Entrepreneur

We immediately report it as spam.

I would respond to a cold email, but only for something I actually need/want.

The offer is more important than the copy of the email.

I get a lot of cold emails, I deliberately subscribe to them to see what is happening...however there are few folks out there do send great emails which I open and read.

I don't know, as I've yet seen one I would respond to.The biggest and best companies don't use this tactic.

I find them scammy or illegitimate at the very least. It feels like an invasion of privacy or something, and a tactic only a beginner would use. I don't deal with beginners, as I want a proven product and company. That's my thought on it.

A guy sent me an email with an embedded video where he was looking at my website. I didn't watch the video but I did give him the courtesy of a polite rejection. Better than most get.

I've responded to cold emails on things I actually want or need. 99.9% of them get deleted immediately

I've learned in sales that the NUMBER 1 thing that gets people to respond is a very simple formula:

Legitimate need + free value

Identify that they need what you have, but don't sell them right away. Provide the free value. Sometimes, when the time is right you can add an emotional variable and use that to persuade someone to take action towards the next steps.

You should ask /r/sales. They’ll get to straight to what works and you can adapt it to your audience.

Shorter is better, 59 words or less.

How does someone even start doing research in a new domain they are interested in?

I noticed you use X. We have this high value thing we do related to it. Want to talk further? Social proof in signature.

99% of the cold emails I receive have obviously done zero pre-qualifying. They’re simply using a shotgun approach to see if anybody bites. By externalizing the work of determining if there’s even an apparent need/fit, they create so much noise and digital litter that I’ve almost become completely inured to it. Almost. It is still annoying.

It’s extremely rare that an email shows any evidence whatsoever that the sender has even looked at my website or profile(s) to see whether their offering or ask is relevant to me.

I consider this approach disrespectful as it attempts toaster the time and attention of thousands of random recipients, and it leaves a bad aftertaste, which I associate with the sender (person and brand).

On the extremely rare occasion that someone has actually bothered to determine whether I might need their product or services, and simply mentions why they have a reasonable suspicion that they’re a good fit, I do respond.

But this requires them to spend time looking at my work and understanding me, before asking me to look at and understand theirs. Almost no one does this. All of the tactics people use to appear like they’ve done their homework (without actually doing it) are painfully obvious. And if you’re looking for people who are easily fooled, I definitely don’t want to do business with you.

Nada.

If the email is offering something that will improve my business.

Never

I once bought a marketing service from cold email. A kind that I didn’t even know existed.

They delivered it, but it was a huge waste of money. Now I automatically mark all cold emails as spam.

That was literally the only time I bought something from cold email.

Cold contact is deleted immediately. My receptionist is told to delete everything

None.

I never even open an email from someone I don't recognize.

Also, I run my own mail server, and I have custom spam and security running that block tons of stuff already before it's received, so it's very rare that I'll even see a cold email.

None. I send them all to spam folder.

We have an affiliate program and so occasionally I reply with a link to our affiliate program to sign up for (if you really can get us leads or business for free, sign up for our affiliate program and have at it!)

But the best was when I was invited to a private dinner at Wrigley Field. I basically replied "sure tell me more" and even week of, I was considering bailing - but I'm so glad I didn't. We had drinks and ate dinner ON Wrigley Field.

Never became a client of theirs, though.

I mark as spam without opening. Otherwise it's triggers the next email in the sequence where the "manager" sends a follow-up. I want their email tracker to mark it as unopened and classified as spam so they take me off their list.

RemindMe! 5 days

None that start with:

Quick Question?

Are you the right person?

Are you free to speak about Design Concerns?

I feel like setting up an automatic rule in Gmail to report any email that has those in the subject line as spam.

I mean it must work as I get hammered with them daily, but come on we can do better with even 5 mins of thinking time spent on that subject line can't we.

Basically, only would reply if it says the following:

Sup GigaChad,

Single ladies in your area - reply "I WANT", if you're interested.

Cheers, Josh

Nothing. They all go to spam. Especially all the mindless follow up emails. I didn't reply the first time. I'm not going to reply on the 5th.

Which garners more interaction: a knock at the door or a door-hung flyer? The same principle applies to emails. A personal touch matters. Automated emails often lack personalization, inundated with text and mundane images, resulting in a mere 2% click rate. On the flip side, our client-focused approach yields a remarkable 75-100% email engagement. Despite being resource-intensive, we limit campaigns to 2,000 contacts. Custom tools generate bios for each contact, and our strategy involves a tailored initial email, a monthly check-in, and a personalized inquiry about their needs. The automated yet personalized system culminates with an announcement or call to action, consistently including a prompt to refer potential beneficiaries. This approach proves highly effective for lead generation.

None. If I'm looking for it needing something, I'll find you.

I'll tell you what I absolutely don't respond to, the ones saying 'I've scheduled you for a call tomorrow let me know if that's convenient". So presumptuous, it immediately pisses me off!

You are asking to the incorrect people

For everyone: this is an example of invalid market research

You can't ask reddit active commenters something and expect anything useful comes out of it. It's like if youtube asked people what kind of ads they liked.

The whole process is flawed because you first get an interaction bias: Only people that actually comment will respond to you (like me), it'll skew so much the outcome that you'll be led to belive false things

Then you get the kindness (or not) bias: where people try to be nice to you vastly over stating their actual response should you try to expose them to your product

​

You need to ask *sales* reddit, that's the correct spot. Either that or run A/B tests yourself until you start getting better results.

It seems to me that cold emails have become a numbers game. Lots of companies hire entry level or outsourced individuals to purely cold contact as many people as they came because more impressions means better sales and marketing right? I don't think that's right. Quality contact whether call or email would make the work of cold calling and emailing a better place for everyone. Reduce the spam!

There’s a bias already installed in me from 99% of cold emails being worthless. I still open cold emails because I don’t remember if I know the person but as soon as I see is a sales email with no knowledge of what I do or need I delete it. If I see it’s from a mailing list I report it as spam because I never subscribed to that.

I don’t remember responding to any cold emails in the last few years. I would respond if it’s personalized and I can see you looked me up. Don’t offer me stuff, ask to understand something about me or my business. Just a couple of questions over email, don’t ask me for a call. Build the relationship. Have content online as social proof for when I look you up before responding, etc.

Include a video of you talking. I've seen this work for some

I don’t respond to them or cold calls. If I need something I’ll look for it. Unfortunately you get sales reps who don’t understand no and keep harassing you and sending meetings, or find your personal cell so you start blocking numbers.

We also don’t do cold calls or cold emails. Go to events, word of mouth and advertising.

My favorite strategies for making cold emailing more effective and less awkward💁🏼‍♀️

Tried and True techniques, copy and paste these somewhere so you can reference them!!

Friendly Introduction

• ⁠Start with "Hi [Recipient's Name]," and then mention something you admire about their work or company. For example, "I was really impressed by your latest product launch!"

Personalized Offer

• ⁠Get straight to the point, but keep it friendly. "I thought of you when I came across something that could really help with [specific challenge or opportunity you noticed about their company]."

Relatable Success Story

• ⁠Share a quick story or example. "Just last month, we helped a company like yours achieve [specific result], and I believe we can do the same for you."

Easy Next Step

• ⁠Suggest a no-pressure call or meeting. "Would you be open to a quick chat next week? I promise to keep it short and sweet!"

Warm Closing

• ⁠Thank them and add a personal touch. "Thanks for considering this, [Recipient's Name]. Looking forward to the possibility of working together!"

These prompts should help make your cold emails feel more personal and engaging which should (in theory) help the chances of getting a positive response. The goal is to start a conversation, not just pitch your product or service.