Cold email templates that get over 7% reply rates

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45 Different Types of Formulas for Cold Emails + Examples

Not even the best copywriting expert can predict people's needs and what will work for a business. The key to success in cold email campaigns is constant testing and improvement. There are hundreds of cold email copywriting formulas and it's hard to choose the right one for your business.

Here we are, presenting you the most effective 45 cold email formulas with examples that generate maximum response.

1. BAB Formula

BAB stands for Before-After-Bridge. This is the framework you can use to write email copies for your lead gen email marketing campaigns. It breaks down email copies in a conversation-oriented manner that digs deeper in prospects’ pain points and offers proposed solutions.

If you follow the formula correctly, you can write a compelling email copy to appeal to your receipts’ wants. BAB has three parts to it–

Before: This is the initial part of the email where you paint a picture of your prospects’ worlds without your offered solution, triggering their pain points.

For example: “With so many social media channels deserving your attention, it must be excruciating for you to manually update each site.”

After: Contrary to the previous point, you present an ideal picture where your prospects’ pain points are resolved. The key to writing a compelling ‘After’ part is by promising them a solution they are seeking for, such as, automation of workflow, better email open rates, higher ROI, etc.

For example: “But imagine if you could streamline all your social media platforms in a single channel and automate SMM workflow to maintain steady lead generation.”

Bridge: You have already painted pictures of your prospects’ problems and what life could be without them. Now is the perfect time to bridge the gap between these two and pitch your solution.

For example: “Our engineering team has tirelessly worked to develop the most advanced social media automation tool to help people like you generate AI-driven posts, schedule them, and get detailed insights.”

Hey Suzie,

I noticed that your blog posts are not mobile optimized and you must be losing hundreds of potential customers due to that.

What if I tell you that there’s a Chrome plugin to automatically optimize blog posts for mobiles (and tabs)?

Our {tool name} can help you do that.

I’d love to talk to you over a call and set it up for your website.

Best,

{sender’s name}

2. Problem-Agitate-Solution

PAS or Pain-Agitate-Solution is tested to be one of the best performing and most popular email copywriting formulas. The best thing about this formula is that it works for all kinds of marketing methods, from emails and landing pages to flyers. Irrespective of the industry you are in, PAS can prove to be beneficial for your marketing strategy if you can implement it tactically.

Let’s delve deep into it.

Pain: In this section (usually at the beginning of the email after the greeting), you lay out the problem of your potential clients and highlight their inconveniences.

For example: “Finding the right credit card for your needs is too stressful, sometimes too confusing to bother.”

Agitate: This is like rubbing salt on wounds. You have already mentioned the pain points, now is the time to make it more emotional by stressing it a bit more. However, don’t agitate too much, it will make you sound negative.

For example: “Choosing the right banks, working out the lowest interest rates and credit limits, and other perks seems like there’s a lot on your plate.”

Solution: Now is your time for you to reveal the solution that can possibly solve their problems. Being a little bit empathetic helps a lot in this section.

For example: “No worries! We bring you {website} to compare and choose the best credit card for your needs.”

Hey Roxanne,

I noticed some negative reviews on poor customer service on your website.

It’s unfortunate to lose customers due to lack of tools.

{Tool name} automatically integrates client data in an unified dashboard to easily track, manage, and resolve customer feedback.

Up for a call to see how you can turn those negative reviews into satisfied customers?

Thanks,

{sender’s name}

3. Fan Dancer Formula Or, Cliffhanger

This formula focuses on titillating the audience without actually revealing the product/service that you are offering. Besides email marketing, the fan dancer formula can be used in website pop-ups, social media ads, and also product descriptions.

This formula works best when you don’t have much data about your prospects and are looking for a generic marketing medium to create hype or curiosity around your offering.

Hey Charu,

Seems like you are using way too many tools for your email marketing efforts.

And I bet you are losing tons of customers due to {pain point}.

I have a special tool that can solve {pain point} and help you achieve {prospected goal}.

Click here to learn more: {Link}

Best,

{Sender’s name}

4. 1-Sentence Message

Did you know that an average professional receives around 120 emails a day? There’s no way an email can hold an attention span of more than [8 seconds](https://targetbay.com/blog/how-to-improve-email-marketing-in-light-of-decreased-attention-span/#:~:text=The average attention span was,move on to something else.).

