“I need help creating a cold email template that will work. What do you recommend?”

Well for starters, I recommend using valuable content delivered via email and social media marketing channels to generate warm leads rather than having sales reps send massive amounts of cold emails to prospects that are already getting bombarded with cold emails. With that said, if you still want to create a solid cold email template but aren’t sure how to word it, let’s start by learning what NOT to say.

I went to my JUNK folder, and it was filled with cold emails. I have four examples of common failed attempts and an example of ONE REALLY GOOD ONE that actually worked. Let’s take a look…

Cold Email Templates to Avoid

Below are the first sentences of each of the four (4) cold email templates that went straight to the junk file and stayed there:

• “I am not quite sure if you would be my main contact, however….”

• “I thought you might be interested in trying a new BLAH, BLAH, BLAH.”

• “Do you or your organization need any software programming help?”

• “Michael, you can save by comparing today!”

I’m really hoping I don’t have to explain why these cold email openers failed. It should be self-evident. Even so, it can still be hard to write one that has the positive effect you are going after, which is to get an interested prospect to reach/raise their hand. Allow me to show you one that did just that…

The One Cold Email That Worked (And Why)

“University of Florida’s recent graduates are seeking job opportunities.”

Now, how is this different? Is it because it mentions UF specifically? Nope. That’s not it.

What the sender DID do is hit a HOT BUTTON and not in a salesy way.

What this sender did was A) know its targeted audience (small business) and B) its pain: The chance of finding a candidate that would help the company grow – that the company could afford.

The sender knows that a small business isn’t looking to hire someone with a lot of experience because lots of experience usually comes with a much higher salary requirement.

Small business owners FREQUENTLY turn to recent college grads for their next team member. And when you tease the opening line of the cold email with “… graduates (who) are seeking job opportunities,” it brings the prospect front and center to a pressing problem and offers a possible chance of solving it. That is what gets a decision-maker’s attention!

When it comes to writing your cold email template, think TWITTER: 140 characters. If you can’t hit a HOT BUTTON in the first 140 characters, you might want to rethink that email before pressing the send button.

– Michael Pedone – Founder of SalesBuzz.com

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