(888) 893-2165Our cold email template has an open rate of 43-57% depending on the degree of personalization. This matters because the average prospect opens less than 24% of sales emails.
Whether you’re the sender or receiver, cold emails are usually just, cringe. Between refreshing the Outreach.io open status and deleting the seemingly chilly emails in your inbox, the sentiment around cold emails is well, below zero.
Despite this, personalized email marketing generates a median ROI of 122%.
And because cold emails are part of any ABM and/or outreach program, we wanted to share our take on what works with the cold email template below.
Cold Email Template and Example
Template
Example 1: Personalized Cold Email (from template)
Our director of enterprise accounts personalized his cold email template and sent the below email to a prospect.
Response
Example 2: Personalized Cold Email (from template)
Response
Cold Email Template Breakdown
1. Subject line
Emails with a personalized subject line are 26% more likely to be opened. By including the company name, you’re checking off the first point of personalization.
Albeit, this subject line is rather transparent, most people appreciate not having to navigate through the BS. The last part of the subject line, “Sales Partnership”, is vague enough to leave the potential opener considering the contents of the email before making the ultimate decision to open, or delete.
All you have to do is create doubt that they know exactly what is in the email. Provoking thoughts like: “Is this a current partnership that I’m unaware of?”. We’re hoping that the spirit of transparency we all know and love will prevent the receiver from branding us with the scarlet letter S: spam.
2. Intro: “I noticed, I stumbled on, or I saw that….”
Do your homework. Prospect research is a must and 9 times out of 10 results in a new favorite blog, podcast, or webinar series to further your knowledge for future outreach.
Humans are programmed to want to hear/talk about themselves. According to Psychology Today, “…self-disclosure is gratifying. It gives us a neurological buzz.”
With the knowledge that humans are self-obsessed, let’s look at why you need to play into said fixation.
Fast Company calls it like it is: “the point of cold email is typically to get something out of someone else.”
So, because you’re asking a stranger for the favor of spending time opening and reading your sales email, the least you can do is spend your time learning about them and extend a flattering olive branch. In this case, Jarron recognized a blog piece written by the recipient with a takeaway and a response.
3. Transition: “With that said I believe there’s an opportunity…”
Think of this section as a soft CTA. You’re telling the prospect why you emailed them and what you want to happen. Speaking of an “opportunity” sets the expectation that they will read about a partnership.
4. Quick elevator pitch
Emphasis on “quick”. The average cold email open rate is 19-26% (depending on industry), and the starting benchmark response rate is 1%. If you want to beat the 94.74% of people who open the email but don’t respond, keeping the pitch short is key.
In fact, the ideal length of a sales email is 50-200 words. Remember, the email should be about solving their problem, not your pitch. Revise the email like you would a tweet until you have only the elements necessary to get your point across. The “how” doesn’t need to be explained in the first email.
5. Validate with a current client and stats
This section helps shape the sentiment about your outreach and minimize one of the biggest barriers to selling: risk. Additionally, sales people like stats. Showcasing your most reputable client, along with a banger like “average 400% ROI for JumpCrew outsourced sales partners”, gives credibility.
Like a resume, this portion of the cold email template can be tailored by industry to provide a solution for their assumed need. Stick with maximum 4 bullet points to remain concise.
6. Connect the dots: “My thinking is that…, My idea is that…”
At this point in the cold email template, you have their attention. Especially after taunting with the client stats, you now have room to connect the dots. To help the prospect see a potential future partnership, share why you’re contacting them. For example, “since you’re hiring SDRs…”.
Connecting the dots should present a clear picture of why you felt an email was warranted. The prospect should understand the problem that you aim to solve for them.
7. CTA: “Would there be value in us connecting?”
A call-to-action should do just that, call for an action to be done. You have one line to ask for something—make it count. Typical CTA pitfalls include being vague, failing to ask, unfocused, pushy, and jargon filled.
In the example above, Jarron asks if they would be game for an introduction call. Sticking with a direct, closed-ended question eliminates any confusion.
Pro tip: when reps ask one to three questions, recipients are 50% more likely to respond compared to emails containing no questions.
8. Offer to provide more info
Back to point #2, be as accommodating as possible in cold emails. Offering to provide more information shows that you want their business and are happy to spend your time on the partnership. Also, because the cold email should be under 200 words, this is your chance to give more detail.
As always, make sure the links in your email signature are active. This gives the prospect an opportunity to surf the site if your email sparked interest.
9. P.S. – Something personal to the prospect
The same Psychology Today article from #3 suggests: “odds are, if you let the other person talk a lot about themselves, they will think you are fascinating.”
Making the email all about them is a sure way to keep their attention. The “p.s.” is the last opportunity to show that you did your research. Jarron also used this section as a segway to adding the prospect on LinkedIn. Now instead of being annoyed that Jarron is coming at him from all angles, he’s expecting a LinkedIn request.
Download The Cold Email Templates
Download our cold email templates using the Drive link below.
