First sentence, why them? Why have you chosen them? What is it about their story? Bring a specific in right away. It could be something like, we've been talking about clients who've succeeded in X and you came to mind right away. Or this person recommended you because reason. Have something there that points to why them specifically. Why you're asking them.

Why now, what is it about this time? It could be as simple as we're working on a library of stories and you came to mind. It could be we have a campaign we're hoping to launch, but give them a reason for the timing. Make it feel urgent and interesting and important for them to take part now instead of later or a year from now.

What's the story? This is if you don't take anything else into account, take this one into account. What are the specifics of what you want to share? So X, Y, Z, it could be, "We'd love to feature you because you've achieved X metric or because you've seen why outcome or because you fit Z profile. Or we'd love to highlight this particular part of our relationship together." Lay that out from the outset. Dispel all fear, dispel all ambiguity around what it is you're planning to put in that story that will help them feel more comfortable taking part that will help their legal team and their PR and the rest of their team feel better about taking part.

Then why bother? Or what's involved. So what is the process? We're now bringing back this process piece. So what does it take to get involved? Again, keep that to a single sentence.

And then why bother? What's in it for them? What benefits do they stand to gain?

And finally, what's next? If they agree, what's the next small, manageable, safe step that they need to take? So as you think about making your ask, don't overcomplicate it. Don't make it too long. Keep it personal, keep it safe. Use the six-sentence framework, and I promise your win rates are gonna improve over whatever it is you're doing now. Have a great week to come.