Email outreach still works.
And, there’s a simple reason why.
People still like making connections with each other.
Email outreach is powerful because everybody has an email address.
Think about it.
Based on recent research, half the people have an email account. Your prospect might not be inclined to spend time don’t their socials, but they will be checking their email.
That’s why it’s so powerful.
In this email outreach guide, we’ll be brushing up on your skills, whether it’s for direct marketing, nurturing leads, or even building backlinks like the good old days.
Let’s get this show on the road!
Set Expectations
Email outreach doesn’t bring in leads in the same way as other platforms.
You can’t expect to have an 80 percent reply rate to your email outreach. You’ll have to take factors such as your open rates, people’s reluctance to deal with people they don’t know, and the overall message that you have in your email into account.
And, even if you do get a decent reply, not all of them will convert.
You need to set your expectations right earlier on.
An open rate of around 30 percent should be the goal according to many, but it won’t be like that the first time you send emails out.
Try to build up your campaign slowly but surely and do frequent audits to make sure you can correct mistakes along the way.
You’ll find that rates steadily increasing.
Make Sure You Do Proper Email Hygiene
The first thing that you have to do is proper email hygiene.
Before you send out any emails to people on your mailing list, make sure that you comb through your list and check if they’re still worth sending an email to.
This means segmenting your email list for persona types, checking if any of the emails bounce, or if you have duplicate data.
As much as possible, you shouldn’t use email lists, in a lot of places you could get in trouble for this and we are yet to see a vendor with a list that matches your ideal customer profile.
Make sure that the lists you’re using are built in-house using proper methods.
…And Warm Up That Email Address
Once you’re ready, use an email address that has already been warmed up.
If you’re using a new email address, email outreach might not work well because ISPs might think what you’re doing – sending emails en masse – is spammy. It’s better to use an email address that’s active and has been used before.
Work on That Subject Line
Everyone knows that the subject line is the most important part of any email that you send out because it’s the first thing that people will read. This is why it’s commonplace for people to advise not to use phrases such as “free offer” in order for spam filters not to get triggered.
There’s something worse than getting caught in the spam filter.
It’s writing a subject line that doesn’t work.
If you’re stuck trying to come up with good subject line ideas, do a quick scan of your inbox.
Which subject lines have you opened that are not from people that you know?
Now, ask yourself what was it in the wording that got you to check out what that email was about?
I’m pretty certain it’s primarily because you found value in the subject line.
As a rule, your subject line should tell your recipient exactly what your value proposition is.
Once you get that down, only then can you start being creative with what you want to offer them.
One useful thing you can do before sending out emails is to use two different subject lines with an email list that’s been split in half and A/B test which one works best.
Customize and Personalize
All outreach communications have to be personalized.
This doesn’t just mean adding custom modifiers such as their first names and occupations, this means creating every email with the purpose to resonate with a certain customer group. Ideal customer profiles come in handy here because it allows you to create emails that resonate.
And, that’s what matters the most.
People are more likely to trust people who have the same ideals as them and speak the same language.
It allows for familiarity and your recipients are more likely to deal with you if they find you familiar.
This is why account-based marketing has gained traction over the last few years because it deals with creating communications built around taking care of a customer’s needs.
In fact, we even advise that if you have the bandwidth, write the emails out personally to get a better open rate.
Keep It Short
Nobody likes long emails.
You might have a great hook and a great vision, but if it’s too long people are not going to want to read it.
Think about it this way.
You receive an email from someone you don’t know, you decide to open it because the subject line is really good only to discover that it’s almost the size of an essay.
Be short and sweet.
That’s how you seal a deal.
There Must Be a Clear Value Proposition
I cannot stress this enough.
You need to be clear with your value proposition.
What sounds better:
“I would love to speak with you for a speaking opportunity”
or
“We’re looking at hiring thought leaders for our event next month, here are some details of the speaking points… feel free to contact us”?
It’s the details that they care about that count.
You want to be clear with your messaging and they need to know what they’re getting out of you.
Stop making it a mystery.
Don’t Reply With Canned Messages
What happens when they do reply?
Don’t reply with a canned message.
Look, you already know that in the beginning, your conversion rates are going to be low so you run the risk of losing a lead if you use canned messages to reply to them …no matter how much personalization you put in the message.
Prospects know if you’re using a canned message to reply to them and when you do this you lose the connection because it appears lazy.
You better serve your prospects if you write them a one-off reply, this leads to faster negotiations and it helps bring about a sales call – if you’re using outreach to make a sale.
Follow-Up
Some people will choose to ignore your message, but for others, it might be that they just lost your message in their inbox.
This is where your follow-ups come in.
You want to keep this even shorter than your first message.
Remember, they already have your first message in their inbox.
If they don’t reply to your follow up
Start a new email thread with them, this is another way of making it look like a fresh email message.
How many times should I follow up?
I usually advise you to follow up three to four times.
If they still don’t reply, move them to a cold email list and email them after a few months.
You can still message these people in the future but you do not want to risk ruining the integrity of your email address when the ISP sees that people don’t reply to you.
Audit Your Outreach
Once you’re done with all of this, it’s time to audit everything.
If you’re using specialized software this is easy, but you can actually achieve most of this with a simple spreadsheet.
- Take a look at which subject lines got you the most people coming through
- How does your open rate vary from different campaigns?
- Is the content or the email list the issue?
- How does the open rate compare to the conversion rate on different campaigns?
By doing this you can make sure that your campaigns are always poised to do great!
Takeaways from this Email Outreach Guide
There’s a lot to be gained from being very intentional in your email outreach.
You need to treat each recipient as an individual customer that you want to create a business with. Even though the batting rates might be low, to begin with, there’s a lot of merit to adding a little personalization to the process.
Remember folks, the goal of email outreach is to build relationships with other people!
