providing value, one thing only should concern you. It's not 'how I will post'; but rather ', is this post appropriate?'
If it's not appropriate to have a picture, don't include it. If videos are your strong point, then go with it. The bottom line is if you have quality content, then all these concerns regarding format are secondary.
For more tips, follow Dina on LinkedIn. Or you can check out her consultancy, Authority Marketing that promises to fast-forward your journey to Brand Authority.
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