My apologies in advance. Today, I’m onboarding my new intern to help me manage my LinkedIn messages. So you might notice a few mistakes here and there 😅
But there’s a reason why I need some help.
I now have over 30,000 LinkedIn connections, and I try to personally check in with everyone at least twice a year.
That’s quite an administration. You almost need an accountant to manage all your relationships 😂
But here’s what I strongly believe: your next new client is probably already in your network.
And your client of tomorrow? You probably still need to meet them today.
That’s why I believe in combining three things:
1. Thought leadership. Share your knowledge, understand your prospects’ challenges and become the expert they trust.
2. Networking. Meet new people every day. Online or offline. Not to sell, but to build relationships.
3. Consistent follow-up. Our own client data shows that around 80% of new business comes from conversations that have been going on for more than six months.
And this is where my new intern comes in.
AI.
Not to send thousands of cold sales pitches. Not to pretend to be human. But to help me maintain thousands of genuine relationships.
Because personal doesn’t necessarily mean manual.
It’s about your intentions, your tone of voice and the value you bring to someone else’s life or business.
AI should handle the administration and show you when it’s time to follow up. You should build the relationships.
And eventually, those relationships turn into something even more valuable: referrals and warm introductions.
Because people don’t do business with funnels. People do business with people.
And a deal has to be earned, not pushed.
So my advice? Start meeting 20 new people every day, share your knowledge and never stop following up.
Your network will eventually start working for you.
How do you keep your relationships warm?
