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How to setup an appointment

October 22, 2009

Marketing.fm

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I deal with a number of requests all focused around setting up a time and location. Sometimes its me reaching out to someone and other times it is someone reaching out to me.

These range from setting up a time to speak via phone or can include setting a time and a place to grab lunch or a coffee.

One thing I have learned, and wanted to pass along is the idea of, serving up options on a silver platter. Whether this is done with making an appointment, getting someone to make a decision, or simply trying to show your point, how you serve things up can make a huge difference on the outcome.

Here are a few principles to remember:
Everyone is busy.
People like to process emails\tasks and move on.
Never assume.

So with those three items lets begin. Below are my most successful outreach efforts that have worked for me, as well as notes that are convenient for incoming requests.

The first thing to remember when scheduling an appointment is that even from the first interaction it makes sense to propose times\dates\locations and choices between the three.

For example here is an optimized warm intro to setup a time to speak via phone:

Hi Joe,

I received your contact info from Jane Smith and wanted to setup a time to speak with you about your experience with XYZ Consulting as I am about to make a decision to start working with them. Do any of the dates\times below work for you?

10/07/09 – 2pm or 4pm EST?
10/08/09 – 11am EST
or
10/09/09 – 9am EST

I can be reached at 212-555-1212 but happy to call you at a number you provide.

Thanks,

Alternatively, below is a cold start to setup a lunch:

Hi Joe,

My name is Eric Friedman and I work at ABC Co. I have an interest in what you are working on and would love to chat further over lunch. Are you free next week at noon on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday? I can meet you at your office or at a place nearby.

Below are some places that seem convenient
Place 1
Place 2

Let me know what works best for you.

Thanks,

The benefit of doing the hard work ahead of time (picking a time\place\date) helps someone process the task and get onto their schedule.

Like most people, they next step is to get this information written down or into their calendar. By providing the date, day, time, and location you are helping them get the information logged faster.

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  • armandoalves

    Start by scheduling meeting for Tuesdays at 3pm :)
    http://lifehacker.com/5385900/tuesday-at-3pm-is…

  • http://www.marketing.fm EricFriedman

    Ha – nice

  • winter123

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  • http://kortina.net kortina

    Love it.

  • http://www.marketing.fm EricFriedman

    Thanks! Was going to send this to you today but you got there first!

  • http://kortina.net kortina

    Employed already this in an email I sent to someone today: “Can we do a call
    on Mon at 3pm or Tue at 10am or 3pm?”

  • http://viniciusvacanti.com Vinicius Vacanti

    Here's a crazy idea that might be too much for the sender: What if next to each appointment, there were links to “export to gmail”, etc. so that the recipient could easily save it to his calendar. Perhaps a gmail plug-in that could auto-generate the links for the sender?

  • http://www.marketing.fm EricFriedman

    I would LOVE this feature. I find that all export to calendar things do not
    work as promised, but if you could pull this off it would be well worth the
    dev. time and money.

    Count me in to contribute if you want to see this get built.

  • http://viniciusvacanti.com Vinicius Vacanti

    The meetup export to calendar always fails to put the right location for me. I wonder why…

  • sailmold
  • http://www.trafficspaces.com Niyi

    and don't even think of scheduling it for Monday at 9am.

  • http://www.trafficspaces.com Niyi

    and don't even think of scheduling it for Monday at 9am.

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  • http://www.thepartnersource.com Partner Source

    I have to agree with you Eric. I also want to add that it is short and straight to the point, minus all the fluff people normally put in to these type of posts. Nice article.

    Glenn Wright | VP
    Partner Source 
    (US Ranked #2) Lead Generation | Appointment Setting
    http://www.thepartnersourceDOTcom