It’s very easy (and quite tempting) to spend time putting together a creds deck specifically for use in the cold channel and then pop the kettle on, safe in the knowledge that you’re done with that until your next unnecessary internal rebrand/renaming.

However, it’s worth remembering that in the course of your new business endeavours you’ll probably be approaching a fairly varied selection of targets. You’ll likely hit up some small teams with a big freelance roster… some start-ups… maybe some industry giants. Because of this, you always need to be prepared to review your static creds and ask, “are these as targeted as they could be?”

One area where we see lots of mismatches occurring is with testimonials.

If you’re about to hit a bunch of local companies to cash in on that ‘stay local’ vibe, make sure your testimonials come from sources that these prospects will relate to. If you’re hitting a four-man operation a mere two years into their existence, a quote from IKEA (about work you did six years ago) isn’t going to resonate with them. Yes, it will probably impress them, but it might also make them think “blimey - we don’t have the kind of budget IKEA must have spent” and file you away under “too big for us”.

Make sure all your testimonials are about the same ‘scale’ as the prospects you’re approaching. Show them output similar to the work you’d like to be doing for them, with relevant testimonials and budgets. If at your first point of contact you already seem like a great match, you’re now ahead of your competitor (who was so busy impressing people that they frightened half of them away).

Remember: don’t wear a suit if everyone is in flip-flops.