7 Best Cold Email Templates that Guarantee a Response

In our recent blog, we discussed how sales development representatives can write a highly personalized cold email in three simple steps.

Today, we’re sharing 7 cold email templates from our archives that you can use to generate new potential customers.

Free Resource: Download the All-in-One Sales Email Templates

Of course, every company is different but the below cold email templates should be a good starting point to use irrespective of the industry.

List of our 7 best cold email templates 

  1. The hyper-personalized cold email to decision makers
  2. The cold email to get in touch with your competitors’ customers
  3. The email to re-engage with prospects gone cold
  4. The cold email with social proof to win over prospects
  5. The cold email with useful (helpful) resources
  6. The cold email with statistical information
  7. The generic cold email template

1. The hyper-personalized cold email to decision-makers

A well-crafted personalized cold email stands out from the hundreds of generic cold emails your recipients receive each day. And there are huge chances that it will produce the results you want – a response or a meeting with the prospect.

With the current focus on remote selling, personalizing cold emails is more imperative than ever.

Related Article: Tips from Sales Experts to Ace Remote Selling.

One way to personalize emails is by looking at their website/product and finding out what’s currently wrong with their system. Once you’ve nailed the pain points, you get to be the hero and fix it.

Here’s an example of a highly personalized cold email sent from one of our SDR.

freshsales cold email template personalized

Takeaways:

  • Address the right recipient

    Your research should not limit to just the company but should also include finding the right recipient to contact in the organization. Make it clear why you’re reaching out to them as opposed to anyone else in their company. According to the data shared by Tucker Max on the Harvard Business Review website said that “people are far more motivated to help others when they feel uniquely qualified to do so.”

  • Show (not tell) the value

    One great way to grab the recipient’s attention is to show them how your solution can help provide value. Get creative. Add a screenshot of their website/product or a short video that shows how they can benefit from using your product. Giving the value early in your outreach process shows that you value the lead’s time and they don’t have to hang with you in case they aren’t looking for a similar solution.

Cold email template:

Hi {recipient name},

I am reaching out to you because being the {recipient’s current role}, I was certain you would know more about the current process in place at your company for {which department}.

Like we’ve helped {your existing customer}, I felt you might be interested in improving your {the biggest challenge for the prospect}.

I did a fair amount of research on your company’s {current system} and I’m sharing a few of my thoughts here which could help you save {the benefit your product offers}:

<screenshot of their web page>

1. I noticed that {state the current problem and how it can be better}.
2. {state the current problem and how it can be better}

I’d love to share a few more ideas with you and spend more time in understanding your current process.

{recipient name}, could we spend 15 mins this week to chat about this?

2. The cold email to get in touch with your competitors’ customers

To grow your customer base, you also need to get in touch with your competitors’ customers. Many businesses are dissatisfied with their current solution, and if you’re able to jump in and offer your solution at the right time, then there is an opportunity for a sale.

Sending emails to your competitor’s customers can also be quite tricky. You need to craft an effective cold email that doesn’t bad mouth about the competitor or comes across as being jealous.

Here’s an example of an email our sales development representative sent out to one of our competitors’ customers.

freshsales cold email template competitor customers

Takeaways:

  • Maintain a casual email tone

    The tone of your cold email matters, especially when you are unfamiliar with the company and recipient. Using boring, rigid and sales-y language isn’t going to coax them to do business with you. Instead, use a casual and conversational tone to get them excited and interested in your solution.

  • What’s in it for them

    Your email should clearly state the benefit the lead would gain by moving from your competitor. Tell them what makes you different and why should they opt for your solution. Share some materials to prove your point, but make sure you don’t come across as sales-y or too pushy.

Cold email template:

Hi {recipient’s name},

Firstly, let me state that as the {designation of the recipient} of {company’s name}, you must be getting a bunch of emails and deleting most of them just as I do.

The primary reason I am reaching out to you is to discuss your {your competitor name} environment. I assist organizations to transition over from {your competitor’s name} to {your company name} with {what benefit do they gain}.

We have added over {the number of customers} with a healthy percentage being known, trusted {their industry sector}.

I believe I could be of value to your business and would love to work with you. Are you available for a 15 minutes meeting on Friday?

3. The email to re-engage with prospects gone cold

There is nothing more frustrating for an SDR to watch a once-piping hot lead going cold as ice. You know the prospects are reading your emails, they are looking at your website (thanks to CRM!), but for some reason, you can’t seem to get a response. We’ve all been there, right?

But hey, just because a promising prospect went cold on you doesn’t mean they are dead. You can always revive old opportunities by warming them up.

Sales Sequences CTA

Here’s an example of an email our SDR sent to those leads who signup but didn’t proceed with further action.

freshsales cold email template reengaging

Takeaways:

  • Add a little bit of humor

    Most people like laughing – so make them laugh! Add a meme or funny emoticons to crack them up. Adding a little bit of fun to your cold email isn’t going to hurt, and it almost always works.

  • Follow up till they respond

    Not all cold leads are going to turn into hot customers. But as a sales development representative, you need to qualify or disqualify them as soon as possible. It’s not worth spending time on leads who are never going to become your customers. For that, you need to follow up with your recipients until you get a reply, even if it’s ‘No, I’m not interested.’

Cold email template:

Hi {recipient name},

I hope you are doing great 😀 It’s been a while since we were in touch.

