The Starting Point
I ran a small automation consultancy — 3 people, mostly SME clients paying ₦200k–₦500k for workflow automation projects. I wanted one large client that would give us stability and a flagship reference.
I targeted a logistics company I knew was struggling with manual tracking — I'd heard this from a mutual contact, not from their website.
The DM (Verbatim)
"Hi [Name], I noticed your team is running WhatsApp tracking updates manually — I spotted 3 driver complaints about delayed confirmation messages on your Google reviews. We built a similar system for [competitor they'd recognise] that cut that problem by 80% in 6 weeks. Would it be worth 20 minutes to show you what we did?"
Three things that made it work: specific observation (the Google reviews), social proof (a competitor they knew), and a small ask (20 minutes, not a sales call).
What Happened After
He replied in 4 hours. Called within 2 days. The 20-minute call became 75 minutes. He introduced me to his operations director on the same call.
The proposal took 2 weeks to write properly. Not because it was complex — because I spent 12 days learning everything about their operation before I wrote a single recommendation.
The Close
Total project: ₦2.4M over 12 months. Split into ₦600k upfront, ₦150k/month retainer for implementation and maintenance.
The thing that closed it: we positioned ourselves not as a tech vendor but as a department extension. "You don't have an automation team. We are your automation team for 12 months." That framing removed the "why you" question. We weren't competing with other vendors. We were filling a gap their org chart had.
What I'd Do Differently
Ask for the operations director in the first DM. The founder was the door opener but had zero budget authority. Every additional stakeholder I wasn't in the room with was a delay I couldn't control.
