Examples of Great Cold Emails

You become great at writing cold email campaigns by studying quality cold emails. Here are 8 strong examples of emails that you can use in your own cold outreach.

A note on body copy: We’ve found that plain text emails convert better than emails that include other content (e.g. distracting images or HTML). And as you’ll read shortly in our deliverability section, anything other than plain text will reduce the number of inboxes that you reach. So keep it simple—use text if you can.

1. SaaS Sales

Goal: Book a sales call

Subject: Love your work—think we can grow together

Why it’s great:

• Provides a reason for reaching out: “I see that you’re using MailChimp” and “I’m confident we can improve the revenue you’re generating from your newsletter list.”
• Handles key objection: Julian will immediately wonder 1) if Customer IO truly is better and 2) if it’ll be more expensive. The email handles both objections by indicating that 1) many other companies are switching over (social proof) and 2) that they’re less expensive than MailChimp.
• Adds personal touch: “I read your writing guide.”
• One CTA: “Got time for a 15-minute chat...” is a yes/no question. It’s the clear goal of the email.

2. Podcast request

Goal: Get a reply to schedule a podcast appearance

Subject: Morning Brew Podcast (1.5M Listeners)

Why it’s great:

• Gave a reason for reaching out: Indicates why he’s reaching out without fluff.
• Handles key objection: Mark Cuban wants a high ROI on his time. Mentioning 1.5M downloads is social proof that handles Mark’s objection, “Is it worth my time?”
• Adds personal touch: “As someone who read your book when I was growing up…” is personal and proves to Mark that the email isn’t automated. It’s thoughtful.
• One CTA: “Would you be down to do a podcast...” is a yes/no question. It’s the clear goal of the email.

3. Investment request

Goal: Book a call to discuss angel investment

Subject: [Company name] x Pre-seed

Why it’s great:

• Gave a reason for reaching out: Nick indicates that they’re looking for pre-seed investment.
• Handles key objection: Any investor will immediately wonder if the startup has traction. Nick handles the object by mentioning that they have 12,000 members in a pilot.
• Adds personal touch: “I’m in the Demand Curve community” and “You are one of three angels I have cold emailed” are two personal touches that ensure that the email isn’t automated.
• One CTA: “If the above is a fit, let’s chat” is a simple CTA that, if effective, will get Julian to respond so Nick can schedule a call.
• De-risked: “I’ll share my top community building insights…” de-risks a call. Even if it doesn’t work out, there’s something in it for Julian.

4. Feedback request

Goal: Book a call or get a reply

Subject: Reaching out from S20 - [Sender name]

Why it’s great:

• Clear reason for reaching out: “I’m trying to learn a little more about how teams use [competitor products]”
• Handles key objection: Subject line and body (hidden to cover company name) include “S20,” indicating that Nick is part of a YC company and is therefore a vetted entrepreneur. It’s social proof that handles the objection, “Why should I get on the phone with you?”
• Adds personal touch: “...thought this might be a good fit considering that Demand Curve has a webapp” includes information about Julian’s company which proves that Nick has done research.
• One CTA: Nick asks for a call and links to Calendly. He also offers the alternative to chat via email, which could be an attractive option that prompts a quicker response. Calls are often daunting for people. Email is easier. Either way, he’s simply requesting a response.
• De-risked: “I can share some tactics that are so insightful you’ll want to use them for Demand Curve’s newsletter” makes the call valuable for Julian.
• A note on linking calendars: You could be a bit more polite and say something along the lines of, "Please let me know some times that work for you, or if it's easier, feel free to book a time for yourself here."

5. Building a portfolio

Goal: Get high quality case studies

Subject: Cold Email As A Service 💌

Why it’s great:

• Clear reason for reaching out: To provide a free service in exchange for case studies.
• Handles key objection: Andrew is offering a completely free service.
• Adds personal touch: Mentioning that he already has 7 YC companies on board is personal because Demand Curve is also a YC company.
• One CTA: “Would you be interested?” is a yes/no question prompting a reply.

6. Switch from a competitor

Goal: Book a call

Subject: [Name], still in love with [competitor]?

Why it’s great:

• Clear reason for reaching out: The sender saw that the prospect was using a competitor’s tool. She’s reaching out to highlight why Activecampaign is a better tool.
• Handles key objection: She explains that Activecampaign could do more for this prospect and a lower price than the competitor. Handles the objection, “Will this cost more?”
• Adds personal touch: Mentioning that Activecampaign integrates with Thinkific shows the prospect that the email is meant specifically for them since they use Thinkific to run online courses.
• One CTA: She asks for a phone call and links an easy way for the prospect to book time with her. It’s a clear request.
• De-risked: “I’ll provide some new email marketing tactics…” de-risks the call for Julian, since he’ll get something out of it regardless.

7. SaaS sales 2

Goal: Book a call

Subject: thought I’d reach out, [first name]

Why it’s great:

• Clear reason for reaching out: This is relevant to you if you need help organizing virtual corporate events.
• Handles key objection: Including a screenshot of the product de-risks the prospect’s time replying: they’ll reply if they have the problem and like the design/functionality that they see in the screenshot.
• Incorrect—fails to personalize: If there’s one area where this email falls short, it’s in personalization. They don’t include a line that makes the recipient feel like the message was uniquely for them.
• One CTA: Emie asks for a phone call and links an easy way for the prospect to book time with her. It’s a clear request.

8. SaaS sales 3

Goal: Book a call

Subject: Lunch on me?

Important note: This is a follow up email. We’ll get into follow ups shortly, but the email body copy itself is worth examining at this point.

Why it’s great:

• Clear reason for reaching out: They tried reaching out before, and they have a product that the prospect might find value in.
• Handles key objection: Uses social proof “IBM, Salesforce, Oracle” and also incentivizes prospects with a DoorDash gift card—ultimately getting more prospects to reply that otherwise would ignore.
• Personalization: While this email fails to include a personal note, the tone feels personal—like a friend reaching out. In instances where your list is too big to personalize, consider adding a single emoji to come across as lighthearted and playful.

One CTA: Asks the prospect for a phone call on Friday afternoon.