Reader behavior in cold email marketing

Here’s a cold email that got a positive response. Plus the psychology behind why it worked, so you can apply it with your own prospects. The Cold Email: ______ Hey Josh, I watched a few of your YouTube videos and noticed you’re using Canva for your thumbnails. The challenge with YouTube is that thumbnails make or break CTR. Low CTR → the algorithm shows it less → fewer impressions → even great videos get buried. I’ve been creating thumbnails for 6 years and would like to offer to do yours. I put together a few (attached), along with a breakdown of the psychology behind them. Pay per thumbnail, so no commitment. Even if we never talk again, hopefully this gives you some ideas that might boost clicks on your videos. James ______ Why This Works: Personal Observation → Relevance You start with something specific (“noticed you’re using Canva for your thumbnails”). This makes it feel like you’ve paid attention, not blasted a template. The reader feels seen, which lowers their defenses. 2. Problem Before Solution → Attention By highlighting the thumbnail → CTR → algorithm → impressions chain, you frame the cost of the problem before offering anything. Humans are wired to pay more attention to potential losses than gains. 3. Value Up Front → Trust Instead of telling them you could help, you’ve already done work (thumbnails + psychology breakdown). This flips the script: you’re showing, not pitching. Trust is built by giving before asking. 4. No CTA. Without a CTA, the reader feels no pressure, just curiosity. If they like the work, they’ll naturally reply. This protects autonomy, which is critical people resist pressure but lean toward curiosity. 5. Objection Diffuser → Safety By addressing “No commitment. Pay as you go,” you preempt a common hidden objection (fear of being locked in). That makes it safer for them to engage, since there’s less perceived risk.

I just deleted 147 cold emails without reading them. Here’s what they all got wrong: Every morning, my inbox looks the same. A flood of pitches from people trying to sell me something. Most days, I just mass delete them. But this morning, I decided to actually read through them first. Within 5 minutes, I spotted a pattern. Everyone was making the exact same mistake. They were all trying to close the deal. ALL IN THE FIRST MESSAGE 🥵 Let me show you what I mean (with two small examples): APPROACH A: "The Wall of Text" Send 100 cold emails with full pitch, calendar link, and case studies. • 3 people open • 0 responses • 0 intros This looks exactly like the 147 emails I just deleted "Hi [Name], I noticed your company is scaling fast! We help companies like yours optimize their marketing stack through our proprietary AI technology. Our clients see 300% ROI within 90 days. Here's my Calendly link to book a 15-min chat: [LINK]. Looking forward to connecting! Best, [Name]" BORING!!! APPROACH B: "Micro Conversations" Same 100 prospects, broken down into micro-convo's. Email 1: "Do you know [mutual connection]?" • Send 100 • ~40 open • ~20 respond Email 2: "They mentioned you're scaling your marketing team. I'd love to connect about [specific thing]." • Send to 20 who responded • ~15 continue engaging Email 3: "Would you mind if they made an intro?" • Ask 15 engaged prospects • ~10 intros Final score: • Approach A: No intros • Approach B: 10 intros How to Apply These Lessons (Tactical Summary): 1. Focus on Micro-Conversations: Break your cold outreach into smaller, manageable steps. Build rapport before making any asks. 2. Personalize Everything: Reference mutual connections, specific company milestones, or shared interests in every message. 3. Play the Long Game: Aim for replies in the first message.. not conversions. If you’ve been struggling with cold outreach, you might just need a new approach. Give this one a try and lmk how it goes.

The biggest cold email mistake I see sellers make?  Telling your prospect what your product does.  Here's what the data says: 1. Buzzwords like optimize, streamline or all-in-one = 57% decrease in replies. 2. Mentioning AI in your email = 36% decrease in reply rate. 3. ROI language = 17% decrease in replies. Using language like this means you're telling your prospect what you DO, rather than what PROBLEM you solve. And unless you're a household name, explaining what you DO puts all the work on your prospect to figure out why that might be valuable to them. Your product's value = nothing without the context of the problem it solves. Outbounded prospects don't have time to think critically about your cold email and what problems your product might be able to solve for them. It's on YOU to describe their problem well enough to EARN their attention as to how your product can make that problem go away. --- Data Source = Analysis of 85M cold emails in collaboration between Gong, Jason Bay and 30 Minutes to President's Club for the upcoming 30MPC Cold Email Course.

