Have you ever heard of a warm referral? It's a sales step that is 180 degrees different than a cold call. Instead of the seller attempting to guess who might want to hear from her, there is an invitation. The prospective buyer has already expressed interest through a trusted third party.
At Artisan Coffee Imports we seek to grow to become the preferred supplier of East African coffee to roasters with high ethical standards. If you are a current customer, first of all, thank you! We'll do our best to promote your business whenever we can. You're already helping to achieve our mission to:
Trade coffee in sustainable ways that improve the lives of farmers. We offer artisan roasters taste with consistency and transparent sourcing that supports the roaster's brand. Through consulting we offer supply chain management techniques to producer organizations at origin. Together we improve quality and grow the share of export price for the farmer.
Would you be willing to support Artisan's mission even more? If you know other roasters who you would describe as
"open to new sources of ethically grown, traceable and sustainably traded East African coffee"
... we should talk! But better yet, why not connect Artisan's president, Ruth Ann, to your roaster friend with a friendly email? (Send to info@biz.artisancoffeeimports.com to reach Ruth Ann.) This saves your friend the time and effort of writing a 'cold call' email to Artisan, and instead makes all three of us feel like we've just shared a cup of coffee with people we trust. Your email to Roaster Y with Ruth Ann copied is a warm referral.
We understand your time is valuable, too. So for each email you write, we'll take $20 off your next green coffee order. That's correct! If you can introduce us to five qualified roasters, you can save $100 on your next invoice.
Who is a qualified roaster? Start with the phrase above ("open to new sources..."), then speak to that roaster-friend and let them know you'd like to put them in touch with Artisan. If they agree to take a call from Ruth Ann, this is a qualified roaster.
A warm referral email might look like this:
As discussed earlier, I’d like to introduce you to Ruth Ann at Artisan Coffee Imports. She does a great job connecting us with our Ejo Heza coffee from Rwanda. I think she might be able to help you with your sourcing, too.
Please meet Roaster Y. They said during our meeting the other day they’d be happy to take your call and explain why they’re considering some new sources for green coffee. Roaster Y’s number is: 734-123-4567.
Together, we can create the world where coffee Artisans, even the producers, can live from their craft.
