Ed Forteau

EdForteau.com

No More Cringe is not just a book; it's a movement. Are you tired of aggressive, pushy sales tactics that feel inauthentic and make interactions awkward and uncomfortable? It's time to join the Genuine Connections Revolution.

As a business consultant, I'm dedicated to helping professionals build genuine, impactful relationships on LinkedIn. My book, No More Cringe, introduces The Strategic Ally Method, a revolutionary system that transforms cringe-worthy interactions into empowering, authentic connections.

▶ 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤?

👔	Professional Service Providers: Consultants, coaches, advisors, and freelancers seeking deeper client connections.
💡	Entrepreneurs and Small Business Owners: Those yearning for a more human, effective client acquisition approach.
📊	Sales and Marketing Professionals: Tired of high rejection rates and low ROI.
🕒	Busy Professionals: Juggling demanding careers and personal lives, needing strategies that resonate with their values.
🤝	Socially Conscious Individuals: Valuing sincerity and professionalism, craving authentic engagement.

▶ 𝐂𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝:

🔄	The relentless struggle with inconsistent client acquisition.
😣	Gut-wrenching frustration and anxiety from traditional marketing strategies.
⚡	Overwhelming pressure from ineffective outreach techniques.

▶ 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐘𝐨𝐮:

⚖️	Aligns with Your Values: Integrity, professionalism, and work-life balance.
💆	Addresses Emotional Pain Points: Relieves stress, builds confidence, and banishes hopelessness.
🛤️	Offers a Clear Path to Success: Practical, step-by-step guidance to transform LinkedIn outreach.

Say goodbye to cringe and hello to real impact. Your journey to transforming LinkedIn outreach starts here. Purchase No More Cringe on Amazon for only $2.99 and start building genuine connections that lead to lasting success.

Join the Genuine Connections Revolution today!

Author of "No More Cringe: How to Transform LinkedIn Outreach from Awkward to Real Impact"

EdForteau.com, a division of Win/Win Professional Marketing and Sales Association, is a Digital Marketing Agency that helps local small businesses compete, and win, against their larger regional and national competitors who have big budgets and in-house marketing departments.

We provide unique, yet simple, solutions for local businesses in the complex and rapidly changing world of digital marketing.

Digital Marketing is complex and confusing. We make it simple and profitable.

Email Marketing Coaching/Consulting & Digital Marketing Coaching/Consulting

Email Open Rate Optimization

▶ 𝐖𝐇𝐎 𝐈𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐅𝐎𝐑:
• Any business that uses email to communicate with prospects, clients, or customers that have experienced their emails going to spam, or not getting delivered
• Any business that wants their email accounts set up properly to ensure high deliverability
Why? Nothing has a greater/more immediate impact on your bottom line than fixing email deliverability issues

▶ 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐖𝐄 𝐃𝐎:
• Fix any types of email deliverability problems so more of your emails are delivered, seen, opened, and clicked
• Setup your email infrastructure so your emails land in your recipient's primary inbox
• Setup email reporting and monitoring to catch problems early, to avoid lost revenue
• Provide advice on the right email marketing platform to use to meet your objectives

▶ 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐌𝐒 𝐖𝐄 𝐅𝐈𝐗:
We provide the peace of mind that you are receiving the maximum ROI from emails, because all forms of your emails are delivered. This includes:
• Cold Emails
• Subscription Emails
• Support Ticket Emails
• Proposal Emails
• Contracts via Email
• Invoice/billing Emails
• Transactional Emails
• Marketing Emails
• Contact Us Forms

▶ 𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐔𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒:
• Email Deliverability Audit - Identifies the source of 90% of email deliverability issues
• DMARC Reporting/Monitoring - Monitors the health of your email accounts and pinpoints the issues that happen infrequently
• Domain Reputation Recovery - Our proprietary method of improving the reputation of a damaged domain in under 30 days
• Email Infrastructure Setup - Ensures maximum email deliverability and protects your domain reputation
• Email Deliverability Repair - Our team has a combined 28+ years in fixing email deliverability issues

▶ 𝐄𝐗𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐎𝐔𝐓𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐒:
• 95%+ email deliverability rate
• An immediate increase in email open and click-through rates
• On average, a 200-400% increase in email-related revenue

▶ 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐒 𝐒𝐀𝐘:
• See our LinkedIn Service Reviews

EMAIL DELIVERABILITY EXPERT - Get More Of Your Emails Delivered, Seen, Opened, Read, and Clicked

The most common email deliverability questions we answer in regards to email infrastructure.

