Most intro requests fail for a boring reason. They create work. The person you asked has to figure out why you want the intro, write something about you, and decide whether it is worth bothering their contact. Remove that work and the answer is usually yes.
Ask the right person
A warm intro from someone who knows both sides well beats a lukewarm one from someone senior. Before you ask, be honest about how well your contact knows the target. If you are not sure, ask that first: "How well do you know Maya at Northwind?" It gives them an easy way out and saves you a weak intro.
Make it double opt-in
Do not ask your contact to connect you directly. Ask them to check whether the other person is open to it. Their contact gets to say no without awkwardness, and your contact's reputation is protected. People make far more intros when they know they will not be putting anyone on the spot.
Write the forwardable note
This is the part that does the work. Send two things: a short personal ask to your contact, and a separate note they can forward without editing.
The forwardable note should have:
- Who you are, in one line. Something the reader can verify.
- Why this person specifically. A real reason, not flattery.
- What you are asking for. Twenty minutes, a single question, a pointer. Small and specific.
- An easy way to decline. "No worries if the timing is wrong."
What it looks like
To your contact: "Hi Ben, would you be open to asking Maya Chen whether she would take a short call with me? Note below that you can forward as is. Completely fine if it is not a fit."
The forwardable part: "I run operations at a 40-person logistics company and we are moving our billing onto the platform Maya's team built. I have one specific question about how they handled multi-currency invoicing. Fifteen minutes would be plenty, and no worries at all if now is not a good time."
After the intro
- Reply the same day and move your contact to bcc with a line of thanks, so they know it landed and are spared the scheduling thread.
- Propose two or three specific times. Do not make the other person do the calendar work.
- Tell your contact how it went. This is the step almost everyone skips, and it is the reason people make a second intro for you.
Keeping the favour straight
An intro creates two small debts: a thank-you to the person who made it, and a follow-up to the person you met. Both are easy to drop. Pranan tracks commitments from your sent mail, so "I will let you know how it goes" does not quietly disappear. If you want a starting point for the ask, see our intro request template.