How I Respond to a Deceptive Email or LinkedIn Invitations

I am not certain this qualifies as a “Cool Workflow,” but I thought I would share how I respond to unsolicited invitations from companies using the pretense of a guest appearance to sell a product or service. So far, this has worked without exception: I never receive a reply. :slightly_smiling_face:

I could simply discard such emails, but I respond to make the point that such invitations are deceptive, without directly naming them as such. This is probably a vain hope, I know, but perhaps their conscience will be troubled.

My reply:

Before I respond regarding my potential participation, I have a respectful request for clarification. As I’ve seen podcast invitations sometimes used as a vehicle for product or service promotion, I would greatly appreciate it if you could confirm in writing that your intent for this interview is solely to discuss the topic of “The Hidden Cost of a ‘Good Enough’ School Culture in the Independent Education Space,” and that neither you nor “name of company” Partners will use this conversation, or any follow-up communication, to inform me about, or attempt to convince me to learn more about or purchase, any service or product offered by your company or its partners.

Invitation:

Hey Barrett, my colleague Jordan found you on LinkedIn while looking for key voices in the K-12 Independent Education Sector and recommended I reach out.

We’re launching one of our first podcast episodes on, ‘The Next Chapter in Schools’ featuring leaders in Education, and we thought you’d be a great fit.

On the show, we’d love to dive into The Hidden Cost of a “Good Enough” School Culture in the Independent Education Space.

Aside from being a fun conversation, it could be a nice chance for some positive visibility.

Would you mind if I share a bit more info? … Zero pressure of course.

Have a nice day!
Best regards,

You clearly have too much time on your hands :slightly_smiling_face:

All the energy I can muster in response to messages like that is hit the Delete key…

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I have it as a template. Takes 30 sec. :slightly_smiling_face:

Sometimes I respond with a “I need your invoicing address so I know where to send the invoice for my participation. Starting fee is $1000 and after that $500/15 min.”

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Now there’s an idea; I wish I’d thought of that!