Cold emails are unsolicited emails sent to potential customers or clients with the goal of generating a new business lead. They can be an effective marketing tactic for businesses looking to expand their reach and connect with prospects, but they need to be carefully crafted to get results.
What makes an effective cold email?
An effective cold email should quickly communicate value, establish credibility, and motivate the prospect to take action. Here are some key elements to include:
- Personalized subject line and greeting – Address the prospect directly by name to show you customized the email for them.
- Relevant value proposition – Explain upfront how your offering solves a problem or brings value to the prospect.
- Credibility indicators – Mention current customers, testimonials, awards, media coverage, etc. that build trust.
- Clear call-to-action – Give the prospect a next step, like scheduling a call or viewing a demo.
The email should be concise, professional, and free of spelling/grammar errors. Focus on serving the prospect rather than making a sales pitch.
Cold email templates and examples
Here are some cold email template examples that demonstrate effective ways to incorporate the elements above:
1. Introduction email to a potential customer
Subject: Quick intro – [Your name] from [Your company]
Hi [Prospect first name],
My name is [Your first name] from [Your company]. We help businesses like yours generate more leads through social media marketing.
I noticed you don’t have much of a social media presence for [Their company name] yet. We’ve helped similar businesses improve their lead generation by 60% within 3 months by managing their social media for them.
Would you be open to a quick 20 minute call to discuss if social media marketing could be a good fit for [Their company name]? I have some ideas I’d love to run by you.
Please let me know if you’re interested and what times work best over the next few days. I look forward to hearing from you!
Best,
[Your name]
[Your company]
[Your phone number]
2. Follow-up email if no response
Subject: Following up on [Service] for [Their company]
Hi [First name],
I’m following up on my last email about [Your service/offering]. I realize you’re likely very busy, but I wanted to reiterate how [Your service] could significantly help your business.
In case the previous email got buried – we’ve helped companies similar to yours [insert an impressive stat about results for past clients].
I’d love 15 minutes of your time to discuss how we can drive more [leads, sales, etc.] for [Their company name]. Let me know if you have any availability on [next Mon/Tues/Wed/etc.].
Looking forward to connecting!
[Your name]
[Your company]
3. Cold email for connecting on LinkedIn
Subject: Linking up on LinkedIn
Hi [First name],
I saw we’re both connected to [Mutual connection name] on LinkedIn and wanted to connect directly.
I’m a [Your role] at [Your company], working primarily with [Your niche or industry]. From looking at your profile, it seems like you’re doing some great work at [Their company]!
I’d love to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn. Feel free to check out my profile here: [Link to profile].
Let me know if you’d be open to connecting on LinkedIn. I’m always looking to collaborate with other ambitious professionals like yourself.
Have a great rest of your week!
[Your name]
Cold email tips
Here are some additional tips for writing effective cold emails:
– Keep it short – The email should be just a few concise paragraphs.
– Offer value – Focus on how you can help the prospect or solve their problems.
– Use a professional tone – Be polite and avoid pushy sales language.
– Personalize each email – Use the prospect’s name, company, and any relevant details.
– Follow up once or twice – If no response, follow up politely once or twice spaced out over 2-3 weeks.
– Include a subject line – This will help avoid the spam folder and entice open rates.
– Proofread carefully – Check for any errors before sending.
– Test different approaches – Try different value propositions, formats, etc. and tweak based on results.
– Automate when possible – Use email automation tools to save time on personalization and follow-ups.
– Track open and reply rates – Use tools to see your email open rates and optimize efforts accordingly.
What to avoid in cold emails
There are also some common mistakes to avoid when sending cold emails:
– Don’t use a spammy subject line like “Act Now!” or “85% Off”.
– Don’t make it all about you and your company. Keep the focus on their needs.
– Don’t send from a personal email or use an unprofessional tone.
– Don’t make it too long. Prospects have short attention spans for cold outreach.
– Don’t exaggerate or use cheesy sales pitches that come off as disingenuous.
– Don’t copy and paste the exact same generic text to every prospect.
– Don’t continue emailing repeatedly if they don’t respond. Move on after 1-2 follow up attempts.
– Don’t send marketing emails without a way for them to unsubscribe. This will just annoy prospects.
Leveraging email automation tools
While personalized, well-crafted emails are best, automating parts of the cold email process can greatly improve efficiency and results. Here are some key ways to leverage email automation tools:
– Build customized templates that include dynamic fields to quickly personalize each email.
– Import batches of prospect contact info instead of manually entering.
– Set up automated follow-up emails to go out if no response after a certain number of days.
– Integrate with your CRM to automatically track email opens, clicks, and contact activity.
– Use AI to generate initial drafts of emails before personalizing and sending.
– A/B test different email content like subject lines, offers, designs, etc.
– Segment your prospect list based on attributes like industry, job role, etc. to tailor messages.
– Schedule emails to automatically go out at optimal times when prospects are more likely to open.
Cold email compliance tips
When sending cold emails, it’s important to comply with anti-spam laws like the CAN-SPAM Act. Here are some key compliance tips:
– Include your business’s physical mailing address in the email.
– Have a visible unsubscribe option so recipients can opt out of future emails.
– Clearly identify the message as an advertisement or solicitation.
