The ideal cold email will garner loads of responses from enthusiastic recipients who are excited about your product or service and can’t wait to get started. Unfortunately, many cold emails fall flat and don’t achieve these desired outcomes. What is the difference between successful cold emails and those that fizzle, or worse – don’t even inbox? If you’re struggling with your cold emails, let’s break down some of the keys to improving recipient reaction:
#1 – Keep it light
Aim for your tone to be easy and conversational. Flowery writing, formally addressing the recipient with “Dear Sir or Madam,” or sounding too salesy right off the bat are instant turnoffs.
#2 – Keep it brief
Make things easy for your recipient. Assume they are very busy, with an inbox full of emails from your competitors: will they want to read a novel about your business or will they pass you over for an email that’s tight and concise?
#3 – Pace yourself
Cold email campaigns are all about playing the long sales game, not ramming every detail about your business down the recipient’s throat at once. If you have lots to say, like describing the top six benefits of your product/service, then break it down into a series rather writing one lengthy email.
#4 – Make every word count
Since you’re going for short but sweet with your cold emails, make sure that you’re incredibly effective in a short space. Avoid fluff, formally introducing yourself in the opening line, and unnecessarily repeating your company name. This type of writing just takes up space and wastes your precious word count.
#5 – Be specific
From the subject line to the value-add section, get specific about what you are offering. Saying “Our service provides many great benefits,” is vague and meaningless. Drill down to the details, like, “Our service can improve your sales by 60% within 30 days.” The latter tells the recipient exactly what your business can do for them.
#6 – Make it personal
Recipients are going to ask, “why me?” when they see your email. Address that question right off the bat by telling them what specifically about their business you’re drawn to. “I’m a fan of your work” could be sent to anyone. Instead, “I was impressed by your recent holiday sales campaign on your green cleaning products” focuses your email on the recipient, not on you.
#7 – Prove yourself
Influence your recipients to reply by demonstrating the effectiveness of your product, enticing them to want the same results for themselves. Give specifics on the number of users you have or share metrics of success you’ve had with other similar businesses to compel them to get in on the action.
#8 – Make it easy
You’ve crafted a brilliant email that has your recipient excited – so what do they do next? Make it dead easy for them to respond – end with a yes or no question or simple request rather than making it complicated for them to take the next steps.
#9 – Get inboxed
Even if it’s elegantly worded, your message doesn’t stand a chance if it’s flagged as spam. Keep links to a minimum, send emails from a separate domain, and don’t use open tracking on a first touch. Play by the rules to avoid raising any red flags and wasting your efforts.
#10 – Follow up
Even if you don’t get a reply from a recipient, it doesn’t mean they are a dead lead. Craft a brief and friendly follow up email to persuade a response, even if you didn’t get one the first time around.
The right tone and tight writing will set your cold emails up for easy success. Stick to these simple steps to get inboxed, get responses, and get recipients excited about what your business has to offer them.
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