I’ve only ever stolen two things in my entire life.
The first was a Cadbury’s Creme Egg from Woolworths when I was 11.
Slipped it up my sleeve, heart pounding, convinced the barcode would trigger every alarm in the store.
It didn’t.
Ten minutes later I was on the bus home, eating stolen chocolate.
The second thing I stole was from a mortgage broker.
Well, “stole” isn’t quite right.
He told me his strategy,
I told him I was going to steal it and he laughed because he knew most people wouldn’t actually do it.
Here’s what he did: whenever someone followed him on Instagram, he’d send them a voice note.
Not a text.
Not an automated message.
An actual 30-second voice note thanking them for the follow.
That’s it. No pitch. No “let’s jump on a call.” Just a human voice saying hello.
When I started doing this, I asked if people wanted marketing tips
And over half joined my email list.
But here’s what nobody tells you – it’s not about the conversion rate.
It’s about what happens after.
People reply to voice notes.
They start conversations.
They remember you because you’re the only person in their DMs who sounds human instead of a chatbot.
One woman messaged back with a voice note saying
“Thank you very much for personally reaching out, it’s very nice, and yes, I do need to book a chat with you”
It’s called social media for a reason: let’s get back to being social.
If you wanted to give it a go, here’s the formula for your voice note:
- Thank them genuinely
- Tell them that you hope they find your content useful
- Give them ONE clear next step
And here’s the critical part – do NOT pitch for an appointment.
The second you say “discovery call,” you’ve killed the magic.
You’ve gone from human being to salesperson.
While everyone else is trying to go viral, you’ll be having actual conversations with people who might actually want to work with you.
And that Creme Egg? Totally worth it.
To more conversations & fewer faceless accounts.
Chris.