I'm Laura Lopuch, an email conversion copywriter and strategist. Ask me anything!

Great question, @hqnetworkamanda!

Start with a compliment or flattery. If you can, relate it to what you're asking from them... help them see why you're gonna be asking them for feedback. Then move into your ask.

Here's an example from a real-life email I use for customer interviews/feedback:

"Your cold emails have been converting like crazy! I'm impressed... bet your client pipeline is full.

Because of your huge email success, I'd love to do a quick interview with you on why you picked me and some insight into your selection process."

Also! Be clear about the parameters surrounding your ask. Help them visualize what you're asking of them.

Example: "This interview will be 20-30 minutes and will be conducted via a Zoom video call."

@goramljak - Bad news first: I'm not very familiar with cold email rules in Europe, so my answers won't be helpful for that.

However...

I love that you're asking about personalization in cold emails. Personalization is great.

BUT being highly-relevant to your reader will get you better results. When you answer the question in your reader's mind ("What's in it for me?"), you help them say yes.

Best way to figure out how to answer that question is to do research on who you're emailing...

... and why what you're pitching/selling can: 1) make them more money, 2) help them save money, 3) make them look cool to their boss/colleagues/peers.

@Sameer - research who you're writing to (this helps you find a friendly tone). And write the cold email with the only intention of finding out if the recipient is interested in your product.

Your cold email is designed to start a conversation. Hopefully, that's a sales conversation.

Write the first draft as if you were recommending a tool you love to your friend. We write differently to friends (not salesy) and that relaxed tone is more inviting. Then clean up a little and add a personal touch...

Being on the receiving end as well as sending side of cold outreach, I feel the biggest mistake people make is writing too much... spending too much time introducing yourself & company then stating broad solutions & generic reasons on why we should work together...

Rather than getting straight to the point... identifying a pain and offering a solution all in less than 3 sentences.

I love your questions, @PrimeQuestion. You really made me think.

Biggest mistake: thinking length matters.

Specifically, cold emails should be 3 sentences or less. (So very hard to convince someone to do something in that amount of time... even someone you know!)

I've sent short cold emails that got a 33% response rate. I've sent cold emails that are 5 paragraphs long (with 4 sentences/paragraph) that got me a $20k client.

Length depends on your recipient. So, test long vs short cold emails.

Surprising thing: how scared people are of standing out and being different. Especially in an email. Being different in the inbox is a GOOD thing. It makes your email stand out... get opened... get read... get replied/conversions.

Embrace your difference.

Don't be scared of writing a cold email that looks or feels unlike other emails you've received. That's what you want.

@colevscode - I get the sense you're ready to start cold emailing on a larger scale:)

This is when the cold email game gets a little dicier.

A few good ground rules:

1. Test your email copy on micro-sends (1 email copy for at most 20 recipients) at least 4x before sending to a larger list. See these tests as a learning opportunity to hone in on your recipient and messaging.

2. Make sure the emails on your list -- if you bought it -- are valid. Run them through a verifier. thechecker.co is a good, budget-friendly one.

3. Go slowly when emailing a larger list. That allows for mistakes ('cuz they're gonna happen) and lets you course-correct without a huge fire.

4. If you're cold-emailing in the US, comply with CAN-SPAM laws. Easiest way: put an unsubscribe link at the bottom of your email which immediately unsubs a recipient.

5. Ensure deliverability is good and your domain health stays intact.

In other words, keep your bounce rate low, check your email address at mail-tester.com for spam ratings, and consider using a different domain name (like a .us or .net) to send from, so your main domain stays healthy.

Ha, @felixlfk, I wish there were more widely published stats on cold email % response rates! Best data that I've found is for email marketing as a whole. (Not really helpful.)

I've seen 2% referenced as an average OPEN (not response) rate for cold emails.

To uplevel your cold email game, do two things:

1. Test! Test! Test! Send micro-tests (1 email copy to up to 20 recipients) to quickly test messaging without burning your whole list.
2. Research your recipient. Seriously. It'll make writing the cold email SO.MUCH easier when you feel like you know who's reading your email.

PS if you get stuck on the writing part, record a voice memo with what you wanna say in your cold email. Transcribe it. Edit it. Much easier than starting from a blank doc.

Hey @jas_hothi - thanks for your question!

1. Proofread your email before hitting send. Also, read it out loud to yourself.

2. Make sure the cold email answers your reader's question: "What's in it for me?" (in other words, make it reader-centered and help them see why they should care. Your email shouldn't be filled with lots of "I" or "we.")

3. Be clear in your email. (It's harder than you think!) If you're struggling with that, get a second pair of eyes on your email before sending. Like: your VA, colleague... or your mom. After they've read your email, ask them: what am I selling? What do I want you to do next?

4. Have a clear call to action or next step. Don't be scared to ask for what you want your reader to do. Ask them in clear, unconfusing language.