{recipient’s company name} had trialed with {your product name} for their {what function did they use the product for} in the past. I would love to reconnect with you and your team to better understand why you had moved away from the same 🙂

We have made some market breaking innovations since you had signed up and partnered with some big names like {customer 1} and {customer 2} too. Let’s have a quick chat sometime next week, {recipient’s name}?

I would be more than happy to show you those innovations, Monday (January 16th) at 10:00 am sounds good for you?

Related Article: Crafting a Killer Cold Email Follow-Up Strategy.

4. The cold email with social proof to win over prospects

Just by rattling about the benefits of your product isn’t going to entice prospects to spend their precious time with you. You need to build credibility with the prospect, for them to take you seriously and consider buying from you. And one of the ways to do that is by adding social proof in your cold email.

Mention the names of your well-known customers who share the same buyer’s persona, pain, and priorities. You can also mention your investors or shared LinkedIn connections to win your recipient’s trust.

freshsales cold email template social proof

Takeaways:

  • Keep it short and crisp

    A long introduction, bragging about your company not only makes your email harder to read but also makes recipients lose interest faster. Instead, get straight to the point and explain everything that you want in the first two sentences. Use simple language and short sentences so that it’s easy for prospects to scan it and understand the meat of your cold email.

  • Maintain an email structure

    Your cold email should have a great opener, your objective, social proof, and a call to action in separate paragraphs. If a paragraph exceeds more than 2-3 lines, break it up by using bullet points.

Cold email template: 

Hi {recipient’s name},

My name is {salesperson’s name} and I am the {designation} for {your company name} in the {region of the prospect}. {a sentence about what your company does}

{customer 1, 2, 3} have all moved to {your product} in Q3 to help with:

  1. {benefit 1}
  2. {benefit 2}
  3. {benefit 3}
    And much more

I would love to get on a short call with you for a quick review of your current systems and how we can help.

5. The cold email with useful (helpful) resources 

When you get emails from a stranger asking for your precious time, do you oblige? Well, in most cases, we don’t. That’s the case with your recipients as well, where you are the stranger to them.

So instead of always asking for the lead’s time, share some useful resources that will help them learn more about your solution. Send some of your best blogs that they can consume and also share on their social network. If they like what they see, they will also give you a time to call.

freshsales cold email template resources

Takeaways:

  • Share relevant content

    These emails work because you are giving them the value even before they ask for it.

  • Leave communication open

    In this case, you aren’t pushing for a sale or asking for their time. Instead, you are giving them an option to get in touch with you, which increases their desire to do.

Cold email template:

Hi {recipient name},

{congratulate them on their recent success}

I work with {your company name}. I would love to connect with your {person in charge of implementing the service you are selling} to understand your current processes and suggest how {your product name} can add value to {recipient’s company name}.

I am listing a few features below that might interest you,

  1. {resource 1}
  2. {resource 2}
  3. {resource 3}

I will be looking forward to hearing from you, thanks in advance.

 

6. The cold email with statistical information 

Sharing some helpful information about the prospect’s industry not only grabs their attention but also creates a hook to introduce your solution.

Here’s an example of such an email.

freshsales cold email template helpful information

Takeaways:

  • Use stats to get their attention

    Using performance stats in your cold emails catches attention and creates an aura of authenticity. It also serves as a hook to introduce your solution.

  • Nail your CTA

    When you end your email with “Are you free to talk next week?”, your prospects aren’t going look for a convenient date and time on their calendar to talk to you. Instead, make the decision a lot easier for them by giving them a specific date and time. It reduces the stress of having to look at the calendar and think which date would work for both of you.

Cold email template:

Hi {recipient name},

As the {title of the recipient}, I thought you might find this stat interesting.

{add a recent study about the recipient’s industry}

With this rapid growth in {recipient’s industry}, I’ve had the opportunity to work with companies like {customer 1} and {customer 2} in the {region of the recipient} by improving their {the result of using your product} with {your product name}.

{recipient name}, it would be great if we can get on a short 10-minute call on Friday at 2:00 pm?

7. The generic cold email template

Yes, personalized emails works. But it’s also time-consuming.

Your outreach lead list not only has decision-makers but also involves influencers and the ones below them. And when you send out emails to the latter group, you don’t necessarily have to hyper-personalize it.

Here’s an example of one of our generic cold emails.

freshsales cold email templates generic

Takeaways:

  • Validate yourself

    When you get emails from a stranger, you want to know who is that person and why they matter to you. Any form of social proof – a famous customer, an investor, or a mutual LinkedIn connection – helps to build your credibility and trust with the prospect.

  • Show you have the expertise

    Listing out the customers who share similar persona, pain and priorities show that you have the expertise and builds your credibility.

Cold email template:

Hi {recipient name},

Does {recipient’s company name} have an effective {product domain} strategy for this quarter?

I work with {the recipient’s company vertical} across {recipient’s region} to implement {product domain} strategies across the organization to utilize a more automated, efficient, and user-friendly {department which uses your product}. {A line about your company}

We’ve helped organizations like the {customer 1}, {customer 2}, {customer 3}, and {customer 4} consolidate tools ({the features you have to offer}) to improve {the benefit of your product for the organization}.

Do you have 5-10 minutes this week for a brief call to determine if it makes sense to talk further?

(P.S.- Here is a testimony of how we are helping {customer 5})

These 7 cold ‘situational’ email templates are a great starting point to send emails to your leads. Get creative and add your own spin to make it your own. But always remember, cold emails are most effective when they are personalized to the recipients. When you take the time to learn about your prospects and personalize your emails, you will see better results.

Cover illustration by Udhaya Chandran