The Problem: Finding Qualified Leads
I run MakeAutomation, an AI automation consulting business. Like every consultant, I faced the same challenge: where do the next clients come from?
I tried the usual routes. Content marketing takes months to gain traction. Paid ads get expensive fast, especially for high-ticket services. Referrals are great but unpredictable.
I needed something more direct. Something that could generate conversations with decision-makers who actually had the problems I solve.
Cold Email vs LinkedIn Outreach
I started with cold email. Set up the infrastructure, warmed up the domains, wrote the sequences. It works, and I still run it to this day.
But the reply rates were... okay. Not bad, but not exciting either. Most importantly, the conversations felt transactional. People responding to cold emails are often just being polite or looking for a quick "no thanks."
LinkedIn was different. The conversations felt more personal. More genuine. People weren't just responding, they were engaging. Asking questions. Sharing their challenges. These weren't polite brush-offs. These were real conversations that naturally led to discovery calls.
Cold Email
- •Lower reply rates
- •More transactional feel
- •Deliverability challenges
- •Still useful as a channel
LinkedIn Outreach
- 40%+ reply rates
- Genuine conversations
- Built-in trust (profile visible)
- Conversations become leads
The System I Built
I didn't want to be "that guy" sliding into DMs with a pitch. "Hey, I noticed you're a founder, want to buy my services?" That's not how professionals operate.
Instead, I built a system around value-first messaging:
Target by intent, not just title
I find people actively engaging with content about the problems I solve. If someone just commented on a post about "struggling to automate workflows," they're already thinking about this.
Start with a question, not a pitch
My first message asks if they're even experiencing this problem right now. If yes, great, let's talk. If not, no harm done. It filters and qualifies at the same time.
Provide value before asking for anything
When someone engages, I share relevant insights or resources. The goal is to be helpful, not salesy. Sales calls happen naturally when people see you can actually help.
The Results: 7-Day Campaign
Here's the actual data from a recent 7-day campaign. Not projections. Not "potential results." Real numbers from my own outreach.
Connection Rate
66%
vs 20-30% industry avg
Reply Rate
66.7%
vs 5-15% industry avg
Time to Reply
24-48h
vs 5-7 days industry avg
38 real conversations in 7 days. Not just "thanks but no thanks" replies. People asking questions, sharing their challenges, booking calls.
This is what convinced me to turn this into a service. If it works this well for my business, it can work for others too.
Why I Built MakeOutreach
After seeing these results consistently, I realized something: every coach, consultant, and agency owner has the same problem I had. They know LinkedIn works. They just don't have time to do it right.
Most are either doing nothing (leaving leads on the table) or doing it wrong (spammy outreach that damages their reputation). The few who do it well are spending 4+ hours a week on manual outreach.
MakeOutreach is the system I built for myself, now available as a done-for-you service. Same approach. Same results. Without the time investment.
Want to See the Full Data?
Download the complete 7-day campaign results presentation with all the metrics and breakdowns.
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