Gary shares a launch tactic for service businesses: send a personalized mass text to your contacts asking for referrals, not sales. The indirect ask reduces pressure on both sides and works for any service, from landscaping to consulting.
Everybody who's got a service business— you cut hair, you do consulting, you're a physical trainer, you make a video— it looks like this.
Hey everybody, I'm finally going after my lifelong passion to start my own landscaping business. So you're getting this video because you're in my contacts on my phone. Some of you are my best friends since high school, others I probably met once and you're in my phone. I'm sending this to literally everybody from A to Z in my phone. I'm not asking you to hire me to do landscaping, I'm asking if you know anyone who might be in the market for a landscaper. This is my one plea, my one ask as I start on this journey. Have the best day. And literally text every single person. Start at 2 PM on a Sunday afternoon, go into 9 PM, get it done. You will have a business.
Yeah, so smart. I mean, if one of my kids were starting a business, this is exactly what I would have them do. And don't miss kind of the finer point. You're not asking for the sale, you're asking for the referral. It's an indirect ask because you're able to say, "Look, I'm not trying to sell you. I just want to know if you know anyone who might need my services." Now, in reality, we all know what's happening, but the indirect ask makes it easier on both the sender and the receiver. Brilliant.
