Email Prospecting - What Works and What Doesn't

A well thought email strategy is the difference between “Ignored / Open and Ignored” vs “Open and Reply”.
Email prospecting matters because it’s a primary channel for reaching potential customers. Knowing what works can drive results, while understanding what doesn’t will save you time and resources.

We are going to cover following topics below:

1. Why Emails Don't Work Anymore
2. Why Some Emails Are Working
3. How to Write Emails That Work

Why Emails Don't Work Anymore

With spam filters and changing reader habits, many sales emails never see the light of day. Let's look at some of the reasons why this happens.

• Spam Filters: Google and Yahoo have strict policies. If your spam rate exceeds 0.3%—that's just 3 in 1,000 emails—your domain can be blocked.
  
• Pattern Recognition: Most emails follow similar templates, making them easy targets for spam filters.
  • Example: If every email starts with "Hi [FirstName], I hope this email finds you well," it's likely to get flagged
    
• Keyword Traps: Words like "unsubscribe" or even your full company name could send your email straight to junk.
  • Example: Including "Click here to unsubscribe" in the footer might trigger spam filters.
    
• People have also set up personal filters:
  • Keywords: Emails containing certain keywords are automatically directed to junk. Example: Keywords like "free," "guarantee," or "limited time offer" can trigger personal spam filters.
    
  • Company Name Variations: If you've changed your company name or use a prefix/suffix seen on social media, these emails may get filtered out too. Example: We updated our LinkedIn Page name from "Evabot" to "Evabot AI for Sales Outbound 2.0". As a result, we began receiving emails addressed to "Evabot AI for Sales Outbound 2.0". To avoid spam, we created a filter that sends all emails containing the keyword "Evabot AI for Sales Outbound 2.0" directly to the junk folder.
    
• Extra Layers of Defense: Many folks use additional services to catch suspected spam before it hits their inbox. This means even more hurdles for your email to clear.
  
• The Headline Problem: Your subject line is the marketing material for your email.
  • Lousy Headlines: Boring or overly salesy headlines are instant turn-offs. Example - Subject lines like "Amazing Offer Just for You!" often fail to engage and are promptly ignored.
    
  • Deceptive Tactics: Some try using "Re:" to mimic a reply. This trick often backfires, leading recipients to mark you as junk. Example - A subject line like "Re: Your report" when it's introducing a new product or service can result in the email being marked as spam and sender blocked.
    
    
• Timing Is Everything: Even if your email is perfectly written, bad timing can damage all efforts.
  • Wrong Day/Time: Sending emails when people are busy leads them to mark important messages for later—which often means never. Example - Emails sent on Monday mornings or Friday afternoons are more likely to be overlooked.
    
• Self-Centered Messaging: Most emails are "me-focused," talking about what the sender wants rather than addressing the recipient's needs.
  • An email that starts with "Our company has achieved great success..." rather than "How can we help your business succeed?" is likely to be ignored.

Why are some emails working?

Why do some emails get noticed and others fall flat? There’s a method to madness. We have done some research and identified key elements that make some email outreaches successful

Targeted Recipients: The Right People

Sending emails to the right people is step one. If your email lands in the inbox of someone who is genuinely interested in the topic, it’s far more likely to get attention.
- Relevance: Your email is relevant to the recipient’s interests or needs.
- Interest: The recipient is actively looking for information on the topic.
Example: Sending a detailed guide on "Advanced SEO Strategies" to a list of marketing managers.

Perfect Timing: When to Send

Emails sent at the right time of day are more likely to be noticed and opened.
- Optimal Hours: Sending emails when recipients are most active (e.g., mid-morning or early afternoon).
- Avoiding Busy Times: Avoid sending during busy hours when emails are more likely to be overlooked.Example: Sending a prospecting email on Tuesday at 10 AM, a time when professionals are settled into their workday but not yet overwhelmed.

Avoiding Spammy Words: Keep it Clean

Using the wrong words can send your email straight to the spam folder. Avoiding spammy words and phrases is essential.
- Increased Deliverability: Words like “unsubscribe,” “trial,” or “free” can trigger spam filters.
- New Email Addresses: Using new email addresses with a clean history helps in landing in the inbox.Example: Instead of “Get Your Free Trial Now!” use “Discover How Our Solution Can Help You.”

Authentic Headlines: The Hook

A genuine, non-spammy headline is your first impression. It needs to be engaging without being deceptive or overly salesy.
- Trust: Recipients trust emails with honest headlines.
- Curiosity: An intriguing yet straightforward headline can pique interest.Example: “How to Boost Your Sales by 30% in 60 Days” instead of “Amazing Sales Opportunity Inside!”

Personalization: Make It About Them

Emails that include details about the recipient and address their specific problems stand out.

- Relevance: Personalized content resonates more with the recipient.

- Empathy: Showing understanding of the recipient’s challenges makes your email more relatable.

Example: “Hi [FirstName], I noticed your company is expanding its digital marketing team. Here’s how our tool can help streamline your process.”

Compelling Call to Action: Easy Next Steps

An effective email includes a compelling and low-friction call to action (CTA). The easier it is for the recipient to respond, the better.
- Simplicity: A clear, simple CTA is easy to follow.
- Engagement: Low-friction actions (e.g., “Reply with a yes” or “Click here to learn more”) encourage interaction.Example: “Reply ‘YES’ if you’d like a free consultation” instead of “Click here to schedule your free consultation.”

