There are plenty of marketers and salespeople out there who will tell you “email is dead.” The truth is email isn’t dead; it’s just far more competitive than it used to be. People receive hundreds of emails every day, so it is vital that your email is compelling enough to capture their attention amid the noise in their inbox.

This blog will show you four email templates shared by Bryan Kreuzberger in a webinar he recently did with our partner, Sandler Training. Bryan outlines the drawbacks of different kinds of emails and offers advice on which emails give the best results. You can watch the webinar at https://www.sandler.com/resources/webinars/cold-email-prospecting.

THE STANDARD

Bryan tested this email on a variety of prospects and found it gave him an 8% response rate. Not terrible, but not exactly impressive.

It probably looks like something you have either sent or received – it’s a basic format that many people use. But, there is one fundamental problem with it – it is written from the perspective of the writer. A good email thinks about the person on the other side of the email, the person reading it.

A lot of people tend to write about themselves in their emails – but unfortunately, the sad truth is that the customer doesn’t care about you.

When reading an email, the customer is generally asking themselves five questions:

1. Is this for me?
2. Do I understand it?
3. Is it an opportunity or does it relate to me and my problems?
4. Is it worth my time?
5. Am I the right person?

Your goal is for the answer to every one of those questions to be “yes.” So, you need to be clear about who you’re trying to reach, why you’re contacting them, and share an opportunity that provides them with enough value that they feel it is worth their time to respond.

THE SHORT & SWEET

This email subscribes to the idea that short and sweet is the key to success, but that isn’t always the case. Email gives you an unparalleled opportunity to carefully think through what you’re saying and craft the perfect conversation starter. It shouldn’t be a rushed couple of sentences sent out from your smartphone.

Remember you’re trying to create an opportunity for the reader. Without that opportunity, most people are going to dismiss it as not worthy of their time.

THE CHAMPION

In this e-mail, you’re getting right to the point quickly, and someone will instantly be aware of what it is you’re aiming to do. It clearly outlines the benefit to them and uses statistics and name dropping to capture their interest and increase credibility.

The final sentence in the email is also very effective. Did you know that using the word “calendar” gets a 35% increase in response rate over the word “schedule”? Similarly, “talk” garners a 60% increase in response rate over “meet” or “call.”  Words matters, so take the time to choose them carefully.

According to Bryan, the words in bold were tested in over 10,000 individual emails and were chosen because they generate an 80% response rate.

Even with an 80% response rate, that still leaves 20% of the time where you’re being met with radio silence.

If that happens, even after multiple follow-ups, it’s time to pull out the email big guns.

THE BIG GUNS

You may think that it’s a little risky to send this e-mail. If they respond that they aren’t interested, haven’t you lost any chance of making a sale? Perhaps. But, it’s better to find out that there’s no sale to be made than to waste your time continuing to reach out.

This e-mail received a 76% response rate, so even if they aren’t interested, at least you will know.

Keeping these last two email templates in your cold email arsenal will set you up to receive the most responses possible and ultimately the most sales. Happy emailing!