WhatsTheBuzzAbout.com

The Art of the Invitation

It seems that sending invitations to connect one-to-one on a social network or to join a network, forum, or group is a relatively simple, logistical process. However, sometimes individuals do not send invitations with care or respect. Sometimes  you may receive invitations from individuals whom you do not know and who do not make the effort to explain to you why they want to connect with you.

You may receive duplicate invitations from some individuals regardless of whether you respond to his or her initial or subsequent invitations. You may receive invitations from individuals who disguise themselves in emails, by using nicknames, initials, etc. You may receive invitations which have missing links or which contain viruses, worms, Trojan horses, or blended threats.  You may receive invitations simply because some individuals collect contacts or even are driven to compete to be number one in whatever venue with respect to the number of connections.

You may find individuals who send an invitation  and who already apologize for sending it to you if you have already accepted a previous invitation from him or her. You may receive invitations to connect with the same person on ten or more social networks, and question whether there really is a reason to connect with that individual on so many networks. Shortly, you may find that particular connection might result in viral invitations from others whom that same individual has invited to connect on multiple networks.

Invitations, once accepted may result in connections who were once welcome and then become unwelcome as those connections continue to proliferate your inbox with more invitations, blogs, newsletters, promotional information, requests, and “just thought you might be interested” emails. Disconnecting/unfriending is an arduous task and brings up another whole set of etiquette issues.

Establishing Your Own Invitation Style

Perhaps in the rush of your business and personal life you have never taken the time to think about how to frame your invitations or to whom should be the recipient or how those invitations might be perceived.

The numbers game — If you are a “contact collector” whose only goal is to enlarge your number of connections, then the only thing you need to be concerned about is the rate of return. You are an individual who does the electronic version of direct mail and only the response rate matters. Your invitations are framed, not for the purpose of making substantive strategic alliances or friendships, but rather to increase the number of connections for some future purpose. Take a look at the response that you receive from different networks if you are using standard invitations to determine if certain language might result in a higher response rate.

The selective connecter — If you issue only selected invitations in order to increase your network for some definitive business or social purpose, you might want to consider tailoring your invitations to include some information about yourself or your business in order to spur interest in connecting.

The reciprocal connector – If you generally limit your invitations to those who have invited you to connect on a particular group, etc. and you want to continue that connection in another venue, you should have a high response rate. If you do not, then you need to include the fact that you are already connected on another venue and want to perpetuate that connection on this additional group, etc.

The sporadic or casual connector – If you periodically or generally choose to connect with individuals for a variety of reasons your invitations may not be tailored to them.  By including a brief reason for the connection request, other than a simple “I would like to connect,” you will increase the likelihood that  the recipient will accept the invitation.

How you chose to  issue invitations reflects on your professionalism, your personality, and your purpose. As usual, the electronic word may be in perpetuity and, therefore, deserves consideration. Impressions can be made through electronic mediums just as well as in person, whether those impressions are first time or otherwise. Treat others as you would like to be treated. Proof your work, give due respect, and consider the value of the recipient’s time. You will be rewarded with strong, solid connections, and good will.

What is your buzz about?