Definition
A warm introduction is when someone the buyer already knows and trusts introduces you to them, usually by email or in person. Because the request comes from a familiar name rather than a stranger, it is far more likely to be read and answered than a cold message, and it starts with some trust.
Why it matters when you sell B2B
Trust is the scarcest thing in B2B sales. A cold message has to earn it from nothing. A warm introduction borrows it from someone who already has it.
It works best when the introducer knows both sides well and there is a real reason for the two to meet. In account based marketing, a warm route into a target account is often worth more than any message.
A worked example
Say you want meetings at 50 target accounts.
From target accounts to introductionsExample
- 50accounts
On your target list.
- 18accounts
Someone in your network knows a person there.
- 9introductions
The person they know is close to the problem, and the introducer is happy to ask.
Nine introductions from 50 accounts sounds small. But each one starts with trust, and reaches someone near the problem. Aim each one at the right person: ideally the problem owner or the economic buyer, not whoever the introducer happens to know.
Common mistakes
- 1Asking without a reason. "Can you introduce me?" is a favour. "They are opening a new site and we helped two others do it" is a reason.
- 2Making the introducer do the writing. Send a short note they can forward as it is.
- 3Asking the same person too often. Each introduction spends some of their trust. Ask rarely.
- 4Not closing the loop. Tell the introducer what happened, and thank them, whatever the outcome.
- 5Being introduced to the wrong person. A warm route to someone with no stake in the problem is a polite dead end.
Ask for a warm introduction
- Pick the person you want to meet, and why now.
- Check how well the introducer knows them.
- Write a three-line note they can forward.
- Give the introducer an easy way to say no.
- Report back on what happened.