What’s a Cold Email? Personal Template & Checklist

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How to Write an Email to Someone You Don’t Know

A cold email is when you write an email to someone you don’t know. People in sales make cold calls where they call prospects out of the blue hoping for a sale, for example.

Now, no one wants to be contacted out of the blue, especially if you’re trying to sell them something.

Luckily, there are ways you can write cold emails that are helpful and increase your chances of succeeding in your outreach!

Every cold email must have these three principles

With every cold email, you should:

  1. Research before you write. Know the company and contact you’re talking to.
  2. Compensate for their time. Offer value to your contact for their time right away.
  3. Add your personal touch. Show why you’re not strangers and how you share certain problems or goals.

Adding a personal touch is where most cold email templates go wrong…

Cold Email Templates: What’s the Problem?

You can find cold email templates out there, but these don’t mean they will fit your specific needs.

Also, it’s good to know that templates can sound robotic because they don’t come from the heart.

After all, people get lots of emails and most of them are not personalized. If you sound like those ones, your email might not even get read.

This is why using a cold email checklist will get you more success since the email you write will sound human and you’re still hitting all the right boxes that make an amazing cold email.

Plus, with templates, you don’t learn how to write a killer cold email – and cold emailing is a skill worth mastering in and of itself!

Cold Email Template Example:

Hey [first name],

Nothing is more frustrating than [insert common niche problem] because you [insert resulting struggle of problem].

Imagine a world where you never have to face the [problem’s struggle] because you can easily [insert solution you provide]. [insert your Offer/Company Name] is where this is reality.

Do you have time this week to chat about how this can solve your specific needs?

[insert email signature here]

Not every situation will fit this template. This means you should use principles instead of templates to lead your cold emailing success!

Below is a checklist that shows you all the components of what makes an amazing cold email and how to make it personal and relatable:

The ultimate checklist to writing a cold email

Would I be comfortable saying this to someone I met IRL for the first time?
Don’t talk about yourself, focus on them
Research your contact and customize it for their interests
Gather info: Personal, Company & Socials
Spell their name, company, and products right
Write a short, compelling & relevant subject line (Less than 6 words)
Offer them value right away
It addresses them directly
Make a warm and pleasant introduction
Write a highly specific and relevant request
Mention a common contact or connect with a common pain point
Mention exactly how much of their time you want and when you want it
Establish why your product/service will benefit them
Describe what makes you credible/successful
Show, don’t tell. Use less words while proving yourself
Relevant-to-industry sign off
Check if you can make your point faster
Make the ask so easy to say yes
“I’ll do whatever it takes to make ____ worth your time and easy for you”
Promise to follow up and create a reminder
Use P.S. to underscore what you’re looking for, create urgency, and personalize your value offered!
DO NOT paste text with different formatting
Think of emails as a piece of news
Double-check links, company name, contact, and products mentioned

A Personalized Cold Email Template

Using the Ultimate Checklist above, here’s what your cold email could look like:

Here’s an example for bloggers or influencers looking to collaborate by writing guest content for other people or businesses. This is a win-win because you gain exposure while the business gets free content.

Hey [blogger name]!

I love the articles you write on [topic] you always seem to [mention what makes them stand out], and while reading [Author’s] piece on the [link to their article with title], I had to reach out cause I write about these topics and I would love to offer to write you a blog post for free!

You know best that [mention their business values and tie them to the topics you’re passionate about]and as a reader, I know your tone and what your audience likes so [your request made extremely accessible] let me know if you’d like an article about [three topics you can write about].

Just shoot me a quick email [your request] because [how you stand out] and [state what makes your offer desirable, e.g. credibility, saving them time].

I know you’re busy, [offering value and increasing desirability] so here’s some ideas that will build your pillar content and improve SEO:

[Show how you’ll connect those topics to other blogs of theirs]

Thanks for considering this! [Add personal sign off]

[Signature]

P.S. Let me know what topic is best and I’ll make it as easy as possible to bring amazing content to your readers!

Use the checklist on social media

Use these cold email principles in this checklist to guide your cold messages for collabs on social media.

But not every person is the right choice because only collaborators that can grow your community are those who your audience does not follow already. Sometimes, you might want your followers influenced by people they do know already!

You can check who your followers follow easily with the Real Influencers tool. Just pick someone and know instantly how much of your audience is shared by that person!

You can easily find which influencers are relevant to your audience by segmenting the people they follow by demographics and keywords.