3 Marvel-lous Tips to Get the Customer’s Attention
Lessons from a Real-Life Mess-Up
Picture this: you’ve spent weeks plotting the perfect approach to get the Customer’s Attention – on this occasion, an impossible-to-reach CEO called Mark. You’ve got the message crafted, the call-to-action sharper than a freshly honed kitchen knife, and the nerves just about under control. You hit record on your personalised video… and then realise, too late, that your webcam has stitched you up with the dreaded mirror mode.
So instead of “Mark”, the CEO’s nameplate behind him reads proudly: kraM.
Cue a facepalm worthy of Shakespearean tragedy. 🤦♂️
Now, 95% of the time that wouldn’t matter. The other 5%? You look like a complete muppet. Guess which bucket this one landed in?
Why am I telling you this story? Not because I’m after sympathy (tea and biscuits welcomed) but because there’s a vital lesson here about how to get the customer’s attention — and it has nothing to do with slick polish or perfect presentation.
It’s this:
Sometimes, the very thing you fear will sink you is exactly what makes you stand out
Anon
And in my case? Mark not only replied, he found the whole thing rather amusing. The “mistake” had turned into a hook. Among the 200-odd messages fighting for his eyeballs that week, mine was the one that stuck. We’re now in conversation about his firm’s sales capabilities — all thanks to a backwards nameplate.
Lesson? Authenticity cuts through more than polish ever will.
3 Hard Truths to Get the Customer’s Attention
So what can you take from this small but humbling disaster? Here are three golden rules that emerged — the backbone of better sales outreach:
1. You Must Stand Out
Think LinkedIn. The average CEO might scroll through hundreds of messages a day. If you look and sound like everyone else, you’re invisible. You could have the slickest video, the cleverest CTA, or the most dazzling design. But if you don’t stand out, you’ll never even get the customer’s attention in the first place.
Standing out doesn’t always mean fireworks and pyrotechnics. Sometimes it’s a creative hook. Other times it’s just… humanity. Mistakes included.
2. Don’t Fear Vulnerability
There’s an old myth in sales: look bulletproof, act bulletproof, be bulletproof. Trouble is, that myth kills deals. Decision-makers can smell scripted bravado at a hundred paces. What they rarely see is honesty.
When you admit a slip-up – or stop trying to be perfect – you become relatable. Relatability builds trust. And trust is the real currency of sales outreach. Ironically, vulnerability might just be your sharpest tool to get the customer’s attention.
3. Consistency Beats Perfection
Here’s where most people trip. They spend weeks crafting “the perfect message” while their competitors are already having conversations. Outreach isn’t about flawless execution. It’s about rhythm.
Show up consistently. Stay thoughtful. Keep yourself visible. An authentic, slightly scrappy message today will almost always beat a “perfect” one three weeks late.
A Quick Word on Outsourcing LinkedIn
If you’ve ever handed your outreach to a mass-connection agency, you probably know how flat the results feel. Generic templates. Robotic messaging. CEOs left colder than a January morning in York.
That’s because outreach is human. It doesn’t scale the way agencies promise. The best results come when your quirks, humour, and imperfections shine through. That’s what sticks. That’s what gets conversations started. That’s what gets the customer’s attention.
Sound Familiar?
If your messages are getting ghosted faster than a dodgy Tinder date… you’re not alone. Outreach is crowded. Everyone’s shouting. But the good news? You don’t need gimmicks or aggressive hustle.
What you need is a system. A rhythm. A willingness to show up as yourself – consistently.
Because mistakes might get you noticed once in a while. But a consistent, authentic approach is what truly takes to get the customer’s attention and keeps it long enough to win the deal.
Final Thought (and a Little Bonus)
Sales outreach isn’t about being flawless. It’s about being memorable. Human. Consistent.
Sometimes that means making a mistake. Sometimes it means sending a video where “Mark” looks like “kraM”. But those moments are often the ones that spark the real connection.
So next time you slip, don’t bury it. Laugh, own it, and move forward. Humanity always wins.
And if you’d like to go deeper, I’ve pulled together 5 simple tips for better sales outreach — the small shifts that help you cut through the noise and actually land conversations with decision-makers.
👉 [Download the free guide here]
Because mistakes can open doors. But a consistent system for standing out? That’s what gets results.
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