Write Subject Lines That Look Like They’re From a Person—Not a Marketing Department
One of the biggest downfalls marketing teams make with their email campaigns is writing subject lines that look like they’re from a business, not a person. When crafting your cold outreach campaigns, personalize them for the prospect and don’t come off too salesy. A personalized cold email subject line should be quick, catchy, and immediately resonate with the prospect that receives it.
Effective prospecting email subject lines are engaging and leave the decision-maker eager to read more. They also aren’t spammy, either. While clickbait-y subject lines may boost open rates, they negatively impact response rates. After all, if a prospect doesn’t see the value from your email content after they open it, they might unsubscribe—which could potentially blacklist your campaigns.
While you may want to be out-of-the-box with your subject lines, remember that unclear subject lines are less likely to get those emails opened. Good prospecting email subject lines are much simpler than you think, so don’t overthink them.
Here’s an example of a good cold email subject line we use to personalize messaging while encouraging prospects to read our emails:
State the Purpose of Your Message From the Start of the Cold Email
To have an effective cold email campaign, don’t beat around the bush about your message. Cold emails that convert state the purpose of the email from the get-go.
Many marketing teams think they need to tiptoe around the subject matter regarding their offerings. But the most effective cold email campaigns immediately state what your company does and why you’ve made it in their inbox.
If you aren’t direct in the beginning of your sales email, you risk turning prospects away because they’re not sure what the point of the message is and they feel like they’re wasting time.
Here’s an intro example we use to immediately engage potential buyers in our target market:
Follow the Four Cs of Writing Sales Email Copy: Clear, Concise, Compelling, Clever
When writing cold emails, follow the four Cs: clear, concise, compelling, and clever. Here’s what we mean by each:
Clear
If your product or service offering is unique and complex compared to other solutions, make it as easy to understand as possible. While this may be difficult to do without getting straight into the pitch, it quickly shows the impact of what you have to offer.
One way we like to look at the clarity of your sales emails is by following the mother-in-law principle. Most people will tell you to write email copy that can be understood by a third grader. While this may be a good concept in theory, a third grader probably won’t understand what your business does no matter how many times you explain it to them. Your mother-in-law, on the other hand, is likely well-versed in life already—you don’t need to break down your business to the bare bones with her, but you still need to explain it in layman’s terms.
For example, as a B2B lead generation company, it can be hard to explain what we do to decision-makers who may not know “lead generation” terminology. We explain that we help B2B businesses generate more revenue through sales development and marketing efforts. Using industry jargon in email copy makes it difficult for potential buyers to follow what you’re trying to say. So, keep your content clear for the prospect so they have a solid understanding of what your business does.
Concise
As earlier discussed, you need to get to the point of the email from the start. While you may have a lot you want to share with the prospect, spread out content and don’t get too in depth with the first email you send. Keeping it short and sweet is the best way to pique the interest of prospects and encourage them to read the whole email. To keep email copy concise, it’s important that you follow the 90, 4, 3, 2, 1 formula.
“But wait, what’s 90, 4, 3, 2, 1 formula?” We’re so glad you asked!
Here’s the breakdown:
Compelling
Decision-makers get sales emails from similar businesses every day, so what makes your company stand out from competitors? When you write cold emails to prospects in the sales pipeline, make them compelling and leave prospects wanting more.
When you think of your company differentiators, what makes your business unique from the rest? If your first response is “excellent customer service,” think again and put some proof behind your claim. Differentiators could include a new product or service offering in your industry, statistical proof of your company’s impact, the number of growing businesses you’ve supported, client testimonials, etc.
Clever
And the last (but not least) important component of the four Cs is cleverness. If the copy and content within your sales email is boring, decision-makers aren’t going to want to read more and they’ll more than likely send your email right to their junk folder. Don’t go overboard with your cleverness and leave the prospect confused—it’s best to find a happy medium to keep them both entertained and eager to learn more.
Keep It Simple—Don’t Overwhelm the Prospect With Too Much Information
When sending a cold email, don’t give the prospect too much information. More often than not, cold emails don’t convert into sales opportunities after the first email is sent. It requires consistent effort to establish brand awareness and build trust with the decision-maker.
Start the conversation by acknowledging your target market’s common pain points about their current solution and showcasing how your company’s product or service will reduce or eliminate their concerns. If the prospect wants to learn more, great! You can direct them to your website to learn more or suggest that they schedule a sales meeting to learn how your offerings can directly impact their everyday business functions.
But if they don’t respond, your following sales emails should encourage them to want to learn more. This could include sending them relevant blog posts or sharing case studies of clients in similar markets or industries so they can picture themselves in the shoes of your customers.
Close the Cold Outreach Email With a Call to Action
Last but not least, what do you want the cold prospect to do with the information you’ve just given them? Closing your cold outreach emails with a strong call to action (CTA) helps the decision-maker understand what you want them to do from here.
When sending your first cold email to a prospect, make sure the email’s tone isn’t too forward or too hands off. As a cold emailing best practice, we often suggest a closing CTA to be a question to get the prospect thinking, such as:
- Would you be open to learning more?
- Are you interested in starting a free trial?
- When would you be available to chat more?
Ending a cold email with a CTA (specifically a question CTA) encourages the prospect to open up the conversation without them feeling too much pressure to make a purchase. If the CTA is too focused on making a sale, this could scare them off from wanting to respond, putting your email marketing efforts at stake. Additionally, remember to mix it up for each email to see if one CTA approach is more effective than another. Keep the prospect’s best interest at heart without giving off the impression you need something from them right then and there.
Key Takeaways
Starting cold emails isn’t easy. Many businesses make the same mistakes over and over again, reducing the impact of their business growth efforts. But if you follow our cold emailing best practices, you increase the likelihood of getting responses and generating more significant sales opportunities.
At Abstrakt Marketing Group, our sales and marketing teams are cold emailing experts. We do more than send sales emails to random email addresses—we craft messaging that aligns with the wants and needs of potential buyers in your target market.
When you’re ready to see the impact cold emailing campaigns can have on your lead generation efforts, contact the sales development and marketing specialists at Abstrakt!
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