Email Infrastructure - Consists of the moving parts that ensure your marketing and transactional emails are delivered to your recipient. They consist of your Sender IP(s), Domain Reputation, Proper Email Authentication, Feedback Loops, Reporting and Management Tools, etc.

Email Authentication - DKIM, SPF, and DMARC - Mailbox providers are tightening their security protocols, making email authentication more important. Proper authentication of DKIM and SPF is a must. Setting your DMARC policy to "Quarantine" or "Reject" shows the mailbox providers you are serious about protecting your email from phishing and spoofing attacks.

Sender IP - Two types: Shared IPs & Dedicated IPs. Sender IPs are the location from which your emails are sent, and play a big role in where mailbox providers place your emails. If your Sender IP Reputation is high, you will have good email deliverability. If it is poor, your emails are most likely to end up in spam or blocked. The quality of the Sender IPs you are assigned is the luck of the draw. ESPs are unlikely to change them, once they are assigned. If you are sending a high volume of emails, and following best email practices, we advise purchasing a Dedicated IP.

Domain Reputation - Similar to the IP address, the sending domain carries a reputation that affects deliverability. To protect your mail domain, we advise setting up subdomains for different email functions. For example, support.store.com for customer service requests and transactional emails, info.store.com for marketing emails. This way if your subdomain for marketing emails gets compromised (low engagement, spam complaints, etc.) it will not affect your transactional emails.

Periodically run your Sender IPs and Sender Domain through a blacklist checker, such as MX Toolbox, to make sure that they are not flagged for spam or other complaints that would lead to blacklisting.

Email Deliverability Consultant | Email Authentication | Sender IP | Domain Reputation

The most common email deliverability questions we answer in regard to email engagement and list segmentation.

Sender History - Your email history plays a role in where your emails will be placed. How your subscribers have engaged with your emails. If your Domain and Sender IPs have been on any Blacklists. If you have a history of Spam Complaints. The age of your Domain.

Engagement - Mailbox providers' algorithms track the user engagement of your emails. If subscribers don't open your emails, or repeatedly delete your emails without opening them, that may cause the mailbox provider to filter your emails into a subfolder. Excessive complaints and unsubscribes could cause the mailbox provider from accepting any emails from your company. High email engagement (such as users opening, clicking, and replying) positively impact email deliverability.

Email Volume - The lower your email volume, the less recourses are required by the mailbox providers to process your emails. The mailbox providers are more likely to treat your emails favorably, resulting in high email deliverability.

Email Regularly - Have a regular schedule for sending emails to your list. This is especially important if you mainly send email blasts. Ideally, send emails on a regular day and time. The best days and times to send it are Tues 9:00-11:00 AM, and then Thurs. 9:00-11:00 AM.

List Segmentation - Use email automation to segment your list and send emails based on subscriber behavior. Doing this will increase subscriber engagement. As well, send emails out in much smaller batches, which puts less strain on the mailbox provider's resources, resulting in higher email deliverability.

▶︎ 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐒 𝐒𝐀𝐘:
See our LinkedIn Service Reviews

We post new articles on email deliverability regularly on our LinkedIn Business Page - https://www.linkedin.com/company/email-open-rate-optimization/

Email Engagement | List Segmentation

The most common email deliverability questions we answer in regard to why emails go into spam because of email copy/content.

List Quality - Add subscribers to your list that want to hear from you. Use double opt-in vs. single opt-in. Move unengaged subscribers to a re-engagement list after 60 days, and remove them after 120 days.