Sellers who sell to IT can't wait to tell me how the rules that apply to every other persona are different for IT. They insist that IT buyers process information differently. That their analytical nature means they need more details, more complexity, and more depth in emails. 👉 On the surface, that assumption seems logical. If someone is highly technical, wouldn't they want as much information as possible? 📌 That’s where behavioral science comes in. Human behavior follows patterns, no matter the persona. Outliers exist, but they are minimal. The data is clear, when it comes to email engagement, cognitive ease wins. IT buyers aren’t special (I mean, we’re all special, but you know what I mean). Sellers who sell to IT personas love to say: ❌ "IT buyers are analytical, so they need more information in emails." ❌ "They’re smarter than the average buyer, so they can handle complex messaging." ❌ "They won’t take me seriously unless I include a ton of detail upfront." It’s all BS. Sellers think they’re doing what their buyers want. They believe IT buyers need longer, more detailed emails because they’re technical. they base those assumptions on flawed intuition and limited experience, not actual data. The data tells a different story. IT buyers are human. They scan emails just like everyone else. If you overload their brain with too much information, they won’t engage. 👉 Here’s what actually works when emailing IT buyers: - Keep it short. If your email is over 100 words, it’s probably too long. - Simplify your language. Big words don’t impress, clear ones do. - Make the ask easy to say yes to. No one wants to decode what you’re asking. Data trumps intuition when you’re building cold email strategies, even in IT. If you want to earn a response, honor what buyers actually respond to, not what you think they want. Even buyers themselves don’t always know what makes them engage, but behavioral science does. 📌 What’s one cold email myth you’ve had to unlearn? ✨ Enjoyed this post? Let me know in the comments & follow Leslie Venetz for more.

Your prospect has 147 unread emails. Yours just got added to the pile. What makes them open YOURS instead of the other 146? After sending thousands of cold emails and generating over $700M in sales throughout my career, I've identified the #1 mistake destroying most cold outreach: ZERO RIGHT PERSONALIZATION. Most reps "spray and pray". Sending the same generic template to 1,000 prospects hoping something sticks. Then they wonder why their response rate is 0.5%. Here's the cold email framework that consistently gets 20%+ response rates:  → Make your subject line about THEM, not you. Use recent news, achievements, or common pain points to spark curiosity. Example: "Your Inc 5000 ranking" or "Austin expansion" 1. Keep your email so simple it doesn't require scrolling. It MUST be mobile friendly, as 68% of executives check email primarily on their phones. 2. Use this 3 part structure:  → Personal opener: "Hey [Name], [specific personalization about them]"  → Show understanding: "In chatting with other [title] in [industry], they're typically running into [pain point]"  → Soft CTA: "Got a few ideas that might help. Open to chat?" 3. Research these personalization sources: • Company website (values, mission page) • Press releases • LinkedIn activity • Earnings transcripts (for public companies) • Review sites The hardest territory to manage isn't your CRM. It's the six inches between your prospect's ears. They don't care about your product. They care about THEMSELVES. Recently, one of my clients was struggling with a 1.2% response rate on cold emails. We implemented this framework, and within 2 weeks they hit 17.4% - with prospects actually THANKING them for the personalized outreach. Find your sweet spot on the personalization spectrum. You can't do hyper personalized video for everyone, but you can't blast the same generic template either. — Hey reps… want another cold email strategy? Go here: https://lnkd.in/gKSzmCda

I’ve trained hundreds of sales reps over my career. Here’s the exact framework I use to write good cold emails from start to finish: 1. Lead with the pain not the pitch The goal of a cold email is to start a conversation, not close the deal. It’s to reflect back a real pain your buyer is already feeling often before they’ve articulated it themselves. No one cares about your product. Especially not in the first touch. They care about themselves and their problems. The biggest mistake I see reps make is trying to close too early. They shove value props, case studies, feature sets, and “we help companies like…” I always come back to this: “No pain, no gain, no demo train.” You’re not here to educate. You’re here to trigger recognition. To make them nod and go: “Yeah, we’re feeling that.” 1. Write like a human The best cold emails don’t have long intros. No “hope this finds you well.” Just a clear, honest attempt to connect over something they care about. Let’s say we’re targeting agencies running 10+ client accounts. Here’s how I’d start: “Hey — I saw you’re managing multiple clients. Curious if you’ve had to deal with deliverability issues lately, especially with the new Google/Microsoft changes. Is this on your radar?” That’s it. No pitch. No product. Just a relevant question that hits a live pain. You don’t need clever. You need to be clear. 1. Structure matters (but keep it stupid simple) I’m not into formulas. You don’t need a 7-step framework to write a good email. You need to understand the buyer and speak to them like a peer. Think about it like this: Line 1: Show you’ve done your homework. Line 2: Bring up a real, relevant pain. Line 3: Ask a question that invites a reply — not “yes.” If your email looks like a blog post, you’re doing it wrong. The goal isn’t to explain. The goal is to start a conversation. 1. Use follow-ups to build narrative (not nag) Most follow-ups sound like this: “Just bumping this to the top of your inbox.” “Not sure if you saw my last message.” Useless. Instead, think of your cold email sequence as a way to diagnose pain over time. Email 1 brings up the initial problem. Email 2 digs into what happens if it doesn’t get solved. Email 3 introduces that you might have a solution, if they’re open to it. Each message earns attention and adds value. Follow-ups shouldn’t be annoying. TAKEAWAY Conversations > conversions. Relevancy always wins.

