7 Top Frameworks & Tips for B2B Cold Email

Start writing cold emails that actually convert by following these top tips and frameworks.

Kyle Ferguson
May 3, 2023
 • 
3 min

Templates are alright, but the best marketing does not come from using templates. You should think of them as frameworks instead.


Don't just take the templates and jam information into there. You can mix and match different parts of different frameworks to concoct an email that is relevant to your ideal customers.


The best copy comes from understanding your potential customer and their business.


Use these frameworks to drum up some ideas but take into context your customer and product.


Quick Tips

  • Cut the fluff - make sure every word in your email has a purpose.
  • Target your ideal customers - many people underestimate how important this is. Target the companies that have the greatest need for your product.
  • Know your customers - research, talk to them, and ask them questions.
  • Iterate, measure & optimize - you will want to test different messaging to find what resonates the most.
  • Deliverability is key - ensure your emails are landing in their inbox, not spam.
  • Make it about them, not you - Audit yourself for how much you use the word "I" instead of "you."
  • Make sure you are not just listing features.
  • Use social proof - case studies, warm introductions, intel from their teammate, etc.
  • Subject line: Whatever you do, don't make it look like another marketing email. Make it look like a colleague or someone who knows them sent it.


Here are the frameworks with some examples. FYI, the examples are for completely made-up companies but are based on emails I have used.


#1 - Event / Buyer Signal Reference


1 - Reference an event or something you noticed that would indicate they might be a good fit for a product like yours

Look for these events & buyer signals, including news articles, social media, job postings, and other data sources.

2 - Bridge the event to your offering

3 -  Credibility / social proof statement

4 - Call to action


Example:

<First Name>,


The new Ai-enabled workflow tool you launched is incredible. I wonder how user adoption is going so far.

Automation companies like Zerowork work with us to increase the adoption of their Ai features by +50% through embedded training tutorials.

How is the adoption of your new tool going so far?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Kyle


#2 - The Compliment

A great way to start a conversation with someone is by complimenting them or their company.

1 - Find something about their business or them that you can genuinely compliment. Be specific. The key here is it needs to be genuine. People can detect bs.

2 - Explain the outcome you help people like them to achieve. Bonus if you can use a real example with stats.

3 - CTA


Example:


<First Name>,

I had to reach out when I saw your incredible sales stats on Linkedin.

We work with top-performing sales reps to find buyer signals specific to your ideal customer profile, leading to a 15% - 55% increase in outbound generated opportunities.

Worth a 7 minute call?

Best,

Kyle



#3 - Before to after story


1 - Relate to a pain point that you know they are facing and what their world is like with the problem.

2 - Reference a current customer with the same problem and how you solved it.

3 - What was their world like after implementing the product

4 - Soft CTA, asking a qualifying question about the problem.


Example:


<First Name>,


Sourcing quality sustainable materials is difficult because it's hard to discover and verify new suppliers.


Sustainable Clothes Co. easily sources high-quality suppliers for 22% less by offering an RFP on our platform.


It took them 7 minutes to set up, and in 3 days, they had verified and trustworthy suppliers.


Are you looking to source new suppliers? It could be worth a quick chat.


Regards,

Kyle




#4 - No pain, no gain


1 - Write a common pain point that you hear from clients. Use their words and reference the type of customer

2 - Explain what that causes and why it's not good, or get more specific about the pain point

3 - Credibility or social proof statement - why you are qualified to solve that problem and how you do it.


4 - CTA


Example:


<First Name>,

Marketing managers talk to us often about hard it is to nail the right t-shirt design.

It's expensive if you don't do a big run, so there is no way to test the popularity of a design before launching it.

That's why marketing managers work with us to test the popularity of their designs before they do a big run, leading to 37% higher sales.

Worth chatting about how to test designs at *company name*?

-Kyle


#5 - Value bomb


1 - Why do you think this would be valuable to them?

2 - State a unique insight relevant to the product you provide.

3 - Relate it to your product.

4 - CTA


Example

<First Name>,


Since you are a marketing expert, I thought you might find this insightful.

I interviewed 50 marketing leaders; community building was the top trend among them.

B2C companies work with us to build communities from 0 - 100,000+ through our community builder app.

Interested? Let me know, and I can send a few times for a call to meet.

Kind Regards,Kyle


#6 - Reference their Linkedin


1 - Write about something you noticed on their profile that is relevant to your product

2 - Bridge it to your product

3 - CTA


Examples:


<First Name>,

Since you're in charge of growing revenue and your passionate about innovative ideas, I wanted to run this by you.

Revenue leaders are growing their outbound sales by 10 - 30% by simply targeting better potential customers.

But how do they target the right people? They use a platform like Revitup that builds a list of ideal target customers based on data points found online that are tailored to your company.

Worth chatting about this for your company?


Best,

Kyle


#7 - Quick Question, *First name*


Many people use quick questions in the subject line, but you can ask other questions like "Can I run an idea by you, Jeff?" or "Is this on your radar, Jeff?"


1 - Literally just one quick question relevant to your product or problem you solve


Example:

Are you currently using any tools to find buyer signals from potential customers?


Understanding Your Market

The success of any startup relies heavily on understanding the market it operates in and identifying the ideal customers within that market. Understanding your customer and becoming a subject matter expert is key, especially at the formidable stages.

By having insight into potential customers, you know what problems you should be solving with your product and how to communicate in a way that appeals to them.

The market is the broader industry that you serve. The ideal customer dives deeper into who your product is the best fit to serve. It's a way to segment your customers.

You might not know who your product best serves yet, and that is okay, but it's important to hypothesize and test who is.

Make some assumptions about what would make a customer a good fit for your product and test those assumptions otherwise, use your current customer base and data to guide you.

Here are some of the key steps to understanding your market and identifying your ideal customers:

Understanding Your Market

1. Research industry trends and news: Stay updated on current and emerging trends in your industry. Search Google news, read articles and follow the right people on social media to gain insights into customer preferences and potential opportunities.

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