Content - Spammy/salesy copy is more likely to get your emails placed in the promotional folder than the spam folder. But today, email code is more closely scrutinized. Mailbox providers want to see clean code in your emails. Avoid potentially malicious code, such as <embed> tags or JavaScript. Ensure the code from any third-party apps you are using has clean code. Check the domain reputation of any links in your body copy. Do not use link shorteners.

Bounces and Spam Traps - Verify all emails before you start emailing them to ensure there aren't any spam traps. Remove emails that frequently bounce.

Spam Complaints - Keep your spam complaints low (under 0.1%). If you make it difficult for subscribers to unsubscribe, they will mark your email as spam. Place your unsubscribe link(s) in places that are easy to see. Remove inactive subscribers from your main list after 60 days of inactivity. Subscribe to Google Postmaster Tools. 

Using All CAP (subject line or body copy) - Using all CAPs or excessive punctuation in the subject line or body of your emails raises a red flag and can get your emails placed in the promotional folder (at best) or the spam folder (at worst), and possibly blocked.

Subject Lines - 47% of email recipients open their emails solely based on the subject line alone, while 69% of recipients report spam emails based on the subject line. (Source: Grammarly)

▶︎ 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐒 𝐒𝐀𝐘:
See our LinkedIn Service Reviews

We post new articles on email deliverability regularly on our LinkedIn Business Page - https://www.linkedin.com/company/email-open-rate-optimization/

Email Copy | Subject Lines | List Quality | Spam Complaints

Business Rainmakers

Founder

Exit Success Lab

Exit Success Lab is a transformative community dedicated to guiding CEOs and entrepreneurs in enhancing the value of their businesses and ensuring more lucrative options upon exit.

It achieves this by bringing together vetted professional B2B service providers with successful entrepreneurs to create a think tank for solving challenging business problems. There are monthly trainings, office hours, and networking meetings.

As a faculty member who specializes in Database Equity Marketing, my role is to equip Exit Success Lab members with tailored strategies to optimize their databases (including client lists, prospect lists, and email databases). By leveraging database equity, members can amplify their business's appeal, streamline client acquisition processes, and foster sustained growth.

With a focus on cultivating a culture of continuous improvement and mastery of business strategy, Exit Success Lab empowers entrepreneurs to strengthen their business value and pave the way for a prosperous future.

Faculty Member - Database Equity Architect

Business Rainmaker

▶ 𝐖𝐇𝐎 𝐈𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐅𝐎𝐑:
• Businesses where email is a critical part of their sales process
• Entrepreneurs who want to achieve a higher ROI with their email campaigns
• B2B Marketers looking for more cost-efficient options to paid ads for client acquisition
➣ We are the best fit for result-oriented entrepreneurs who want to maximize the performance of email in all of their marketing activities.

▶ 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐖𝐄 𝐃𝐎:
• Fix underperforming email marketing campaigns
• Implement strategies to improve the quality of your list (prospect list or subscriber list)
• Advise on the most effective email marketing strategies and tactics, and customize them for your situation
➣ Create a framework for consistent and predictable results utilizing the latest behavioral email marketing automation methods

▶ 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐁𝐋𝐄𝐌𝐒 𝐖𝐄 𝐅𝐈𝐗:
• email campaigns
• email open rates
• email click-through rates
• email engagement
• email sales conversion
• email list management
• email infrastructure
• poor email deliverability
• scaling email marketing campaigns

▶ 𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐈𝐓 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐊𝐒:
1. Evaluate your current email marketing campaigns
2. Provide a detailed execution plan for improvement
3. Work with you, and/or your team, to implement the plan
➣ We see email marketing strategy and consulting as a collaborative effort between us. We act as your guide to ensure all of your email communication is delivered and seen by the right people, at the right time, so you achieve your marketing and sales goals.

