Q&A: “How to approach a company about a partnership?”

You buy a product you love and spot a problem the company could fix. How do you reach out in the right way? Today's listener works in e-commerce by day and runs a side hustle in 3PL fulfillment, so he knows exactly what he could offer.

I found a company selling a product that lines up with my passion for ecology. It works great, and I plan to order more. But it ships from Canada, and I'm in the US. I paid ten US dollars for it, and Canadian reseller friends tell me the company probably paid ten Canadian dollars to ship it to me. They made no money on my order. I want to help them ship faster and cheaper. I'm not a natural salesperson. I contacted them through Facebook, and a customer service rep said she passed my info along. I also found their key employees on LinkedIn, and one profile is wide open. What's my line here? How do I get their business without coming off as rude, unprofessional, or like some sort of stalker?

Andrew is already on the right track. Finding a real person behind a Facebook page or a generic service address is the hard part, and he's done it. Worrying about being rude is a good sign, too. People who send rude pitches don't lose sleep over it. They send the same message to everyone. And Andrew has something most cold pitchers don't: he's a customer. His line is to introduce himself, say he works in fulfillment, and name a challenge he noticed and a possible solution. Keep that first note short. The goal is a conversation, not a closed deal.

There's a big difference between spam and gentle outreach. Spam is the same message sent to a hundred people, with no sign the sender knows anything about the recipient. Andrew's version is an idea built on a real relationship. It won't always work out, and that's fine. The relationship might help with something else later. So don't hold back.

Have a question? Visit SideHustleSchool.com/questions.