Cold emails are a common form of outreach used in many businesses. They can be a powerful tool for making connections, strengthening relationships, and generating leads. However, many people need help understanding the basics of a cold email and how it can be used effectively.
This article discusses cold emailing, its key components, and how to write effective cold emails. We’ll also look at examples of successful cold emails and discuss strategies for crafting cold emailing that will get results. By the end, you’ll better understand cold emails and how to write them to reach your goals.
What Is a Cold Email?
An email sent to a receiver without prior contact is a cold email.
People always send cold emails with a strategically defined goal – sale, opportunity, or dual-sided benefit. Simply said, a cold email is when you send an email to someone you do not know from before for a particular reason.
Often, people consider cold emails as emails sent to accomplish a sale. But cold emailing goes way above that. We experience cold emails in many different manners in our day-to-day lives. Sales reps use cold emails to sell their products or services. Students send cold emails to the HR representatives at companies when applying for an internship, and marketers use cold emails for lead generation.
Key Takeaways
Cold emails are emails sent to people that you don’t know or prospects who haven’t been your clients in the past;
Cold emails are being used in different situations, not only in sales;
Spam is an email sent to a lot of unverified email contacts, while cold is sending an email to a person that you don’t know but you’ve already checked and verified him;
If written correctly, a cold email campaign can be very effective.
How to Define a Cold Email?
A cold email is an email sent to a recipient without prior contact. It is typically used for marketing, recruitment, or sales outreach. Cold emails are highly personalized, with the sender researching the recipient’s company and industry in advance. With cold emailing, a message is typically relevant to the recipient and offers them something of value.
Difference Between Cold Email vs Spam Email
One thing we should pay attention to is – not confusing cold emailing with spam emails. It is crucial to distinguish between cold emails and spam emails, as they serve distinct purposes and have different implications.
Cold emails are personalized messages sent to individuals without a pre-existing relationship. They are targeted and relevant to the recipient’s interests or needs, often used in business settings to initiate conversations or explore potential opportunities.
Spam emails, on the other hand, are unsolicited bulk messages sent indiscriminately to a large number of recipients. They are usually irrelevant, untargeted, and associated with malicious intent, such as promoting scams or spreading malware.
Understanding the difference between cold emails, which aim to establish connections and offer value, and spam emails, which disrupt and exploit recipients, is crucial for maintaining ethical communication and safeguarding online integrity.
Why Are Cold Emails Important?
Cold emails effectively reach potential customers, employers, or recruiters without any prior contact or relationship. Cold emailing requires careful thought and craftsmanship and can make all the difference in landing your ideal job, attracting new customers, or getting a recruiter’s attention.
The importance of cold emails is easy to see – the following benefits outline just how valuable they are.
Direct communication
Cold emails provide a direct line of communication with potential customers, allowing you to initiate contact and present your value proposition without relying on intermediaries or waiting for inbound inquiries.
Lead generation
Cold emails are an effective lead generation strategy, enabling you to proactively reach out to prospects who match your ideal customer profile. You can expand your customer base through cold outreach and generate new business opportunities.
Cost-effectiveness
With cold emails, you can eliminate the need for spending on traditional advertising channels. Try to use a well-crafted cold email template and personalized approach. Cold emailing is cost-effective for reaching your target audience and driving conversions.
How to Write a Killer Cold Email?
Since people feel skeptical regarding spam, we should pay close attention when cold emailing.
The first dealbreakers are defining a catchy email subject line and choosing the right time when to send the email.
Also, as the human attention span is decreasing as the technologies evolve, we should keep the cold emails as short as possible while providing all the crucial information. Lastly, personalizing the cold emails can always bring a few extra points.
What Are The Best Cold Email Strategies?
Cold email as a way of communication is way more complicated than other correspondence for two main reasons. Consider the following strategies when writing cold emails for your marketing campaign or sales outreach.
1. Personalize your emails
Personalizing your cold emails does not mean adding your receiver’s first and last name using an automated email bot and then continuing with the same message for all your email recipients. People can sense the robotic tone in those emails. You need to add a human touch to your emails and tailor them according to your recipients, so people who see the email can identify themselves with the message on a higher level.
