One thousand replies to cold emails

Last week some rather impressive stats popped up on my Twitter...

I’ve never seen cold outreach scale so well before. So I messaged Ryan, asking for a crash course. He obliged.

Step 1 — Find hot leads

Why do cold emails suck? Well, they’re hopelessly untargeted. The same junk goes out to 1000's of prospects all with different needs.

The trick is to scrape a tighter group of prospects all with similar needs:

• Run a SEO agency? Scrape companies hiring SEOs.

• Sell exec coaching? Scrape companies who’ve just raised money

• Jet insurer? Scrape FAA registrations for new jets.

Step 2 — Turn leads into verified emails

You've got a list of companies. Now you need to find the decision maker. Sometimes you want the CMO, sometimes the CFO, etc.

Prospecting tools get you most emails. You validate them with a deliverability checker. And solve invalids by testing different combinations on ZeroBounce.

Step 3 — Get your email opened

I don't care how good your email is if I don't open it.

Ryan tells me it's personalised preview text that drives opens. So start your email with something personal (your first line becomes the preview).

Oh, and don't forget to add a profile photo.

Step 4 — Get a reply

You do this by offering value upfront. Not by trying to persuade a stranger to schedule a call.

What's the lowest friction next-step your prospect might bite on?

That's your pitch.

And that, my friends, is that. From a company on a database to a CMO on Zoom. It's only fair I give Ryan the last word:

“You probably hate cold email. So let me give you a different challenge.”

“Find 100 people you can help. Offer to help them for free. Blow them away. Let me know what happens next.”

“You'll make more money than 99% of ‘experts’.”

Thanks Ryan for sharing so much. If you'd like him to do all this for you check out Damn Good Leads.

— Harry