Ever wonder why no one is responding? I mean you're putting out great content. You're reminding them of trainings, deals, opportunities and more! You've built challenges, campaigns, keywords, and the rest. What is happening?

I recently heard someone say that apps like Project Broadcast were the "death of your business."  I thought to myself, "I've hit the highest rank in my company. I've created a life that I never thought possible.  I've been using PB from the beginning. What am I missing?"

That's when it hit me.  It's not the tool that's killing your connections or your business.  It's the way you're using the tool.  This is why in my Basics course I don't just teach you how to import your contacts (important as it is), I teach you to think in concepts of messaging first.

Using the tool incorrectly will definitely impact your business and relationships.  So I thought about the big things people do that harm their connection and (I believe) business when using PB or ANY automation.

I ask every person I work with if they are willing to go All-In with any automation they plan to use to connect better.  This is no different. If you treat PB like an app and an automation you'll get what you're destined for destruction.

When I see it as my "business phone" I use it like I would my "personal phone." I don't over send, I don't over personalize (like putting the person's first name in every single text), and I don't have random requests to constantly respond with "keywords." Everyone knows that's not how phones work.

When it's my phone, I call from that number, I answer that number and I work from that number.  People trust that number is me because it is.

There are lots of things we CAN do in life. I can eat a whole pizza by myself (trust me I can) but just because I can doesn't mean I should.  Often times people see all the capabilities of a tool like PB and they start using them all.
DON'T DO IT!
Know where you should spend the bulk of your time and work from there. And it's not where you think.  The number one place you should spend your time is in chat. Yup! Why? Because that's the goal. One to one conversations. Not blasts, not campaigns. Real marketing and business is relationship and that's not automated. That's one to one.

When you start building campaigns (especially those dreaded reoccurring campaigns) you are running the risk of being an announcement/advertisement and not a person. When is the last time you really engaged with Bed Bath & Beyond when they sent you the same "20% Off coupon" for the 100th time?

Campaigns are awesome. Big Massive Texts are amazing! But they are not the rule. They must have a goal. They must be personal. And they must be sent to people who want them.

Don't add people to your newsletter (or any campaign) unless it really applies and/or they ask for it. And when they do say yes, make sure you change that message regularly and create engagement messages. It must feel like it's you...because it is! (see #1)

BIG TIP: Check for "not responded since.." in your contacts every once in a while so you can make sure you're getting the engagement you want.

This is the dangerous one.  You start a client or customer into an onboarding campaign which is exactly what you should do.  Then you walk away.  The campaign has left out questions to create engagement so maybe they don't even respond. The campaign feels like a formula so they definitely don't respond. Of the worst option, the campaign does its job, they respond to your messages but you don't respond to them because...the campaign's doing its job so you don't have to work.

Automation is NOT a removal of work responsibility. It's the streamlining of repetitive work so you can be free'd up to serve at a higher level. BTW, all of these things are fixed by changing our mindset to "This is not an app. This is my phone." (see #1)

Your messaging goal should always be to inform, educate, and engage. Inform and educate may be somewhat optional but engage should never be. And when we create engagement, the cycle begins and we re-engage. That's how we reinforce trust and help people ascend up the value ladder in our business.

A Quick Example: A recent client of mine had spent four days (before project broadcast) messaging thousands of previous customers about an opportunity his company was offering for repurchasing.  Four days of copy, paste and send!  Exhausting.  The problem was that as he would send, he might get replies which would force him to stop reply and then get back to work with the copy, paste, and send.

But in five minutes we built a one message broadcast that created engagement. He was able to spend his time in relationship with the customers that were interested and had the energy to do so.

That's how this tool is to be used. Never to avoid work. But always to do the right work. And always to be done personally.

So if you're still reading I hope you can read (and hear in the video) my heart. I'm the automation guy. I love automation.  But I've also learned how to make automation feel like a robot (funny that's my whole theme) and how to lose connection quickly.

So the next time you go to hit send, ask this simple question: "Would I send this to this person if I didn't have an app?" If not, take a pause before you hit that button.