▶ 𝐄𝐗𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐎𝐔𝐓𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐒:
• Increased email open and click-through rates (typically 2X higher than the industry average)
• 200 - 400% average revenue increase from email marketing campaigns

▶ 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐒 𝐒𝐀𝐘:
"Truly an amazing experience working with EORO. They're professional and incredibly knowledgeable in all things email. Will certainly continue working together."
~ Joel Waldenbäck, Co-Founder på Zutobi

Email Marketing Strategy | Email Marketing Specialist | Email Automation

Wandering Media Group

Wandering Media Group provides email marketing services to the travel market. Services include:
Email Deliverability
Email Automation
Email List Management

B2B Email Marketing | Email Copywriting | Email List Management

Win/Win Professional Marketing & Sales Association

For over 28 years, Win/Win Professional Marketing & Sales Association has advised small to medium-sized businesses to implement sales and marketing systems that increase revenue.

Growth Marketing Specialist | Digital Marketing Specialist | Public Speaker & Trainer

OneGuide

Providing 1:1 Email marketing strategy, including email deliverability and email automation coaching through OneGuide, an expertise platform that connects high-growth B2B software companies with experienced advisors.

Link: https://askoneguide.com/authors/ed-forteau/

Advisor

Leader of the Genuine Connections Revolution | Helping Service Providers, Entrepreneurs, and Sales Professionals Build Authentic Relationships | Author of "No More Cringe” | Changing the Way We do Business on LinkedIn

I’m Ed Forteau, Business Growth Strategist, Community Builder, and Creator of The Strategic Ally Method.

I help relationship-driven entrepreneurs attract high-value clients…without chasing, cold pitching, or playing the content hamster wheel game.

If you’re great at what you do, but feel like sales turns you into someone you’re not, you're not broken.

You’ve just been sold the wrong playbook.

Most of my clients come to me feeling stuck.

They’re burned out from outreach that goes nowhere.

They hate the pressure to perform on social media.

And they’re tired of trying to be “everywhere” just to get noticed.

What I teach flips the script:

✅ Start warm, low-pressure conversations that naturally lead to business

✅ Tap into the trust you’ve already earned to unlock hidden opportunities

✅ Show up as a Strategic Ally, not another sales person or content clone

✅ Build “quiet authority” without shouting for attention

✅ Use simple, human systems that work even when you’re not online

Here’s a story I hear all the time:

A client spent months tweaking cold email campaigns.

They saw early wins…until everything stopped working.

Low replies. Spam folder black holes. Endless fixing.

They tried my method. DMed just ten warm messages to mutual connections of people they knew.
Two booked calls. One became a client.

Then came momentum.

They told me, “This just feels…different. Lighter.”

I said, “It’s less work than trying to save a sinking ship.”

That’s the shift:

From pushing and persuading to connecting and converting.

From guessing what strangers want to showing up where you’re already trusted.

You don’t need to become someone else to grow your business.

You just need a better way.

That’s why I created The Genuine Connection Alliance. It’s a private community for relationship-first entrepreneurs.

Inside, you’ll learn my frameworks, build a powerful support system, and attract clients through trust, not tactics.

It’s where my best clients come from, because they experience the method before they ever hire me.

If you believe business can be built through conversations, connection, and real value, let’s talk.

Or better yet, let’s start a conversation that leads to something real.

💬 DM me the word “Alliance” and I’ll send you the Genuine Connection Alliance overview doc. It might be the missing piece you’ve been looking for.

Huskey Financial 

A premier consulting and wealth management firm for business owners and entrepreneurs where we specialize in crafting tailored strategies for income protection, tax optimization, investment management, retirement planning, retention planning, and more. Our mission is to help clients secure their financial legacies with clarity and purpose through informed financial decisions.

Huskey Financial Group LLC is not an affiliate or subsidiary of PAS or Guardian.

Owner / CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER

Bluewater Dental Advisors

We employ a 5-step planning process to educate, guide, and advise our dental practice owner clients. Major pain points for dentists include employee turnover, handling insurance patient claims, growing the practice with proper business acumen, and creating an exit strategy that will maximize your after-tax proceeds. 

At Bluewater Dental Advisors, our team will add value each step of the way. Let us assist you with all of your business and personal planning needs.

Co-Owner / Financial Advisor

Consolidated Planning, Inc.

I am responsible for leading education and the planning process via a series of conversations to ensure success in the best of times because we planned for the worst. 

