Writing Emails That Are Tailored To Audience Needs

You know how most cold emails feel....off? I think there's ONE big cause behind this. Companies fall in love with a value proposition - it's great when the founder uses it to describe their company to friends, investors, media, etc... ...so they hand it off to a rep. "Go write a cold email!" The problem is that a value prop is a (very) high-level summary of what the company does. A sales conversation needs to be the opposite. ❌ high-level ✅ super specific ❌ about the company ✅ about the customer So while value props are great for internal direction and quick intros with strangers, they're not good for connecting with prospects. This sets the sales rep up for failure. Of course the email sounds general, impersonal, vague, etc. Instead, try using the job story framework. It comes from the Jobs to be Done (JTBD) methodology, and it looks like this: When [SITUATION]... I want to [MOTIVATION]... So that [DESIRED OUTCOME]. Unlike most value props, a job story is written from the perspective of the customer. I've been a JTBD practitioner for about 7 years (thanks Val Geisler for setting me on that path). It's a game changer for customer research and copywriting. I use job stories these days when training sales reps to write more human, more natural, and ultimately more effective emails. A good job story can totally transform the direction of your emails....and you can create many, many different stories. Here's the prompt (btw it does something secret that I didn't mention in the carousel below....but I'll talk about it tomorrow and show you how to isolate the BEST job stories): ------------------------- ------------------------- "Imagine a B2B SaaS company [Company Name] with the following value proposition and target audience: Value Proposition: [Describe the key service or product offering and its primary benefits.] Target Audience: [Define the specific group of businesses or professionals the company aims to serve.] Based on this, create five job stories for the company, focusing on how its product or service addresses specific scenarios and needs of the target audience. Each job story should follow this format: 'When [specific situation or challenge faced by the target audience], I want to [what they want to achieve or the action they want to take], so that I can [desired outcome or benefit].' After creating the job stories, evaluate and rank them based on their impact and relevance to the target audience. Explain your reasoning for the ranking, focusing on factors such as the universality of the need, potential impact on the customer's business, and the emotional resonance of the story. End your response by summarizing how these job stories collectively showcase the value of [Company Name] to its target audience." ------------------------- ------------------------- Special shoutout to Katelyn Bourgoin and Neal O'Grady 🍉 for bringing up job stories in the last Un-Ignorable cohort. If you use this, let me know!

 My latest “Circling the Drain” posts have prompted several people to ask me to talk about what I think makes for a good email pitch. Mali Walsh (who is a great salesperson and needs no advice from me 😊) asked for an example of a good email. I will keep my eyes open for one and will post it but in the meantime, let me share a few thoughts on some of the attributes of an effective email pitch to me. Industry and sector relevance: the sender should not only know what industry I am in but also what part of the industry I’m in. I know this sounds obvious but apparently it isn’t. I get pitches for vape hardware and LED lights about 10 times a day even though Wana is an edibles company. Appropriateness for my role:  CEOs are not the right audience for emails about freight costs, video content creation, or email lists. And please don’t ask me to forward your email to the appropriate person. I have my own job to do. If what you are offering is compelling but out of scope for me, I promise I will forward it to the right person without being prompted to do so. Demonstrate some real insight into my issues. This doesn’t mean asking ChatGPT to regurgitate factoids to make it look like you have done deep research on the company.  It means actually thinking about what Wana’s needs might be and whether your company offers something that could help solve them in a meaningful way. This is where good emails really shine. There is an authenticity and a level of insight that is missing in most emails I receive. Example: “I’m impressed by your focus on effect-specific products. I’m sure that it requires extensive formulation and testing to create your products. Our company specializes in helping companies streamline their sensory evaluation processes so that they can bring new products to market more quickly and effectively.” I would read this with great interest. If you are going to offer praise, be specific. We all like to hear nice things about our brand. But, if you truly value my brand, tell me something specific about why you like it. Example: “my mother been struggling with sleep for years and your Fast Asleep gummies were the only non-prescription solution she has found that works for her” will get my attention 100X more than “I love what you have done with your brand”. (read: “I know nothing about your brand. This is the same email I send to all 3000 people on the list I bought but I figure you are all insecure enough that my meaningless praise will make you more inclined to like my product”) Demonstrate good email etiquette. Provide a way to opt out and respect the opt out. Balance professional persistence with politeness. Never veer into aggressiveness. And please use my correct name. I hope this was helpful. I have huge respect for good salespeople and want to see them succeed. People will tell you “sales is a numbers game”. I disagree. Yes, the activity needs to be there but beyond that, I think it’s a quality game.

An ecommerce company recently approached my team to do an email audit as they were facing challenges with low open and click-through rates. After analyzing their email account, here are our main recommendations to revive their email marketing channel: 1. Strategic Email Segmentation: Currently, your emails lack personal relevance due to a one-size-fits-all approach. This is a crucial area to address. Action Plan: Implement segmentation based on purchase history, engagement levels, browsing behavior, and demographic information. 2. Personalized Content Creation: Generic content won't cut it. Your audience needs to feel that each email is crafted for them. Action Plan: Develop emails specifically tailored to the different segments. This includes curated product recommendations, personalized offers, and content that aligns with their interests. 3. Subject Line A/B Testing: Your current subject lines aren't doing their job. You need to be implementing ongoing A/B subject line tests, as this is low-hanging fruit to improve your open rates. Action Plan: Regularly test different subject line styles and formats to identify what resonates best with each segment. Keep track of the metrics to inform future campaigns. 4. Mobile Optimization: A significant portion of your audience reads emails on mobile devices. Neglecting this is causing a decrease in your email engagement rates. Action Plan: Ensure all emails are responsive and visually appealing on various screen sizes. Test your emails on multiple devices before sending them out. Additional Campaign Strategies We Recommend: - Launch a Monthly Newsletter: This should include new arrivals, style guides, and user-generated content. It’s an excellent way to keep your brand in the minds of your customers. - Seasonal Campaign Integration: Tailor your campaigns to align with holidays and seasons. This approach can significantly boost engagement and sales during key periods. - Re-Engagement Campaigns: Specifically target subscribers who haven't interacted with your brand recently. Offer them unique incentives to rekindle their interest. Next steps: 1. If you found this helpful, please leave a comment and let me know. 2. If you own/run/work at an Ecommerce company doing at least $1 million in annual revenue, message me so my team can audit your email channel to see if there's a good fit for working together.