{"id":4988,"date":"2015-07-30T17:08:00","date_gmt":"2023-10-18T17:08:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/?p=4988"},"modified":"2023-10-18T17:36:02","modified_gmt":"2023-10-18T17:36:02","slug":"sales-leads-email","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ca\/blog\/sales-leads-email\/","title":{"rendered":"The Do\u2019s and Don\u2019ts of Approaching Sales Leads via Email"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When Heather Morgan arrived in Silicon Valley a few years ago, she knew hardly anyone. When she got a business development role at a gaming startup, she knew she had to meet potential investors and partners fast, and she\u2019s since turned the email techniques she developed into a business of her own.<\/p>\n

Morgan, the CEO of Salesfolk<\/a>, was the featured guest in a recent Webinar hosted by InsideSales<\/a>, a predictive analytics service supported by Salesforce Ventures. She says that while lots of salespeople rely on email to drive leads, they often overlook simple do\u2019s and don\u2019ts that can turn what\u2019s really a mass mailing into what looks and feels much more personalized. Her results speak for themselves: a 67 per cent response rate on some messages. Keep these in mind before you press \u201csend.\u201d<\/p>\n

Do: Act like you would if you were calling or meeting in person<\/b><\/p>\n

Although many firms will create a CSV file with hundreds of names, Morgan suggests getting a better sense of your target\u2019s common pain points by diving deeper on a small sample. She recommends extracting at least three names from the list and exploring their LinkedIn profiles, for instance.<\/p>\n

\u201cTake note of the bullets, their skills, how they recommend people, how they\u2019re recommended and how they describe their job,\u201d she says. \u201cGo on Twitter, forums, look at what kind of content they\u2019re consuming, writing and sharing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t: Standardize a subject line<\/b><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re cold emailing with \u201cIntroduction from [Company Name],\u201d don\u2019t be surprised if you get silence in return. \u201cMany of the subject lines people use are based on templates that haven\u2019t changed in 10 years,\u201d Morgan says. \u201cPeople want a magic bullet, but in reality is once you have that, people become immune to that trick and very weary of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Do: Promise specific value before they hit \u2018open.\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n

Like any other facet of sales, cold emailing is about forming a relationship, Morgan says. That\u2019s why subject lines should be less about the company sending the message and more about what you can offer the recipient, whether it\u2019s advice, a tip or helpful feedback. Think about something like \u2018Idea for meeting [Company Name\u2019s] sales objectives,\u201d which Morgan\u2019s firm has used for a client. \u201cIt got a 53 per cent open rate,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t: Use your company boilerplate as your key message<\/b><\/p>\n

Companies often try to summarize what they do in marketing material, and then make the mistake of using it as the basis of cold email messages, Morgan says. Yet that first sentence is key to whether or not a prospect will show an interest. Avoid starters like, \u201cI wanted to introduce our company, which is the market leader in XYZ,\u201d or \u201cWe\u2019re a growing company that\u2019s revolutionizing the way . . .\u201d All the reader wants to know is what\u2019s in it for them, Morgan says.<\/p>\n

Do: Build \u2018social proof\u2019 as early as possible<\/b><\/p>\n

Although trying to build credibility by suggesting your company has a track record of successful projects and tailor-made products and services, Morgan says the best approach is to use real numbers and, where possible, real names of other customers. She offered an opening line she used for an actual cold email. \u201cWe have a theory about leveraging the power of games to increase sales productivity. This same concept has helped [Name Customer] increase their revenue by 100 per cent in eight weeks, and achieve a 65 per cent increase in outbound emails over three months.\u201d This is the \u201csocial proof\u201d Morgan says will keep prospects engaged.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t: End without a clear call to action<\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cYou can get everything else right, but if you screw up your CTA your whole email was a waste,\u201d Morgan says. \u201cThe biggest mistake is people forget they need to have an incentive for the prospect to respond in their CTA.\u201d How many times have you seen this one: \u201cIf there is a question you want to ask, feel free to message me at any time.\u201d Compare it with the following: \u201cWhen do you have time for a short call so I can learn a bit more about (company\u2019s) sales processes and share my sales productivity idea with you?\u201d Whether or not the prospect ends up doing business with you, they know they\u2019re at least likely to learn something if they connect.<\/p>\n

Do: Email them more than once<\/b><\/p>\n

No one wants to risk seeming like they\u2019re hounding a prospect, but Morgan says the most successful cold email campaigns can involve eight different messages. \u201cThe majority of your results will probably come through numbers five through eight,\u201d she says. The trick is to make sure each message focuses on only one idea or benefit to the prospect. Value propositions could include fear of loss, competitive issues, or a desire they have. In other words, even the best cold emails may take a while before the sales lead is ready to warm up.<\/p>\n

To find out more on how you can find new customers faster than ever and grow and optimize your sales pipeline with the right tools, check out our free eBook:<\/p>\n

\"7<\/img><\/a><\/p>\n

<\/span> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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