A smart way to minimize your copywriting effort and hook your prospects’ attention is by writing an outreach email of only 1 or 2 sentences.

Hey Scooby,

We bring you a highly personalized cold emailing tool to scale your business.

Mind if I share a demo?

Thanks, {Sender’s name}

5. Video Approach

Boring text message? ❌

Video introduction? ✅ Yes please!!!

We receive tons of cold emails everyday, do we open them all? NO. We open only the interesting ones. So, instead of sending boring text messages, make a Loom video of your offer and send them for a change. Here’s how you can approach a prospect about it:

Subject: Next destination: YouTube

Hey Daniel,

I love your humorous snippets on B2B nunes on LinkedIn.

Have you thought of making YouTube Shorts for a greater audience reach?

I have recorded a video on how you can do it. If it’s something that interests you, I would be happy to share the video link with you.

Let me know?

Best,

{sender’s name}

6. The Four C’s Formula

CONCISE, CLEAR, COMPELLING, CREDIBLE — the four horsemen of copywriting, is called the four C’s formula.

This is an excellent usage of the four C’s copywriting formula. The text doesn’t beat around the bush and directly comes to the point, making it concise and clear of its motive.

It sticks to educating recipients on the specifications and what makes it stand out from other products in its range, which is bound to compel audiences.

You can frame an email message following the four C’s of copywriting for your promotional email marketing campaigns. Keep your message short, use images, and play with fonts to make it look interesting.

Hey John,

I know that email automation is a major issue right now for your company.

We dedicate ourselves to {service you offer}.

I have a great tool for you to include in your email marketing workflow. It can:{Benefit #1}

{Benefit #2}

{Benefit #3}

Are you available on {dates} at {time} for a quick call?

Thanks,

{sender’s name}

7. Highly Targeted Message = Increased Reply Rates

This is a no brainer: the more effort you put in researching, the more reply rate you can expect.

If you are fed up with not getting the desired response rates for your campaigns, it might be because you are not researching well.

Researching each and every prospect thoroughly and writing targeted email copies is an unrealistic goal, especially when you are trying to create a cold email campaign at scale.

So, instead of researching individual prospects, follow these steps to create highly targeted messages:

Start with a personal note. You can congratulate them on their recent success, promotion, blog post, or achievement.

This is a point where you talk about your intention as clearly as possible. Do not holdback, speak up.

This is where your demographic research will come handy. Make things specific for your recipients. For example, instead of ‘web development’ use ‘Front end website builder’ to attract a niche.

Focus on explaining what your prospects’ value proposition is. That’s how you bring more credibility in your message.

Add a case study or customer testimonial in your email message. It will build your authority in the niche. However, this step is optional.

Now go beyond your prospects’ value proposition and brag a little bit. This shows that you're confident in what you are doing.

Finally, add a compelling CTA that drives action.

Hey Ralph,

Saw your recent acquisition of {brand name}. Congratulations!

I am the {designation} at {company name}, reaching out to check if you are using any cold emailing tool?

At this stage, companies focus on {the value you are offering}. And I would like to share how we can help you achieve {target}.

Do you have time next week?

Sincerely,

{sender’s name}

8. KISS: Keep It Short and Simple

People are skeptical when it comes to cold emails, so applying the KISS formula can catch your prospects’ attention quickly. Make sure you are using easy, colloquial language.

Although it seems easy, writing a short and simple message requires practice and a deep understanding of what you are offering.

Hey Sahil,

I am the Head of Sales in {company name}  - found a few bugs on your website.

We’ve got a decade’s worth of experience helping SMBs just like you to double customer revenue through web UX.

Happy to spill the secret sauce over a call?

Regards,

{Sender’s name}

9. Ask for Permission

Nobody likes pushy emails. So, you may consider asking for permission first to reach out with your marketing message. You can simply ask if you can send a demo or a link to your site.

Hey David,

Your YouTube videos are so informative and humorous–it’s amazing. I can assume that you get pitched a lot, so I wanted to ask for your permission if I can introduce you to our newly developed YouTube SEO research tool.

Mind if I send you a quick demo?

Best wishes,

{Sender’s name + professional signature}

10. Podcast Marketing Angle

If you have a podcast on a particular niche that interests your prospects, you might reach out to them through that angle. You can invite your prospect to be a speaker or else you can also send a snippet from your podcast.

