9 steps for magic multichannel outbound campaigns

To stay relevant in today’s outbound sales environment you must go multi-channel.

The benefits of multi-channel sales outreach are widely recognized by top performers in the industry. In fact, multichannel B2B campaigns see on average a 24% increase in ROI.

In this article, we’ll show you a multichannel campaign we know that works.

We’ll leverage hyper-personalization and multiple communication channels (email, phone, social media) to maximize the best results.

Ready to get started? 🚀

Overview

1. From email sequence to multi-channel. Get comfortable with traditional email campaigns first, then, the secret will be to add other communication steps in-between each email step.
2. The complete multichannel sequence template. We’ll show you a 9 step formula we use at Amplemarket to achieve total campaign conversion above 1,5%.
3. Step 1: Start with a relevant, personalized, and timely first-touch email. Read this article to learn how to write a great first touch email.
4. Step 2: Build rapport by connecting on LinkedIn.
5. Step 3: If the connection request is accepted: Send a LinkedIn message.
6. Step 4: Follow up by email. Using our formula for follow-up emails, try an easier call to action (CTA).
7. Step 5: Stay top of mind on LinkedIn by visiting their profile.
8. Step 6: Try giving them a phone call. See the cheat sheet our sales reps use for their first 100 calls.
9. Step 7: If no answer on the phone: Follow up by email once more.
10. Step 8: Go the extra mile for unresponsive prospects with a LinkedIn VOICE message.
11. Step 9: Break the ice with humor in one last email.

From email sequence to multichannel

Multichannel outreach is the next level of traditional email campaigns. In this article, we’ll use a campaign with only one channel as a starting point to create a multi-channel campaign.

If you’re new to outbound sales, you should read up on the basics before jumping into a multichannel approach. We recommend starting with these articles:

• 6-Step Formula to Personalize Cold Emails at Scale (1st Touch Email)
• How To Write Follow Up Emails And Double Conversion Rates (Subsequent Follow-Ups)

If you’re comfortable with that, you’ll find the transition to multichannel easy. The secret will be to add other communication steps in-between each email step.

Don’t worry. We’ll show you how it works - all secrets uncovered (with a practical example).

The complete multichannel sequence template

In this section, we’ll show you a formula we use at Amplemarket to achieve total campaign conversion above 1,5%.

We perform multiple tests on a weekly basis to understand what works and what doesn’t.

So, let’s dive into the framework 🧐

1. Start with a relevant, personalized, and timely first-touch email

Email is still the backbone of a multi-channel campaign. You should learn this 6-step formula to writing great cold emails to make your first email stand out from the crowd.

We breakdown first-touch emails into 6 steps:

1. Personalization with good reason (be relevant). Prospects will pay attention to your email if you hook them quickly. Use something specific you know about all prospects to grab their attention.  
2. Natural segue & did my homework. Show prospects you did your research carefully, then, transition and connect the hook you used in the first sentence with the problem you are trying to solve.  
3. Problem. Now, that you have the prospect’s attention, make sure your message is compelling by mentioning a problem they care about.  
4. Approach and solution. Segue with a clear and concise value proposition. Leave the details for the call if the prospect is interested in a specific issue.  
5. Proof (optional). Social proof usually has a positive impact on your conversion rates. One of the easiest ways to do it is to show relevant examples of existing customers.  
6. Call To Action. Finish your emails with ONE simple call to action. A/B test different calls to action. Sometimes a simple question like "What do you think?" works better than trying to immediately schedule a call. Or vice versa.

Here’s a practical example 👇

Note: With a good first-touch email, about 50% of the interested prospects will immediately convert, and that's awesome! Make sure the next steps you had scheduled in your campaign don't go out and follow up asap.

2. Build rapport by connecting on LinkedIn

Sales requires persistence. The more you put in, the more you’ll get.

To make sure your email stays top of mind for your prospects, try to connect with them on LinkedIn. This will not only give you an alternative channel to reach out to the prospect if they accept, but it’s also an opportunity to keep the prospect in your network and nurture with educational content on their feed.

There’s still no consensus about the use of a note in the LinkedIn connection invite. A/B test invites with a personal, non-sales-y note vs no note.

Here’s an example of a note you can test:

 “Hi {{first_name}}, given your background and area of expertise, I feel I could learn a lot from you - I would like to add you to my network to educate myself with your content and interact with some of your posts. Looking forward to connecting, John”

3. If the connection request is accepted: Send a LinkedIn message

Got your connection invite accepted? That’s great!

Now, you can leverage an additional channel to reach out to your prospect. This can double the chances of a reply.