Personalization suggests that you understand who the recipient of your cold email campaign is, how they see things, what interests them, and what they desire. You have established a “mind theory” for the receiver. It tells them that you’ve put effort into your outreach.
Moreover, you also clarify why you choose to email that particular person. Usually, people gain extra motivation for some actions if the outreach feels unique enough. It would be best to relate a story that makes sense to them by outlining exactly where they fit in.
2. Introduce yourself
When we receive an email, we usually prefer to know the person behind that outreach and how that person can benefit us.
Remember that you are the stranger when creating a cold email campaign. You’ve done a lot of homework about the people you contact, but they do not know anything about you. It would help if you convinced them that you are trustworthy and that they can trust you.
The best type of social evidence you can give is that you have a mutual friend or just a person you both know. A shared acquaintance means you aren’t an outsider anymore or just spot a commonality. People feel more comfortable with people with similar hobbies, interests, or high schools.
Lastly, putting your LinkedIn profile in the email is also a good idea. This allows the receiver to learn more about you and who you are.
3. Offer a solution
The real question is, why should this person care to read the email you’ve just sent? How will the reader benefit from your outreach? Sometimes people are unaware they have a problem until you approach them with a solution.
Example #1
People who drink coffee or any beverage while driving may not even know that finding a place to put the cup is always a problem. They think this is a minor issue. But if you approach them with your cup holder product, there is a high possibility they would think, ‘Hey, I need this.’
Example #2
Or, if you do your homework on your recipients, you can approach them to solve a problem you know they are already experiencing. For example, suppose you own a digital marketing agency that operates in a country where the cost of living is generally lower than in other countries.
You spot a CEO on LinkedIn complaining about the high price of services in the United States. In that case, you can approach him with an email presenting the solution to his problem.
Lastly, if your product fails to solve any problem, give people what they like. Research your buyer persona, buying habits, and products or services they are interested in, and tailor your approach.
4. Keep emails short and clear
One of the most important things is to keep your emails short and to the point. This kind of email is more likely to be read and achieve a higher response rate. One of the easiest ways to keep your email short and straight to the point is to compose it the same way you speak.
Imagine meeting these people in person. You would need more than just to stroll up and start pitching them. You’d first introduce yourself, say a nice thing, communicate with them via a mutual friend or interest, and then make a meaningful proposal.
Before you decide to send the email, it is good practice to read it aloud. This lets you see if the email is easy to read and digest. Send it to a colleague, friend, or anyone you trust and get their feedback. Another set of eyes is always beneficial.
Related Terms
Looking to refine your marketing strategies? Explore Lead Nurturing to build customer relationships, Inbound Marketing to attract clients, and Email Cadence to perfect your email timing.
Additional Tips & Tricks
- The average open rate for cold emails is around 44%;
- Don’t be discouraged by a lack of response to your initial cold email. Follow up with a polite and concise follow-up email to remind the recipient of your previous message;
- Always clearly communicate your product or service’s value proposition and benefits in your cold emails.
The Bottom Line
A cold email is an unsolicited email message sent to someone with whom the sender has no prior contact. Cold emails are typically used for outreach, networking, lead generation, and marketing. They are a great way to introduce yourself, pitch a product or service, and build relationships.
You’ve learned what cold emails are, why they are essential, and strategies to write great cold emails. This knowledge and information will help you implement cold email tactics into your current marketing or sales strategy.
Cold Email FAQs
Cold emailing is a form of sales and marketing. Cold emailing potential customers is often described as outbound marketing focusing on lead generation.
The subject line is the key element of any cold email that makes or breaks it. Optimizing the subject line means a greater open rate and a better chance at a sale. Since the subject line is so important, it is one of the first elements to be developed in cold email outreach.
There are many strategies to improve your cold email outreach performance. However, focusing on prospects is always a good idea. Personalization can engage prospects and motivate them to interact with your cold emails.
If you can avoid using cold email templates, it is better to do so. If you search for “cold email templates,” you’ll find a lot of examples. Even though there are some excellent ones, there is no template for personalizing emails.