Hey Maria,

I’m amazed to see how you have streamlined the marketing workflow at {company name}. Our podcast talks about women in business–their achievement and perils in the way - 20k downloads/episodes.

We’d be honored to invite you to be a guest speaker on our 50th episode and speak about your experiences handling {company name}.

Here’s the link to our podcast: {link}

Thanks,

{Sender’s name}

11. The Mutual Connection Formula

An email that refers to a mutual connection humanizes the communication, brings familiarity, and builds trust among recipients. And of course, it works as a form of personalization. If you have a mutual connection between you and your prospect, leverage it to write cold emails.

We have tested this formula in our email outreach campaigns and we can safely say that it generates one of the highest reply rates.

Hey Mike,

I heard a lot about you from {mutual connection} and he talked greatly about you on how you have increased {company name} revenue by 36% in a quarter. As with great power comes even greater responsibilities. We offer an excellent CRM tool, {product name}, that helps hundreds of small businesses like yours streamline your responsibilities.

If it’s something that interests you, I am eager to get on a call with you and give you a brief overview of how it works.

Let me know?

Best,

{Sender’s name}

12. Triggering FOMO Formula

This is directly related to the human psyche. No one likes to miss out on a great opportunity. Use it to your benefit (sounds evil, but it’s a great way to generate positive replies) by triggering your prospects’ FOMO.

FOMO trigger formula best works for promotions, pre-booking of products, sale announcements, limited time offers, etc.

Create an urgency in your message such as “All your friends are coming, where are you?”, “The sale of a lifetime ends in 2 hours.”, etc.

Hey Alex,

I must say, {course name} got such a great response from young writers like you, that we need to close the doors.

Hurry up! This is the last reminder to join my {course name} this friday. The seats are filling up and our booking will be closed any minute.

If you still have doubts, here are some reasons you should attend the class:

{Reason #1}

{Reason #2}

{Reason #3}

Book your slot here: {Link}

Best, {Sender’s name}

13. Assurance of Guarantee Formula

The most difficult hurdle to overcome through cold emailing is gaining trust of your prospects. A guarantee shows that you have confidence in what you are doing. Using this formula, guarantee your prospects of what you can assure.

Writing such emails is easier than implementing other formulas–offer a straightforward guarantee to your prospect. Keep it simple and short like a money back guarantee.

Based on your niche, you can offer deliverability-based guarantee, asset-based guarantee, and action-based guarantee.

Hey Jan,

We offer various cold email outreach tools to enterprises and SMBs to generate maximum leads through email marketing.

We guarantee you 25% increase in reply rates with our AI-powered writing tool in a month or you will get your money back.

Sounds intriguing? Let’s talk.

Thanks,

{sender’s name}

14. 5 Question Formula

The fundamentals of any cold emails funnels down to 5 basic questions. You can leverage these questions to create your cold email campaign.

The questions are:

What's in the email for the prospect?

How can you achieve it?

Why should a prospect believe you?

Who have you done this for?

How much will it cost?

Writing an email based on this formula is pretty simple–just focus on answering these five questions in the same order and you will be done.

This formula works best for a stagnant industry where competition is tough and you need to convince your prospects that you are the best in the field.

Hey Paul,

You can increase your sales by {percentage} by the next quarter.

Our {tool name} can help you automate your email marketing workflow from writing to sending trigger-activated  follow ups and booking meetings. {Tool name} is bringing {percentage} more sales for our clients thoroughly, and the number’s only going up.

Read what our clients have to say about us:

{Testimonial #1}

{Testimonial #2}

Mind if I share more information about {tool name}?

Thanks,

{Sender’s name}

15. AIDA Formula

AIDA stands for Attention-Interest-Desire-Action. Although this methodology is 120 years old, it’s one of the most celebrated copywriting formulas used till date.

Think of the first thing that grabs attention to an email, it’s the subject line. Tweak your subject line in a way that it drives attention and your first purpose is fulfilled.

You can do it in various ways, such as creating urgency, relevance, or triggering curiosity.

Once you secure your prospects' interest, your next goal is to keep them interested to read through the whole message. Do your research, personalize your message in a way that they understand what is in for them (rather than what you can offer).

