Helping First - A New Way to Prospect

Today’s Newsletter at a Glance

• Why leading with real help builds trust faster than any pitch.

• How to design simple “value-first” offers that don’t drain your time.

• A practical way to test this method with real prospects this month.

The Simple Shift That Makes Prospecting Feel Natural Again

Most professionals are taught to think of prospecting as chasing. You make a list, you reach out, you “follow up” until someone finally says yes or unsubscribes. It can feel like begging for attention instead of being sought out for your expertise. The value-first prospecting method flips that script. Instead of leading with a pitch, you lead with real help. You solve a piece of your ideal client’s problem before they pay you a cent, and you let that experience of value become the basis of the relationship.

At its core, value-first prospecting is simple: you show people what it’s like to work with you by actually helping them. Not by sending a brochure or a generic PDF, but by giving them something specific, useful, and relevant to a problem they feel right now. That might be a quick audit, a short personalized video walking through an issue on their website, a tiny spreadsheet that saves them time each week, or a short guide tailored to their situation. The “prospecting” is built into the help. They walk away better off than before they met you, and they naturally see you as the person who understands their world.

This approach works because it lines up with how trust is built in real life. Think about the last time you enthusiastically recommended a professional to a friend. It probably wasn’t because of their logo or tagline. It was because, at some point, they solved a problem for you in a way that felt thoughtful and competent. Value-first prospecting tries to create a small version of that experience early. When you show someone you “get” their problem and can make it smaller in a concrete way, you stop being a stranger trying to sell something and start becoming a trusted guide.

There is an important difference between value-first prospecting and giving away free consulting to anyone who asks. Boundaries matter. The goal is not to empty your brain for free or spend hours building custom solutions for people who may never hire you. The goal is to design a repeatable, lightweight way to be helpful that naturally leads to deeper conversations with the right people. That means choosing small but meaningful problems to focus on, and setting clear limits around what is free and what is paid. You are offering a sample, not the whole meal.

A good place to start is by identifying one recurring, frustrating issue your ideal clients face before they ever talk to you. Maybe they are overwhelmed by choices, unsure where to start, or stuck doing something inefficiently. Write down the early warning signs of that problem and the first few steps you usually recommend. Then ask yourself: “How could I package these first steps into something that takes me less than an hour to create and less than fifteen minutes for them to use?” That simple question will point you toward practical value-first assets such as checklists, mini-assessments, short videos, or quick one-page guides.

Once you have something useful, the next step is to embed it into your outreach in a natural way. Instead of sending messages that say, “Can we schedule a call so I can tell you about my services?”, you can say, “I noticed X, and I put together a short Y that might help you with Z. If you’d like, I can send it over.” The focus is on the problem and the help, not on forcing a meeting. If they accept, you deliver the value promptly and clearly. You walk them through what you noticed, what you recommend, and what they can do on their own. You are generous, but you stop short of doing the entire project for free.

Follow-up becomes much easier when you have already created value. Instead of awkwardly checking in, you can ask thoughtful questions about their progress. “How did it go when you tried the checklist?” “Did the new approach save you any time?” Their answers will often reveal whether there is a deeper opportunity to work together. If they are stuck, you can suggest a short call to go a layer deeper. If they are making progress on their own, you have still strengthened the relationship and planted a seed for future work or referrals. Either way, the interaction was useful for them, not just for you.

Over time, value-first prospecting also sharpens your positioning. The more you help people with a specific type of problem, the more clearly you see the patterns. You start noticing common bottlenecks, misconceptions, and quick wins. You can fold those insights back into your materials, making your free value even more effective. You might develop a signature “first step” every new contact goes through, which sets the stage for a natural paid engagement. Instead of “selling” in the traditional sense, you are curating a path: here is how I help people like you, and here is the very first piece of that journey.

It is worth acknowledging the fear that often comes up around this method: “If I give away too much, won’t people just take it and never hire me?” In practice, the opposite tends to be true. The people who only ever want free help were never going to become great clients. The ones who value their time and results will use your free help to evaluate how you think and how you communicate. When they see that your “sample” already makes a difference, they infer that a deeper engagement will be even more valuable. You are not losing business; you are qualifying it.

If you want to try value-first prospecting this month, you don’t need a complicated funnel or fancy tech. Start small. Choose one problem, design one helpful resource, and commit to offering it to a handful of people who fit your ideal client profile. Track what happens. Notice how your outreach messages feel different when you know you are reaching out to offer something genuinely useful. Pay attention to how prospects respond when you show up as a problem-solver, not a pitch-giver. Use what you learn to refine the asset and the way you talk about it.

Ultimately, the value-first prospecting method is about respect. It respects your prospects’ time by giving them something they can use right away. It respects your expertise by putting it to work instead of hiding it behind vague promises. And it respects your future pipeline by attracting the kind of clients who appreciate thoughtful help and are willing to invest in more of it. When you lead with value, you stop chasing and start collaborating. That shift alone can change the way your business feels, and the kind of clients it attracts.

Until next time...

Travis Cody,
Million Dollar Author

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