I help doctors and business owners by creating a financial plan, provide advice, and develop an exit strategy for themselves and any partners. Taking the guesswork out of possible issues that arise in any business, I focus on three things: Protecting, Growing and Exiting. 

Michael Steven Huskey is a Registered Representative and Financial Advisor of Park Avenue Securities LLC (PAS). OSJ: 6115 Park South Dr. Suite 200 Charlotte NC 28210; 704.552.8507. Securities products and advisory services offered through PAS, member FINRA, SIPC. Financial Representative of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America® (Guardian), New York, NY. PAS is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Guardian. Consolidated Planning is not an affiliate or subsidiary of PAS or Guardian. Guardian, its subsidiaries, agents, and employees do not provide tax, legal, or accounting advice. Consult your tax, legal, or accounting professional regarding your individual situation. Links to external sites are provided for your convenience in locating related information and services. Guardian, its subsidiaries, agents, and employees expressly disclaim any responsibility for and do not maintain, control, recommend, or endorse third-party sites, organizations, products, or services, and make no representation as to the completeness, suitability, or quality thereof.

Financial Advisor / Certified Exit Planner

Portfolio Pulse: The Money Podcast For Medical Professionals & Entrepreneurs

Portfolio Pulse is the money podcast where we dive deep into the entrepreneurial journey, uncovering the stories of success and the lessons learned along the way. In each episode, we invite remarkable business owners and visionaries to the mic, allowing them to share their triumphs, challenges, and invaluable experiences. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur or a seasoned business owner, our goal is to provide you with the inspiration, knowledge, and strategies to take your business to new heights.

Podcast Host

Carolina Capital Management

I work with individuals and small business owners to provide comprehensive financial products and services. My main expertise is fee-based planning for clients in all stages of life. At this firm, we are committed to helping our clients improve their long-term financial success. Our customized programs are designed to help grow, protect, and conserve our clients’ wealth by delivering a level of personalized service and valuable expertise.

Financial Advisor

Wells Fargo Private Bank 

Role is the cornerstone of the affluent customer relationship connecting customers with other Wells Fargo partners to uncover and address the everyday and complex financial needs of our affluent and affluent away customers. Coached team members on how to recognize the needs of our affluent market and introduce my role to add value. Met with clients to have conversations and manage their one-stop shop relationship. Reviewed clients' financial goals, retirement plans and assets, and set them up for current and future financial success.

Regional Bank Private Banker (Premier Banker)

Wells Fargo

Responsible for driving revenue and bringing in new business from consumers and small business clients. Metrics include loan volume, new products and services and creating a one of a kind service experience. Being knowledgeable in compliance and bank policies/procedures, mitigating loss exposure and risk to the bank, and coaching/developing team members in a positive, constructive environment are my main accountabilities.

Branch Manager

As a seasoned financial advisor and certified exit planner (CExP), I am proud to own and operate in two esteemed businesses that cater to distinct yet interconnected clienteles. At Huskey Financial, a premier consulting and wealth management firm, we specialize in serving business owners/entrepreneurs. Similarly, at Bluewater Dental Advisors, we specialize in tailored financial guidance to dental practice owners. Both firms are renowned in crafting tailored strategies for income protection, tax optimization, investment management, retirement planning, retention planning, and more. Through these services, we aim to empower our clients to navigate the complexities of financial planning with confidence and foresight. 

My work is rooted in my mission to educate, advise, and assist fellow business owners and clients in making informed and confident financial decisions with the future in mind. When I am not educating one-on-one, or speaking with large groups, I host Portfolio Pulse, a financial education podcast that covers a diverse range of topics, with a focus on equipping entrepreneurs with the insights they need to help secure their financial legacies with clarity and purpose. Subscribe to my newsletter for even more monthly educational resources and opportunities! 

This material is intended for general use. By providing this content Park Avenue Securities LLC and your financial representative are not undertaking to provide investment advice or make a recommendation for a specific individual or situation, or to otherwise act in a fiduciary capacity.
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The Battle

Ed Forteau

Steven Huskey, CFP®, CExP™

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