And lastly, add a compelling CTA to persuade them to take action.

Hi Devon,

I am reaching out to you since you are the contact person for {company name}.

We offer email marketing services for B2B clients and we have been doing this for more than 10 years.

We offer:

{service #1}

{service #2}

{Service #3}

We have worked with market leading companies like {company name #1}, {company name #2}, and {company name #3}.

We’d like to offer you a free demo walkthrough of our tools and a live Q&A session with our marketing lead. Please reply “Yes” to this email if you are interested.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Thanks,

{sender’s name}

16. Consider Local languages

While you are reaching out to potential clients from non-English speaking countries or regions, it's best to reach out to them in their own language. A study conducted by Common Sense Advisory found out that customers prefer using websites in their own languages.

হাই {নাম},

আমার নাম {নাম}, এবং আমি এটি দ্রুত শেষ করব।

আমি এমন একটি সফ্টওয়্যার টুলের প্রতিষ্ঠাতা যা আপনার মতো ব্যস্ত এক্সিকিউটিভদের প্রতি সপ্তাহে 10 ঘন্টার মতো সময় বাঁচায়।

আমি কি পরের সপ্তাহে একটি ব্যক্তিগত ডেমোর জন্য আপনার দশ মিনিট সময় নিতে পারি যা স্পষ্ট করে দেবে কেন গ্যারি ভ্যানারচুক, টিম ফেরিস এবং ম্যালকম গ্ল্যাডওয়েলের মতো উদ্যোক্তারা আমাদের পণ্য পছন্দ করেন?

17. Requesting for Introduction Tactic

In some cases, instead of pitching to the point of contact, ask them to introduce you to the right person to talk to about your product/service.

This is especially applicable if you are in B2B business, more so if your product/service is on the costlier side.

For example, if you are selling central office cooling solutions, it’s best to talk to a decision maker rather than a marketing executive or  sales rep.

Hey Daniel,

I am reaching out to your company for a central AC solution. I was hoping you could redirect me to the right point of contact to talk about it?

Sincerely,

{sender’s name}

18. Research Approach

You can reach out to a potential customer with a set of questions and ask them to participate in ongoing research. Most people love to answer targeted questions based on their expertise, so if you find the answers suitable for pitching your idea, send the next email with your offer.

Hey Vaibhav,

We are doing a nationwide research on {research topic} and as you are an expert in this field, we’d like to ask you a few questions about {add questions}.

Would you mind answering a few simple questions? We’d be happy to mention your business in our research paper and will definitely send you what we find out.

Best,

{sender’s name}

19. ACCA Formula

ACCA stands for Awareness-Comprehension-Conviction-Action.

Most copywriting formulas focus on telling a convincing story and persuading for selling, while ACCA focuses on educating the potential clients and then offering a solution–which automatically leads to conversions.

Hey Mike,

Can you handle 20 more meetings a month?

I am asking because our cold email outreach tool, {tool name}, automates all time-consuming processes and trigger-send follow ups.

Our clients have reported {percentage} increase in their booked meetings with prospective clients and as a result, they have increased their sales by {percentage}.

Would you be interested in learning {tool name} in depth? Let’s talk next week at your convenience.

Best,

{Sender’s name}

20. Inverted Triangle Formula

The inverted triangle formula is very simple: state the most important info first and the rest will follow in the same order.

For example, if you are offering cold emailing services, mention that first. Then talk about your niches and expertise followed by your CTA.

Hey Antony,

What if I told you that you could generate {percentage} more customers with our marketing consultation services.

We, at {company name}, strive to help local companies such as yours to help them with our 10+ years of email marketing experience. We have helped companies like {company #1} and {company #2} generate {percentage} leads in a quarter.

We offer:

{Service #1}

{Service #2}

{Service #3}

Let’s get on a call and discuss how we can proceed.

Best, {Sender’s name}

21. Direct Approach

Direct approach is, well, DIRECT.

This is mostly applicable for brands with a strong image. Keep the email as short as possible and directly come to the point.

Greet your prospect, pitch your offer, and add a straightforward CTA. That’s it.

Hey Jim,

Congratulations on your big promotion. With the new responsibility, it must be tiring to handle all the work.

Would you like to save 10 hours of work time every week? We developed a tool that can automate your day-to-day responsibilities. Mind if I share a video demo?

