Prakhar Jain and I came together to start the SeSaMint webinar series. The idea is to share our learnings and create a non-judgemental peer-to-peer learning space.
The slide below perfectly summarizes what the series is all about.
We have opened up an application form and allowed only high intent learners to access the live series. Last week we kickstarted the series and called it S1E1 (Season 1, Episode 1).
We had a lot of SaaS Sales Reps asking us - what are the trends? What is working for you - inbound or outbound? How do we prospect during COVID? Prospects are not replying to our emails, what do we do? What is working for others?
Among the most common questions, there were some of the common ones that stood out.
Here is a graph that shows an interesting trend with respect to growth in leads.
Does this mean we are getting back to normal? It’s too early to say that. But the good news is things are looking positive and we are seeing an increase in leads. So let’s keep hustling.
What is working inbound or outbound?
It depends on the industry and the product you are selling. We cannot generalize it to all industries. But we are seeing that most companies are investing in outbound sales and leveraging the low-cost channel ‘Cold emailing.’
How do we write emails that get high reply rates?
Throughout this period all my campaigns consistently had more than 20% reply rate. I have figured out a few hacks or tips or rules that are working for me and I’ve put my learnings together as, “Cold Email 101.” These are not general rules. These are the rules I framed after prospecting for 6 years and that have been working well for me.
Cold Email 101:
Write As You speak (WAYS)
It is the most powerful way to write emails. Avoid all forms of fancy words or phrases. Just use simple language as you would if you were having a conversation with them.
Add value
Always look to move the one-sided conversation forward. Example - never say did you see my email below? Share something educational or give something of value to your prospect.
Keep it Short & Personal (100-120 words)
Keep the emails short. Trends show we spend an average of 11 seconds reading an email. Your email should capture the attention of the prospect within those 11seconds.
Keep the subject line less than 5 words
Subject lines will play a huge role - this is what will hook your prospects to open your email. One of my favorite subject lines is, ‘Quick question?’
Make it about them
It is always about them and their challenges. Not your company or product. Make it relevant to them.
Align your value to their problem
Don’t just write a generic pitch about your product. Map their problems to the value of your product. Speak about business outcomes.
One ask always! One CTA
Do not confuse prospects. Always ask only one question. The question should be framed in a way to move the conversation forward.
Follow-up
Don’t stop after the first email. Always follow-up. Usually I set up a 7-email cadence before moving the lead to the nurturing track.
Pro Tips
Some pro-tips that have been working for me
Use social proof (case studies, logos, validation from customers in the same industry), and statistics in your follow-ups. Humans want to be a part of the tribe and like to see social proof.
Use video and images (this tactic is so underrated). Use tools like Hippo Video or Drift video bot to personalize your outreach.
Use the prospect’s name more than once.
Here is the recording of the webinar for all the subscribers - SeSaMint S1E1
Let me know if these rules helped and how they have improved your sales prospecting.
Keep hustling! And don’t forget to catch up on sleep during the weekends :)