– Use accurate subject lines that reflect the email content.
– Monitor and honor any unsubscribe requests promptly.
– Maintain an internal do-not-contact list for opt-outs.
– Have proper permissions before emailing purchased contact lists.
– Avoid using misleading headers, deceptive routing info, or false information.
– Don’t use deceptive or ambiguous subject lines like “Take a look at this!”
– Ensure you have the recipient’s consent before sending further emails if they haven’t responded.
Evaluating the effectiveness of cold emails
It’s important to track metrics and optimize your cold email campaigns over time. Here are some key data points to evaluate:
– Open rate – Benchmark around 10-30%. If lower, revisit your subject lines or sender name.
– Click-through rate – Percentage of recipients who clicked on a link. Shoot for 5-10%.
– Reply rate – Percentage who directly engaged or responded. 1-3% is typical for cold outreach.
– Lead conversion rate – Percentage of replies that turned into qualified leads. Strive for at least 25%.
– Unsubscribe rate – You want this very low, under 5%. Higher means your messaging needs improvement.
– Email deliverability – The percentage successfully reaching inboxes vs getting blocked or sent to spam. Should be 90%+.
– Sales conversations – Number of replies that evolved into back-and-forth discussions with prospects.
– Cost per lead/acquisition – Your time investment + other costs divided by new leads generated.
– ROI – Compare revenue gained to costs to determine return on investment.
Continually A/B test your emails and optimize them based on the performance data. This will allow you to refine your outreach approach over time.
Cold email alternatives
While cold email can be effective, it’s not the only way to generate new business leads. Here are some alternative lead generation tactics to consider:
– LinkedIn connection requests – Reach out and connect directly with key prospects through personalized LinkedIn invites.
– Social media outreach – Engage prospects through Twitter, Facebook groups, etc. by providing value.
– Guest posting – Offer to write articles for websites your prospects frequent. Include a short bio.
– Trade show networking – Meet prospects in person at relevant industry conventions and expos.
– Webinars – Host free webinars for your target customers to establish authority.
– Content offers – Provide free, useful content in exchange for prospect contact info.
– Referral requests – Turn happy existing customers into referrals to their colleagues.
– Retargeting ads – Serve ads to past website visitors to remind them about your offerings.
– Direct mail – Send personalized letters, samples, or gifts to prospects to stand out.
Evaluate different tactics to find the right mix for your business based on your resources, market, and goals. A multifaceted approach is often most effective.
Cold email statistics and trends
Here are some noteworthy statistics and trends when it comes to cold email outreach:
- About 80% of professionals prefer to connect via email vs social media or phone.
- Cold email open rates average around 21%, with the best subject lines generating 35%+ open rates.
- About 4% of cold emails receive a reply on average.
- Personalized cold emails deliver about 6x higher click rates compared to generic campaigns.
- Prospects need to see your brand mentioned 4-7 times before responding to outreach.
- The best day to send cold emails is Tuesdays, while Mondays are worst.
- Dividing emails into short paragraphs and using bullet points can improve readability by up to 60%.
- Cold emails with a sense of urgency perform about 20% better than generic requests.
These statistics highlight the importance of testing and optimizing your campaigns. Small tweaks like your send day and subject line wording can have a big impact. Standing out takes consistent, value-focused messaging tailored to each prospect.
Cold email success stories
Some successful businesses have been built largely through effective cold email outreach. Here are a few inspiring examples:
Steli Efti and Close.io – 10,000 cold emails to land 100 customers
When starting his sales engagement platform Close.io, Steli Efti leveraged cold emails to get his first 100 customers. He personally sent about 10,000 cold emails, offering a limited free trial to interested prospects. The tireless outreach helped fuel word-of-mouth and led to 500% annual revenue growth for Close.io early on.
Groove – $30k in the first month
Alex Turnbull, CEO of the Groove help desk software, focused on cold email outreach before even building his minimum viable product (MVP). In his first month, he generated $30,000 in pre-orders from 389 cold email conversations. Once his platform launched, this initial momentum helped propel Groove’s rapid growth.
Clearbit – 24x growth with email sequences
Clearbit offers sales intelligence data to identify and research target prospects. They utilized automated email sequences tailored to different industry niches to scale their cold outreach. This strategy helped them grow revenue 24x year-over-year early on.
Drift – 85% of customers from cold email
Conversational marketing platform Drift acquired their first 10,000 users entirely through cold email. Founder David Cancel estimates that 85% of their customers today came through cold outreach. Their success shows the value of mastering this foundational growth channel.
These examples demonstrate that consistent, high-quality cold email outreach can help startups gain traction and rapidly scale their customer base. While it requires dedication and creativity, the returns can be tremendous.
Conclusion
Cold emailing likely prospects may seem annoying to some, but it remains one of the most effective lead generation tactics when done correctly. Personalizing your outreach, highlighting value, and providing solutions for prospects’ pain points can drastically improve your cold email results.
Leverage the templates, formatting tips, automation tools, and success strategies outlined above to craft captivating cold emails. Test and refine your approach based on key metrics like open rates, replies, and sales conversions. Combine cold outreach with other tactics like social media and content offers for the best results. With focus, persistence, and optimization over time, cold email can become an engine of growth for your business.