Best,

{sender’s name}

22. Personalized Image Based Strategy

Visuals attract more than a text message. It’s a good way to drive [positive reply rates in your email campaigns. Create customized images and include in your email to create the buzz.

If you are selling a product, it's much easier to create customized images for that. But, if you are selling a service or consultation, make sure you depict the brand image and what you strive for in the image.

This formula works best if you are launching a new product or trying to create buzz for an upcoming release.

Hey Jennifer,

The wait is finally over. We are ready to announce the release of our most anticipated laptop.

{Add an image of the new product}

As you can see, it’s sleek, chic, and fulfills all your needs from a laptop. Never miss a second with its power-packed features and flaunt it with style.

Pre-book now. {Link}

Best,

{sender's name}

23. Broken Link Formula

This tactic is often frowned upon by many marketers as it’s a bit sketchy, but we have tested it several times for different lead gen campaigns, and it works!

This tactic is excellent if you want to send your valuable insights/video/case study only with the prospects who truly want it.

You simply put a broken link on the CTA section, so when they click on it, it won’t work and they will reach out to you for the correct link.

Hey Pam,

We just completed our year-long research on upcoming email marketing trends in 2023. We’ve created a detailed case study so you can stay prepared to go full throttle in the coming months.

Learn how you can scale your business using these trends and stay relevant in the competitive market.

Read the full case study here: {PDF link}

If you have any queries, feel free to reach out to us.

Thanks,

{sender’s name}

24. Ambiguous Tactic

Sometimes being vague is better than a direct approach.

The psychology behind this is that people receive similar types of emails repeatedly that they get repulsed. So, even if you are offering value to your prospects, they might be too swamped to open it.

Suppose you help small businesses with SEO optimization service, don’t write you do SEO optimization right away. Instead tell them that you will help them increase their domain authority and help them generate more traffic to their website.

These kind of message work in two ways:

It is different from other SEO services which help you stand out.

This message focuses more on the result than the service itself.

Hey Deep,

I am a big fan of your burgers. I am amazed at how you are maintaining the same quality with great customer service throughout the years.

I was checking your website and found it’s not well optimized for SERP, which is definitely causing you less customer generation.

I help small businesses thrive online and I can help you increase your domain authority and website traffic in a month.

Let’s get on a call so I can explain to you the roadmap. I hope to talk to you soon.

Thanks,

{sender’s name}

25. Make It a Joke

If you can’t think of something  serious, make it a joke. And the chances are that your prospects will love it. We have tested two emails on the same topic and intention, but guess what, the funny one worked better.

Subject: Up for a joke?

Hey Michael,

My friend’s bakery burned down last night.

Now his business is toast, lol.

Jokes apart, if you love your beautiful shop (cause we do), save it from getting toasted. Buy our fire insurance now to stay covered.

Click on the link below to learn more.

{Link}

Regards,

{Sender’s name}

26. Giveaway Tactic

A freebie can cheer up anyone, and surprisingly it can do wonders for lead generation.

If you are running a cold email lead gen campaign, offer a giveaway to the winners.

Hey Ross,

Can I interest you in a free meal?

Like and subscribe to our YouTube channel. What’s the catch? You might be the lucky winner and win a free meal from your favorite restaurant in your town that too from the comfort of your home.

{Link to YouTube channel}

Best of luck,

{sender’s name}

27. USP Selling Method

If your business has something unique to offer that no other competitor can, put it in the limelight. Make sure you boast a healthy amount about your USP.

Hey Jim,

As an {industry name} veteran, you must be familiar with the best tools for email automation.

Here we are with {tool name} that offers whitelisting services for B2B email marketing campaigns besides email automation. And I bet none of our contemporaries can do it.

Let’s talk real soon so I can give you a free demo of the tool.

Book a meeting: {link}

Best,

{sender’s name}

28. FAB Formula

FAB stands for Feature-Advantage-benefit.

This is one of the simplest yet effective methods of email copywriting. Once you write the personalized first line, come straight to explaining your product/service within this framework.

First, mention the features of your product. Second, mention the advantages of using it (and what makes it stand apart from its counterpart), and lastly, classify your prospects’ benefits.

Hey Dinesh,

Loved reading your article on {topic} on {website}.

