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Let's face it: entrepreneurship is hard and especially so in the already-crowded eCommerce industry. Developing products, reaching out to potential customers, general advertising, choosing fulfillment methods – it's all hectic work that requires more gumption than most of us have. There's also another part of the job that many tend to be a little anxious about, and that's cold emailing. It's a necessary evil, but one that you can work to improve at. Here are five essential tips that will help it become more effective and more efficient.
What is Cold Emailing and How Does it Work?
Cold emailing is the process of reaching out to potential customers or clients who you don't know or haven't had any contact with before. It can be used to generate leads, get new customers, or even land a job.
The basic idea behind cold emailing is that you send a message to someone who you think might be interested in what you have to offer, and then hope that they will either reply to your message or take some other action that benefits you.
There are a lot of different ways to go about cold emailing, but the most important thing is to personalize your messages as much as possible. This means doing your research on the person you're trying to reach out to, and making sure that
Pros of Cold Emailing
1. Lower cost – Cold emailing is a very cost effective way to reach out to potential customers or clients, as it doesn’t involve any traditional forms of marketing such as TV or radio ads.
2. Reaching more people – When you cold email someone, there's no limit to how many people you can reach out to at once. You can potentially reach hundreds or even thousands of people with just one campaign, which gives your business greater exposure and increases the chances of getting a response from someone interested in what you have to offer.
3. Personalization – By personalizing your messages, you have a much better chance of reaching the right person and having them actually read and respond to your message.
Cons of Cold Emailing
1. Low response rate – Because you don’t know the person you’re sending a message to, and because they haven't had any contact with you before, it's likely that most of your cold emails will be ignored.
2. Spamming – If a lot of people mark your message as spam, it could hurt your business in the long run, as it makes it harder for you to reach out to potential customers or clients in the future.
3. Unprofessionalism – If done improperly or too often, cold emailing can come across as unprofessional and annoying, which could turn off potential customers or clients.
Related: How to Deal with eCommerce Slow Season
5 Top Tips for Better Emails
Make no mistake, however. While we recognize the importance of cold emails, we also understand they're not always the best technique. Their effectiveness is evenly split with one part luck and one part skill. We may not be able to help in the luck department, but we can offer a few pointers in skill one. For better cold emails, you should:
1. Always tailor your message
Do you hate those messages or calls you know have been sent out to a thousand people? Odds are, yeah. Please don't do that to someone else. It's painful to watch, quite frankly, and assuredly not appreciated. Tailoring your message is both courteous and will likely garner better responses. Do your research. Show why you're reaching out and make it clear why you're specifically messaging them rather than others.
2. Be mindful of time
Just like social media, email has certain windows of time that are better or worse. Sending a cold email along on a Saturday night will yield nothing except an unnecessary distraction for you, so don't bother. Instead, send them along when they're most likely to be read. A little research on who you're contacting might help, but if not late mornings, Tuesdays, and Thursdays are often best.
3. Be brief
There are a time and the place for fluff, but it's not cold emails. Always go for brevity. Short, sweet, and to the point will get you further than pretending to be the next Chaucer.
4. Remember to follow up
Sometimes silence speaks volumes, but sometimes it just speaks, well, nothing. If your cold email gets no response, don't be too discouraged. Feel free to follow up again. Most research indicates this increases your odds of interest, and if nothing else, it can't hurt to try.
Sample Follow-up Cold Email:
“Hi there,
I just wanted to follow up on my previous email to see if you had any questions or comments about what I had to offer.
Hope to hear from you soon!”
5. Show some vulnerability
Confidence is usually everything in business, but cold emails are a completely different beast. You want to appear lighthearted, honest, humble, and even a little submissive. The ball is in their court, not yours. Don't try to force it to be.
Additional Tips
Add a call-to-action- Make sure you include some kind of call-to-action at the end of your messages, such as asking them to reply or offering a free trial or sample of your product or service.
Sample Call-to-action:
“If you're interested in learning more, reply to this email and I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Track your results – Keep track of how many people you’re reaching out to, and how many responses you get so that you can gauge the effectiveness of your cold emailing campaigns.
Related: How to Get Free Samples on Amazon?
How to Get Started with Cold Emailing
Now that you know the basics of cold emailing and some tips for how to do it effectively, it’s time to get started.
Create a list of potential customers or clients
The first step is to create a list of potential customers or clients that you want to reach out to. You can use tools like LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Google search engine results pages (SERPs) to find people who might be interested in what you have to offer.
Compose your message
Once you’ve compiled your list, the next step is to compose your message. Make sure it’s short, but also includes enough information so that the recipient knows exactly what you’re offering and why they should consider taking it up.
Send your message
Now it’s time to send your message. You can either use a mass emailing service such as MailChimp or Constant Contact, or you can just copy and paste your message into each individual email address.
Track your results
Once you’ve sent out your emails, it’s time to track the responses. This will help you identify which messages are effective, and which ones aren’t so that you can adjust your strategy accordingly.
Examples of effective cold emails
If you’re looking for some inspiration when it comes to crafting your cold emails, here are a few examples of effective messages:
1. “Hello {Name}, I hope this message finds you well. I wanted to let you know about our new {product/service} that could help {benefit}. If you’d like to learn more, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Cheers!”
2. “Hi {Name}, I recently came across your website and noticed that you might be interested in our {product/service}. Would you like to learn more?”
3. “Hey there, I know how busy everyone is these days, so I’ll get straight to the point. Our {product/service} could help streamline your {process}, making it easier and more efficient. If you have some time, I’d love to chat with you about it.”
Conclusion
Cold emailing is an effective way to reach out to potential customers or clients that might not be aware of your product or service. However, it can also be risky if done incorrectly or too often, as it can come across as unprofessional or spammy. By following the tips outlined above and crafting thoughtful messages that are tailored for each individual recipient, you can increase your chances of getting a positive response and establishing lasting relationships with new clients or customers.
Recommended: Is Outsourcing Customer Support a Good Idea?