Cold emails work. But they don’t work the same everywhere. Open rates and reply rates vary based on region, culture, and regulations. If you’re sending the same cold email worldwide, you’re leaving money on the table. And most importantly, results depend heavily on your offer. A weak offer won’t convert, no matter where you send it. Here’s how cold emails perform across different continents: - North America 🇺🇸 🇨🇦   - Open Rate: 21%   - Reply Rate: 5%   - Inboxes are crowded. If you’re not personalizing, your email is just another cold pitch. - Europe 🇬🇧 🇫🇷 🇩🇪   - Open Rate: 22.1%   - Reply Rate: 3%   - GDPR matters. Cold emails need clear opt-out options and should feel personalized. - Asia-Pacific 🇯🇵 🇰🇷 🇦🇺   - Open Rate: 22.4%   - Reply Rate: 3%   - Business is relationship-driven. Cold emails alone won’t get you far, expect to follow up. - Latin America 🇧🇷 🇲🇽   - Open Rate: 18%   - Reply Rate: 3.5%   - Warmth and personalization win. Starting with a softer, conversational tone works best. - Africa 🌍   - Open Rate: 16%   - Reply Rate: 2.5%   - Markets are diverse. A tailored approach is key to getting responses. - Middle East 🇦🇪 🇸🇦   - Open Rate: 19%   - Reply Rate: 3%   - Trust matters. Business etiquette and local customs must be respected.     What this means for you: - Your offer is everything. A great cold email won’t save a bad offer. - Personalize or get ignored. Generic cold emails won’t cut it. - Follow up strategically. A first follow-up can increase replies by 50%. - Optimize for mobile. Over 50% of emails are opened on mobile devices. - Respect local regulations. GDPR, CAN-SPAM, and CASL impact deliverability. Cold emailing isn’t just about sending more emails. It’s about sending the right emails, in the right way, with the right offer.

Cold Email in 2025 doesn’t feel like you’re breaking the ice. It feels like you’re standing in front of a frozen wall - and you’ve only got seconds to make it crack. - Inboxes are flooded. - Prospects are overwhelmed. - Spam filters are smarter than ever. If your cold emails feel like a pitch, look like a template, or ask for too much too soon - they’re getting deleted. But cold emails still work. You just have to write ones people actually want to open. Here’s how we’re breaking through: 🔥 Relevance over reach. → Use job changes, tech stack, hiring signals to trigger timing. 🔥 Clarity over cleverness. → Say why you’re reaching out - and why now, in the first two lines. 🔥 Personalization that goes beyond {{First_Name}}. → Connect their pain to your offer with one sharp, specific insight. 🔥 Low-friction CTA. → No one wants to “jump on a call.” Ask a simple question instead. I took this photo mid-expedition in Svalbard. The ice was real. But the metaphor hits harder. Cold Email isn’t dead. It’s just frozen - unless you know how to break through.

𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀 — 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 Therefore, 1. Keep It Short People don't have time to read long paragraphs from someone they don't know. If they see a lengthy email, they'll skip it. By keeping your message brief, you make it easier for them to scan and understand your main point quickly. 2. Remove Jargon and Fluff Eliminate unnecessary words and industry jargon. Using simple, clear language helps convey your message more effectively. It ensures that the prospect understands what you're offering without getting lost in complex terms. 3. Use Plenty of White Space Big blocks of text can be intimidating and hard to read. Break up text into short paragraphs or bullet points. This makes your email easier to skim. 4. Include Pattern Interrupts Most emails look the same in a crowded inbox. Adding something unexpected or unique, known as a pattern interrupt, can catch the prospect's attention. 5. Provide More Details After Initial Interest Once they show interest by responding to your initial email, you can share more details and information. Don't overwhelm them upfront. Keep these tips in mind when writing your cold emails to increase your chances of getting a response!

The best way to NOT get a response to your cold email? Give the prospect an overly drawn out CTA. Here's an example: "Can you spare a few minutes on Tuesday next week to talk about how Branch can help you increase your app adoption and simplify your workflow?" There are WAYYY too many words here. Yet I see CTAs like this all the time. Remember, the prospect is likely skimming your email. If they see a long sentence like this, They probably won't even read it. You need something that takes 1-2 seconds to read and is very specific. You also shouldn't ask for the meeting upfront. It makes it appear like you're selling the meeting itself, rather than the solution to their problem. Here's a great study from Gong that talks about the effectiveness of the "interest-based" CTA: https://lnkd.in/gxkYqWJ7 Rather than asking for the meeting, just ask if they have interest. Here's an example that completes the email I've been walking through in the last few posts in this cold emailing series: OBSERVATION: "Saw that you aren’t linking into the {{name}} app from email." PROBLEM: "Based on our data, app users tend to retain much better than web users in retail." SOLUTION: "We’re helping {{competitor}} send users straight into their app from their emails. This has prevented user drop off." 𝗖𝗧𝗔: "͟O͟p͟e͟n͟ ͟t͟o͟ ͟l͟e͟a͟r͟n͟i͟n͟g͟ ͟m͟o͟r͟e͟?͟"͟ Boom! Now we have a killer cold email. This CTA is 4 words long and takes almost no time to read. It's asking them a specific, interest-based question. It's very easy to respond to, and gives the prospect a clear next step. Are you guaranteed to get a response? No. You never are. But it sure will give you better odds than the cold emails most people send today. In the last day of this cold emailing series tomorrow, We'll talk about email sequences. Things like: How many emails to send in one sequence, when to send them, when to bump vs. start a new thread, etc. Hope this email breakdown has been useful!