Our {tool name} helps writers proofread, remove plagiarism from articles, and simplify complicated sentences.

It means, with {tool name}, you can save 5 hours/week time and focus entirely on creating better content. All these things are just a plugin away.

Sounds interesting? Let me know when you are free next week to discuss it over a brief call.

Thanks,

{sender’s name}

29. Common Interest Formula

This method requires deep research of individual prospects. We suggest you use tools like Smartlead to gather available prospect data. Once you find a common ground between you and your prospect, leverage it to pique interest and pitch your service.

Hey Robert,

Just found out that we play golf at the same club. Are you up for a friendly game someday next weekend?

I offer digital marketing services for SaaS businesses like yours. We can have a talk over a cup of coffee after the game and I can explain how I can help you thrive in the field. Sounds good? Let me know.

Best,

{sender’s name}

30. PPPP Model

PPPP stands for Picture-Promise-Prove-Push.

In this tactic, you first paint an ideal picture for your prospects. Then you deliver ideas on how your product/service can help them achieve that outcome. Next step is to back your claims with past achievements/client testimonials/case studies. The last step involves pushing your prospects to buy or subscribe to your offer.

Hey Rachel,

Taking out time from your hectic schedule to go to the fashion street for christmas shopping must be excruciating. What if the entire fashion street comes at your doorstep?

We are offering one-day delivery of your favorite fashion item from clothes to accessories at your doorstep. We have already served 10000+ happy customers all across America. Join the trend now to stay fashion-relevant, and of course, SAVE A LOT.

Best,

{sender’s name}

31. Cliffhanger Method

How do TV shows retain their viewers’ attention? Besides a good story, they also focus on cliffhangers to keep you hooked.

Make an email campaign that builds the suspense gradually and keeps the big reveal for the end. These emails make people contemplate the probable product and anticipate the revelation, increasing email open and positive reply rates.

You can make it a single-sentence email to make it more impactful and edgy.

Hello Dave,

What we are going to offer you will surely blow your mind. Stay tuned and brace yourself.

Best,

{Sender’s name}

32. Performance Based Guarantee

To increase your authority on your field of expertise, you can offer a performance based guarantee to drive more leads for your business. You can offer money back guarantee if they don’t get the desired result.

This formula works best for a new/small company trying to make a strong foothold in the market.

Hi Natalie,

We help sustainable fashion brands like yours grow with social media channels like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

We promise you 30% customer increase in a quarter.

If you don’t get the results, you will get a full refund.

Mind giving us a try?

Thanks,

{sender's name}

33. Free Advice

This formula is a highly targeted lead gen method. Research your prospect’s business and send some free advice for them to work on. And, you may talk about your services but don’t try to sell directly here.

This will build trust and credibility among your prospects, project you as a sincere professional, and build a strong foothold in the market.

Hey Deborah,

I was checking your website and found out a few things you could work on for a better experience of your customers.

Here is a breakdown of what I found:

{Point #1}

{Point #2}

{Point #3}

I hope these small changes will bring positive results to your business. We offer a range of web development and digital marketing services to local businesses like you. Hope you find it useful.

Thanks,

{Sender’s name}

34. Blog Post Outreach

Reach out to your prospective clients with a snippet of your blog post relevant to what they do and add a link to the blog post. People like a company that focuses on customer enrichment rather than mindless selling.

Hey Matt,

We have just published our recent blog post on the best copywriting formulas. I think it will help you upscale your marketing game.

Read here: {Link}

Reach out to us here if you have any doubts or queries.

Have a good day,

{Sender’s name}

35. Conversational Approach

Even if you are personalizing your email to a very high degree, it sounds like a very professional and serious email. We don’t talk like that in real life.

Contrary to experts’ opinions, rite like you are talking to the IRL. For example, start a sentence with ‘so’.

This puts you in a vulnerable position and humanizes your message. Act like you are texting a friend. Don’t use fancy email signatures, keep it as simple as possible.

Good morning Leslie,

So I was checking our blog on {website name} and totally loved it. IDK when I last came across such a cool blog.

Kudos mate and keep up the good work.

On that note, I was thinking of a possible collaboration between our businesses. Mind if I share some info? Lemme know.

Best,

{sender’s name}

36. Use GIFs

Make use of edgy or funny GIFs to send a message to your prospects. Can you believe adding GIFs generated a 300% increase in reply rates?

