10 things to Give in addition to Thanks when asking for business favors

As Americans roll into this wonderful long 4 day Thanksgiving weekend, I’d like to be thankful of all great things in my life. More importantly, I’d like to remind people to not forget to Thank and also Give back.

Often people reach out with asks: founders reach out for an intro to an investor or customer, advice on pitch deck, recent grads reach out for jobsadvice /intro for career changes, etc. If you looking for intros or favors, here are a few things you can GIVE in addition to the THANKS :)

Generally psychologists say people are motivated by these four things generally (good guide to have as a manager!):

Fame, Money, Experiences, Compliments

And in some cases heck they only want pizza and compliments!

In Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital, I would add two additional ways you can thoughtfully give— Relationships and Knowledge

Here are examples of a few ways you can give back when you are asking for favors to receive a more positive and immediate response:

1. Knowledge: Offer to educate someone on your market/space of expertise. Example: How did you grow your company from $1m ARR to $10m ARR, grow your company from 100–300 without losing culture, etc.
2. Knowledge: Offer to help with due diligence in your area of expertise
3. Relationships: Offer to connect with people you might know if you know what the other party might be looking for — Talent, Companies, etc.
4. Compliments: Doesn’t hurt if you study the person and genuinely compliment on things you admire about them
5. Experiences: If you have a product to offer then give them free or at a discount in return of the favor
6. Experiences: Relevant exclusive events, private dinners, etc for areas of interest
7. Fame: If you have a web presence and you write blogs or something then offer to write about them
8. Fame: Recommend them on a panel or keynote
9. Money: Help them get into an exclusive money-making deal
10. Money: If you happen to ask in-person. Pay for their coffee, drink, meal. If they give you their time that’s the least you can do to be thankful.

Lastly, if you can’t think of anything (highly unlikely) then just put out a generic offer to help — “If I can ever do anything for you then do not hesitate to ask.” Putting this out there demonstrates your intent to be helpful and gets recognized.

As Anne Frank famously said, “No one has ever become poor by giving.” Next time you email people to help you with anything do not forget to be giving and offer your help in return.

Would be interested to hear your comments — how have you approached business favors in the past?

Thank you Jonathan for helping with the post.