What’s a cold email, you ask?
It’s a cold call, except using email.
So what makes a perfect cold email? For our purposes, it’s an email that gets a response.
That’s right. Your only goal with the cold email is to start a dialogue.
So stop firing off those long missives. We all get those emails that are just too long. The sender feels the need to tell us everything in one fell swoop…for fear of never having the opportunity again. If you’re like me, those emails tend to wind up at the bottom of your to do list…and may very well never get answered. They just show up as too much work.
Imagine if someone walked up to you at a cocktail party and just started spewing information at you. Of course you’d be polite, but you’d also want to get out of there as soon as possible. So, if you wouldn’t do it at a cocktail party, don’t do it on email.
Emailing and LinkedIn messaging have become the new cold call. But, they’re actually better than cold calling because you’re not interrupting whatever it is they’re doing at the moment. You give them the power to respond to you when it’s convenient for them.
So, let’s get to those cold emails.
Here are my 5 proven tips to increase your chances for getting a response…
Get to the Point…Quickly – Don’t ramble on about knowing they’re busy and how impressive they are (unless you really know something about them worth mentioning…like seeing them speak, graduating from the same college, etc). You don’t even need to say your name because that will be on the bottom of the email. You’re using up valuable seconds. Remember, you only have a few to get their attention. These days, most people are reading their emails on their cell phone…so the shorter and sweeter, the better.
Be Friendly. Be Casual – Don’t be overly formal. This isn’t a handwritten letter. Email & LinkedIn Messages are meant to be more casual in nature. Use contractions. Things like “I’m” and “We’re” are more casual and sound friendlier. And when you start off, don’t call them Mr. or Ms. It’s too formal for an email or message.
White Space – Avoid long chunky paragraphs. It is such a turn-off because they’re more difficult to read and show up as work. People tend to not answer those emails.
Use Their Name…Twice – Everyone likes hearing their name. Don’t you? Use it at the beginning in your salutation and again at the end. It just comes across as friendly and they’ll want to answer you.
Intrigue Them without Overselling – Tell them that you have a product or idea that fits in well with what they’re already doing. And ask their permission to send them information so they can learn more and they can decide for themselves. Asking for permission to send more information is not only polite, it gives them something simple to respond to and now you have a dialogue. Don’t promise that you and your product are going to make them millions. It’s not believable, so you lose credibility. Remember, you just want to intrigue them enough to get them to respond.
Here’s a Simple Cold Email that Gets Me Over 75% Response Rate…
SUBJECT: New Product
Hi John, nice to “meet” you.
I’m a product developer and I’ve developed a cool product that solves the problem of __________. I think it fits in really well with ABC’s product line.
If you’re open to learning more, I’m happy to send over a Sell Sheet. Looking forward to seeing if you agree it’s a good fit for you guys.
Thanks John!
Best,
Howie Busch
(212) 728-6739 (not my real #)
We can’t control whether or not someone ultimately wants to do business with us. But, we can control how we approach them…and increase our chances for a response.
That is the goal of the cold email.
Would you respond to the above email? Let me know. And, if you have any other tricks that have worked for you, let me know that too.
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