TOFU Is Not Just a Delicious Meat Alternative!

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Our Cold Email Is Not Dead (But It Needs Resuscitating) workshop is two weeks out, and I’m itching to Geek out on subject lines and reply-rate maths with you (register below). But one killer email does not a closed deal make.
In biotech sales, we still need seven (or more) touches before a total stranger remembers our name—never mind signs a deal.

So grab your coffee (or a plate of katsu tofu), and let’s discuss the other touchpoints, the ones that live outside your inbox or LinkedIn DMs and make every email you send work 10× harder.

The Touch-Point Menu

Mixing channels builds familiarity faster and meets prospects where they like to engage:

• Email

• LinkedIn – connection requests, DMs, posts, comments, likes

• In-Person – conferences, onsite meetings, trade shows and coffee catch-ups

• Marketing – social, paid ads, gated content, newsletters

• Direct Mail & Gifts – handwritten notes, small swag delivery

• Phone / Messaging – calls, texts, WhatsApp voice and video notes
  

Some touches cost time or budget, so match the effort to the prospect’s value. Automate the low-stakes or high-volume stuff; Add a human touch for the big fish.

It seems like there is a lot that you could do, and it's hard to know where to start! Well, as a rep, some of the marketing stuff is outside your control, so forward this and our details to the marketing team, and we can help on that side.

However, even for the Sales side, there are many options, and it's hard to know what to do and in what order…I got you. Here is a playbook to try.

Your “Top-20 Crack-the-Account” Playbook

1. Pick the Targets (5 × 4)

• Choose your five must-win accounts for the quarter.

• Inside each, flag four decision-makers or heavy influencers.
  Boom—20 humans who can change your quota story.
  

2. Run the Baseline Cadence

1. Drop your best cold-email sequence (we’ll perfect it in the workshop).
   

2. Fire a LinkedIn connection request plus a quick “thanks for connecting” DM.
   

3. Please give them a bit of time to nibble. If they bite, book the call and celebrate.
   

4. If they don’t… cue the escalation ladder.
   

3. The Escalation Ladder

(Stop the moment you land a meeting.)

1. LinkedIn Video DM – 45-second selfie: “Hi Dr Smith—figured video beats another wall of text…”
   

2. Phone + Voicemail – Two rings, friendly message: “Just adding a voice to the name.”
   

3. Referral Ask – Ping a mutual contact: “Mind intro-ing me? I’ve got data that could save their team serious bench hours.”
   

4. Handwritten Note or Small Swag, Lab notebook, gel-loading ruler, coffee gift card, land it on their desk, not their spam folder.
   
   Top Tip: The more personal the gift, the better. If they are into Golf, personalised golf balls, for example, they love gardening, send seeds.
   
   The other tip for all of the above is to be yourself. When using in-person or video, the key is to bring yourself to the table and make sure they remember you.
   

4. Track, Celebrate, Iterate

• Log every touch so you never double-dial or overcontact.

• Share wins (and voicemail bloopers) in the team channel.

• Rinse, repeat, and run the playbook on the next batch once you’ve cracked an account.
  

Try this ladder exactly as written, and tell me you don’t get a response. I’ll wait. 😉

 

See you in two weeks for the workshop, where we’ll supercharge the email part of this plan. Until then, keep stacking those touches and watch your TOFU fatten up for H2!

Cheers,

Nick

1. Lead Generation: We’ll build target lists, write scientifically relevant messaging, and send messages on your behalf to book qualified sales meetings with biotech and pharma companies.

2. Training for Reps: A skill development platform for life science sales reps who want to improve their sales skills, exceed their quota, and take the next step in their career.

3. Training for Teams: If you want to upskill your team around prospecting, driving to close, key account management, AI, or any other topic, we can put together a training plan specific to your organization’s needs.

4. Strategy Call: Need more than training? Want help implementing and executing your sales strategy? In a 30-minute call, we will assess your company’s current situation and identify growth opportunities.