No need for overkill here. Send a simple message following up on the fact they accepted your invite and mention the email you have sent before.

Example 👇

 “Hey {{firstname}}, I just shot you an email but figured dropping you a message to explain why I’m reaching out to you. I saw that you are {{title}} at {{companyname}} and figured that [topic] falls into your wheelhouse. Are you the right person to discuss this with?”

4. Follow up by email

Ok, it’s time to go back to email.

By this time, your prospect has “heard” about you at least twice. You won’t be unfamiliar anymore. Which is great, because unfamiliarity breeds contempt.

Be aware of criticism when being persistent, but don’t be discouraged by it. Top sales reps often receive criticism from some prospects and that doesn’t stop them from achieving their goals. So, acknowledge the feedback, adapt your approach, and keep moving forward!

You can leverage our framework to follow-up emails here too. In the first follow-up, we recommend facilitating an easier call to action (CTA).

This first follow-up email should be short, concise, and have a simple goal. If your goal is to schedule a discovery call, use this opportunity to provide a calendar link.

Here’s an example 👇

 “Hi {{first_name}}, did you get a chance to take a look at my previous message?    

If you're interested, you can pick a time here.”

5. Stay top of mind on LinkedIn by visiting their profile

Every profile visit triggers a notification on your prospect’s LinkedIn. Use this opportunity to remind them they still have to reply to your email or connection invite.

Eventually, this will trigger their interest in you, and might visit your profile too. Make sure you have your LinkedIn profile optimized for sales.

6. Try giving them a phone call

Haven’t received a reply yet? Time to try a different channel.

Some people just prefer to have you on a call and ask a few questions right away. For busy decision-makers, this could be a unique chance to gauge their interest and understand if it makes sense to schedule another appointment to go through your solution.

At Amplemarket, our sales reps use this cheat sheet during their first 100 cold calls 👇 The main thing we know that works is preparation & training.

7. If no answer on the phone: Follow up by email once more

Perhaps you didn’t get the prospect on the phone at the right time. Follow up once again by email and use FOMO (the fear of missing out) to spark their interest to take action.

To achieve this, leverage examples of how you solved the same issues with other teams or any industry awards they recognize and respect.

How Hubspot uses an industry award to provide social proof 👇

 “Hi {{first_name}},    

Hope you can appreciate my persistence. I've reached out a couple times to see if it makes sense to connect regarding your lead generation and lead management goals.

Since I haven't heard back, I'll assume that HubSpot is off the table for now.

In the meantime, feel free to check out these G2 Crowd reviews on our CRM and the best marketing automation software in 2020. HubSpot was ranked #1 in the industry for both B2B and B2C companies.

Door is always open if we can help in the future.”

8. Go the extra mile for unresponsive prospects with a LinkedIn VOICE message

You only have 2 more chances to get an interested reply from your prospect. Most sales reps would have given up by now, but with enough persistence, you can still get better results.

So, it’s time to use your weapons of last resort. The first is a LinkedIn VOICE message. This sales channel is hugely unexplored.

Voice messages feel inherently more personal than text. It’s a “new” channel and it will automatically grab a person’s attention just because of its novelty - people are curious!

Here’s how you can use it as an unexpected last touch 👇

 “Hi {{first_name}}, I thought I’d give it a last shot. We’re currently working with {{company_1}} and {{company_2}} to solve {{problem_2}}. Do you think this is worth a conversation?”

9. Break the ice with humor in one last email

At this point, you’ve tried multiple touches with different resources and value propositions. Use your weapon of last resort, humor. There’s not a single formula of how this can work, be creative!

Another example by Hubspot:

 “Hello {{first_name}},    

I must have called a thousand times ...

On a more serious note, last time I reached out about {{pain}} and how {{product}} could help {{drive X results}} over {{timeframe}}.

Are you interested in this discussion? If not, please let me know so I can stop blasting Adele.”

Wrapping it up...

In this article, we’ve shared a framework you can leverage to skyrocket results with outbound sales almost instantly.

But most importantly, the secret is to always add value with every touchpoint over multiple channels.

Once we understood the impact that multi-channel was having on outbound sales teams, our team worked hard to make this process as easy as possible for you.

With a few simple clicks, you can craft custom sequences leveraging email, phone, LinkedIn, and manual steps all in a single platform.

To make it an even more seamless process. Your sales reps can then execute all their daily tasks in one simple dashboard: our Tasks Manager.

Enough to get you curious about Amplemarket?

Learn more about Amplemarket’s Multichannel Sequences here.

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