Successful emails are targeted, well-timed, and free of spammy words.
They feature genuine headlines, personalized content, and easy-to-follow calls to action.

How to Write Emails That Work

Crafting emails that elicits a response from prospects involves a blend of strategy, personalization, and a touch of creativity. Let’s dive into the steps to write emails that not only get noticed but also drive action.

Step 1: Create a List of Spammy Words

First, make a list of words that often trigger spam filters. These are commonly found in emails generated by AI or sent from marketing software.

Examples:
- Unsubscribe, Trial, Demo, Discount

Why This Matters:
Avoiding these words helps ensure your email lands in the inbox, not the spam folder.

Step 2: Research Your Prospects

Knowing your audience is key. Spend time researching your prospects to understand their needs, interests, and pain points. Use account research tools like Evabot for the same.

Why This Matters: Tailoring your email to address specific concerns shows that you’ve done your homework and are genuinely interested in helping.

Examples of Research Methods:
- Check their LinkedIn profiles or use AI to do that.
- Look at their company website and find correlation between new updates and your solution.
- Read industry news, 10K Reports and Earnings calls to get details on their future plans.

Looks like a lot of work? Evabot AI takes 4 mins to do account research on all publicly available sources and brings you 5 relevant insights with scores.

Step 3: Identify Top Insights

Gather the most important insights that are relevant to your prospects. These should align with the solutions you offer. Evabot AI can help you identify top 5 account insights that can be used to craft a perfect email.

Why This Matters: Highlighting key insights demonstrates your expertise and makes your email more relevant to the recipient.

Examples:
- Market trends affecting their industry.
- Challenges they might be facing.
- Potential opportunities for enabling.

Step 4: Prioritize Accounts

Focus on high-priority accounts that have an immediate need for your solution. This ensures your efforts are directed where they are most likely to succeed. Evabot AI scores the accounts as per the relevance of their top insights and puts them in priority for you to outreach them.

Why This Matters: High priority accounts increase the chances of conversion and makes your outreach more efficient.

Step 5: Follow Sales Frameworks

Use proven sales frameworks like OPPS (Observation, Problem, P.S, Simple CTA) or PSA (Problem, Shift, Answer).

Why This Matters: These frameworks provide a structured approach to crafting your message, making it more persuasive and clear.

Here is the link to top email frameworks by Sales Leaders.

Top 5 Outbound Prospecting Frameworks & Tactics

Step 6: Test for Spammy Words

Review your email to ensure it doesn’t contain any of the spammy words from your list.

Why This Matters: This step reduces the risk of your email being marked as spam.

Example: Replace “Free Trial” with “Complimentary Access.”

Step 7: Check Insights Relevance and Recency

Ensure the insights you include are both relevant and recent.

Why This Matters: Up-to-date information keeps your email pertinent and engaging.

Example: Mention an insight which is available from a source that is published 1 month ago rather than 12 months ago.

Step 8: Repurpose for LinkedIn

Craft a LinkedIn message based on your email content. This helps you reach prospects through multiple channels.

Why This Matters: Engaging on multiple platforms increases the chances of your message being seen and acted upon.

Step 9: Engage on Both Channels

Send your email and LinkedIn message, then actively engage with any responses you receive.

Step 10: Create Follow-Up Sequences

Develop a sequence of follow-up emails that add value, such as sharing whitepapers, actionable tips, thought leadership content, and general follow-ups.

Why This Matters: Consistent follow-ups keep your message top-of-mind and provide additional opportunities to engage.

Example Follow-Up Sequence:
1. Day 1: Initial email with insights and solution.
2. Day 3: Follow-up with a whitepaper.
3. Day 7: Share actionable tips.
4. Day 10: Send thought leadership content.
5. Day 14: General follow-up.
6. Day 21: Offer a case study.
7. Day 28: Invite to a webinar.
8. Day 35: Final follow-up with a special offer.

Mobile Readability Tips

- Short Sentences: Keep sentences and paragraphs short for easy reading.
- Bullet Points: Use bullet points for quick information scanning.

Write emails that work involves avoiding spammy words, personalizing your content, and following a structured framework. Research your prospects, prioritize high-need accounts, and engage across multiple channels.

Don’t forget to follow up with valuable content to keep your message in front of your prospects. By following these steps, you’ll create emails that not only get opened but also drive meaningful action.

Share Future of Prospecting

Bonus Prompt to write an effective email

Set the context for GPT

Subject line should be max 3 words.

Optimize for brevity.

Use 6th-grade English.

Use short sentences.

End with a question asking for interest. Don't ask for a meeting or time.

Below is an example of how you can add the framework and more context

Subject line should be a maximum of 2-3 words

Use 7th Grade English

Use short sentences

Use Problem, Shift, Answer Framework

Use insights from the <Report> [Sample Report - Hubspot State of AI Report}

Use Key benefits

- <Benefit 1> Example : 10X faster account and prospect research from LinkedIn, 10K reports and industry reports. Go from 30 mins to a click of a button.

- <Benefit 2> Example : <3X faster ramp up time for new SDRs.

- <Benefit 3> Example : 50% lift in response rates and faster time from outreach to meeting set up.

Keep some wit and humor

<Impressive Statement> Example: Make an impressive statement about data volume or metrics (i.e. we have processed 2.5 million data points on prospects)

Generated Email with context, benefits and insights:

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