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How I Do Cold Outreach for Startups (That Actually Gets Replies)

Picture of Ian Spencer By  Ian Spencer  ·  2 minute read

Cold email outreach, it's a minefield of a topic! You have probably already experienced your carefully crafted emails vanish into the digital abyss? I feel your pain. I've seen the good, the bad, and the downright ugly of email outreach.

But here's the secret: Email isn't dead. It's just that most people are doing it wrong. They're blasting out generic messages, spamming inboxes, and wondering why they get tumbleweeds in response.

I'm here to tell you that there's a better way. It's not about volume, it's about value. It's not about tricks, it's about authenticity. And it's not about selling, it's about connecting.

The Startup Email Death Spiral (And How to Avoid It)

Let's be honest: Most startup emails are terrible. They're full of buzzwords, jargon, and empty promises. They're long, boring, and irrelevant. And they reek of desperation.

Most startups are also failing with basic email deliverability. DON'T send emails from your main domain, you multiple secondary domains just for sending outreach emails.

This is the email death spiral. You send out mass emails, hoping to catch a few fish. But your prospects are smarter than that. They can smell a generic email a mile away. So they hit delete, unsubscribe, or mark you as spam.

The result? Your sender reputation tanks, your open rates plummet, your reply rates are non-existent and your email marketing strategy becomes a black hole.

My Anti-Spam Email Manifesto

  1. Target Like a Sniper: Forget mass emailing. Focus on quality over quantity. Research your target audience, segment your lists, and personalise your messages. Check out Clay, probably the most disruptive tool for outreach personalisation.
  2. Write Like a Human: Ditch the corporate speak. Use plain language, humour, and storytelling. Be yourself, not a sales bot.
  3. Offer Value Upfront: Don't just ask for things. Give something of value first. Share insights, offer resources, or provide solutions to their problems.
  4. Keep it Short and Sweet: Nobody has time to read a novel in their inbox. Get to the point quickly and make it easy for them to take action (try to write a 50 word email with clear pain point alignment)
  5. Follow Up (But Don't Be a Stalker): A single email rarely closes a deal. Follow up strategically, but don't bombard your prospects with endless emails.
  6. Optimise for Mobile: Most people check their email on their phones. Make sure your emails look great on small screens and load quickly.
  7. Track Your Results: Use email marketing software to track open rates, click-through rates, reply rates and conversions. Use this data to refine your approach. And use this data to create experiments every week. Test and Learn.

Real-World Examples (Because They're Worth a Thousand Words)

  • Personalised Cold Email: A startup I worked with was sending generic emails with an avg. open rate of just 11%. We used Clay to map their ICP and sent personalised cold emails to narrow segments within the ICP, highlighting specific pain point problem solving to each cohort. The first new campaign didn't set the pipeline on fire, nor did the second, but the 3rd generated an open rate of 63% and a 28% reply rate (demo booked).

Clay - Outreach Personalisation at Scale

  • Value-Driven Newsletter: Another startup I work with had a problem with nurturing leads 60 days after they had been generated and gone cold, we launched a newsletter packed with industry insights, tips, and free resources. This helped them establish thought leadership, without asking for a sales and meeting and generate warm re-engagement leads based on thought leadership.

The Secret Sauce: Authenticity and Empathy

At the end of the day, successful email outreach is about building relationships. It's about understanding your audience, connecting with them on a personal level, and offering genuine value.

So, be yourself. Be authentic. Be empathetic. And watch your email results soar.

Ready to Up Your Email Game?

If you're ready to ditch the spammy tactics and start building meaningful relationships with your audience, I'm here to help. Let's craft an email strategy that gets results. Connect with me on LinkedIn.

Remember: Email is a powerful tool, but only if you use it wisely. So, stop spamming and start connecting!