So anyways, I first heard about Likaholix from one of the principals. In the communication, the principal took great care to note one thing - the principal was an ex-Google employee.
Why would someone do this? A person would only mention a former employer if the mention would benefit the person's current endeavor. In this case, the fact that the principal was an ex-Google employee had the desired effect, and made me interested in learning more about Likaholix.
Needless to say, such a strategy won't work with every former employer, for several reasons:
- Perhaps the target hasn't heard of your company. For example, I've worked for mostly small companies, and most people haven't heard of any of them, while a few people may have heard of one or the other of them. If I'm contacting a biometrics person, it probably isn't beneficial to mention the licensed novelty company where I used to work.
- Perhaps the target doesn't care about your company. Let's say that Barry Williams decides to start a B2B software service firm, and he introduces himself to people by saying, "Hi, I used to play Greg on the Brady Bunch." In many cases, this is not sufficient for a business to open the door, since it does not address the business' current concern.
- Perhaps the target has heard of your company, does care about it, and hates it. Perhaps this is not the best time for a Merrill Lynch wannabe to approach the firm and say, "Hi, I used to work for Enron." Or for a swimmer to approach the Olympic team and say, "Hi, I used to be a lobbyist for NORML."
