How to Write a Powerful Cold Email™
Keep it brief, braggy, and to the point.
Cold emails are one of the strongest tools in your arsenal as a founder. It’s the single best innovation in the world1. Everyone is one click away: angel investors, VCs, Pamela Anderson, strategic partners, hires, Bill Gates, etc.
Think about that for a second. 4000 years of innovation in long distance communication—smoke signals, homing pigeons, couriers, radio— have built up to this moment in which you can reach anyone in the world in a few clicks. It’s magic. But for it to be effective it needs to be good.
A good cold email is brief (200 words max), braggy, and to the point. Never write long paragraphs.
Here’s my formula:
Title: [Short + attention grabbing] “Quick intro to Bazzumba VR” or “Founder chat” or “Quick question” or “Founder question”
Hi XYZ,
[An eye-catching one-liner] I know you get 100s of these, so I’ll keep it brief:
[Intro, brag here] My name is Besart; 5+ years of experience in bungee jumping/ MA in Olympic Bungee Jumping; led the Bungee Jumping team at Cisco with a $400M budget
[Describe idea; include a Loom demo or product link] I’m building a VR bungee jumping platform for Olympic jumpers, targeting the $2B market of wanna-be bungee jumpers. Demo here.
[Execution/ Traction: hard cold numbers are most impressive, bolden them] In 2 months since launching, we have sold 35 subscriptions and reached $5,000MRR; we also signed an LOI with the Bungee Jumping School of Narnia.
[Whatever else you think is relevant; just make sure each bulletpoint is thematic and succinct] Bazzumba VR…
[Ask; be specific and never ask for more than 15 minutes; say “next few weeks” instead of days so you don’t seem desperate and/or demanding] I read your thesis on Bungee Jumping and it resonated a lot with what we’re building and our vision. Do you have 15 minutes anytime in the next few weeks to jump on a call?
Best,
BC
Misc
On attitude
“But I am shy/ embarrassed!” No one cares; worst case, they’ll see your email and ignore it. You should realize that between you and someone who does send an email to ask for something, the person who sends the email will get the thing.
You are not entitled to a response in the same way you’re not obliged to respond to every email you get.
Read Super Brief by Axios, and Internal Tech Emails (best one) for fun
Attachments: If you’re pitching, generally it’s better to attach a one-pager instead of the deck. If you want to attach a deck, attach a Loom go-through.
Know your audience: some people prefer Very Professional emails, some see them as a red flag and prefer a more casual tone. Do a little research on your recipient, check their Twitter, LinkedIn. Sense ~the vibe~.
Three Follow-Ups rule: three follow-ups are good. If you have something meaningful to share in the follow-ups–like more traction or a new contract–even better. Otherwise, something like “Just doing a quick follow-up here!” works.
Spell check
Things I’ve gotten via cold emails: trip to the Arctic, access to a billionaire’s rooftop for a party, epic internships (can’t name names so they don’t get spammed), epic jobs (ditto), met the Pope, etc.