37. Make Memes

Can writing an email be anymore fun? (Read in Chandler’s voice).

Memes are a very useful modern day communication medium. So, don’t shy away and create memes relevant to your message and attach them with plain text cold emails.

38. Pattern Interruption Method

Make your pitch sound weird to make it stand out.

Ask them to book an 11 minute slot instead of 15.

Add lines like “Reach out to us if you have any queries or don’t.”

Send an irrelevant haiku or a hilarious meme.

Make use of your imagination and creativity and be as quirky as possible.

Hey Daisy,

It must be hard for you to reach out to every customer manually for their queries.

With {tool name}, we can help you automate and streamline your customer service experience and save at least 10 hours/week.

Let me know if you are up for a 7-minute call on 30th Feb so I can mansplain how it works.

Duh,

{sender’s name}

39. Questioning Method

Instead of quoting your offers right away, ask your prospects a question about something they are passionate about. For example, if you are reaching out to HR executives, ask them how they maintain a healthy environment in the workplace.

This will give you an opportunity to bond with your prospect and pitch them your offer on the second or third email.

Hey Samuel,

Quick question: How do you see NFTs? Do you consider them a good investment?

Thanks,

{Sender’s name}

40. Focus on the Preview Text

Preview text is the brief snippet that shows beside the subject line. Although underrated, an intriguing preview text can increase email open rates.

Gmail calls in Snippets, Outlook refers to it as Message Preview, and Apple Mail calls it Preview. No matter what it's called, an email with a catchy preview text will generate higher email open rates.

Here are a few example:

Grab it before the cart goes empty!

Hey, it’s me. Is it yours?

Hurry - 24 hours left

41. Focus on Deliverability: Send Plain Text Message

Plain text emails (no images, no band optimization, nothing fancy) have consistently generated higher deliverability rates than emails with images.

Go back to the basics and send plain text emails without any flair.

Hi {prospect name},

I am {sender’s name}, {job role} at {company name}. We offer digital marketing services such as website building, email marketing, social media marketing, etc.

We help businesses increase their lead gen by {percentage}.

Are you free sometime next week so we can get on a call and I can explain to you how we proceed?

Thanks,

{sender’s name}

42. Create a Sense of Urgency

“Our stock is almost gone, hurry up.”

“Only three slots left.”

“Our early bird discount ends tonight.”

“Call me now to get an extra 10% discount.”

These are all examples of creating a sense of urgency in an email. Use this tactic to garner quick attention from your prospects.

Hey Frank,

It’s that time of the year again!

FY 22-23 is closing in and I know the taxation papers are piling up on your desk.

We are a money management company helping companies like yours save big bucks from taxes.

Book a consultation by tomorrow and get 25% off on consultation charges.

Hurry up, let’s talk soon!

Best,

{sender’s name}

43. Compare Your Competitors

Research your competitor and reach out to your prospects with a detailed overview on why they should choose your business over your competitor.

We have used this formula in our lead gen strategy and generated impressive reply rates.

This makes them believe that you are an authority in your field and you know what you are doing, increasing trustability.

Hey Hugh,

As the {designation} at {company name}, you must be troubled with {pain points}.

As I can see you are using {competitor's name}, it fails to solve {pain point}

Unlike {competitor’s name}, our new {tool name} can offer:

{comparison point #1}

{comparison point #2}

{comparison point #3}

MInd if I give you a detailed walkthrough of our tool sometime next week?

Thanks,

{sender’s name}

44. Use Flair

Let your creative juices flow in, juggle with words, and come up with an email that’s a delight to read or make it funny.

Hi Suzanne,

Yes I am sending this email to you even if I don’t know you. Frankly, I need to save my job.

Now that I reached your inbox, let me introduce you to our latest {product name}.

Besides saving a lot of time to procrastinate, you will get:

{Benefit #1}

{Benefit #2}

{Benefit #3}

Mind if I bore you with a demo next week?

Thanks,

{sender’s name}

45. Stay Away from Spam Trigger Words

An email containing spam trigger words might land in the spam folder or junk. So, you should stay away from spammy words that are too good to be true and salesy.

Words and phrases such as “earn extra cash”, “double your income”, “cash”, “100% off”, etc. must be avoided