It’s July already! We are halfway past 2020. If you're reading this newsletter, then I would say you (and I) are lucky to be alive. We should be grateful and take a moment to thank everyone who is helping us fight this pandemic.
Last week I wrote a piece on Cold Email 101. Sales professionals loved it. Some wrote to me asking for specific tips on prospecting during COVID. I will write a detailed post about that topic next week. This week I wanted to do something different. I went through my inbox and picked the best cold email thread I have received. So here’s a case study on how this email thread used every principle I wrote about in the Cold Email 101 post. I received this cold email from Griffin Casey of Drift. Let’s dive into the thread.
1st Email - April 29th
1st Email Breakdown:
I loved the subject line. The moment I saw ‘Almabase’, I was intrigued to open the email
He mentioned how he got my contact. That’s setting up the context
He focused on the right problem: ‘filling forms is the pain point’
He made the effort of recording a quick 1-min video
Dropped a link with relevant case studies
Great first email and it definitely caught my attention. But I’m not in the market to buy Drift or any chatbots, so I didn’t respond. Just because I’m impressed with the email doesn’t mean I’d respond readily.
2nd Email - May 1st
2nd Email Breakdown:
A simple email with a clear call-to-action: ‘were you able to check this out?’
No fluff, just a reminder.
I did not check out the video. But why should I? As I said, I’m not in the market for buying chatbots. I’m also personally not a fan of such, ‘Did you check this?’ or ‘I’m just checking in!’ tone of emails. There was no incentive for me to reply.
3rd Email - May 5th
3rd Email Breakdown:
A short email with a clear value-add.
He asked me a question that made me think.
He backed up the question with social proof of ROI.. Since I’m still not convinced, I can go see what others have achieved with this tool.
Finally ending with a compelling CTA asking me to book a time to speak to him directly.
I love this email for the high value it delivered with such simple language. But I often get confused when there are multiple CTAs. I recommend using one CTA (one clear ask) as I do not want to confuse my prospects.
4th Email - May 7th
4th Email Breakdown:
He started a new thread with a new subject line. This was a smart move.
My name and a strong statistic in the subject line caught my attention and provoked me to read the email.
The email body has the classic Cold Email 101 rule of name dropping, backing with numbers, and social proof.
I read this email but none of the names mentioned as part of the social proof linked here, belonged to my category. We are an ed-tech startup and what worked for Segment or Marketo will not work for us. I would improve this email by adding an industry-specific case study. I will always jump at the opportunity to learn how my competitor, or a company from the same industry is generating more leads than my company. By now, I still haven’t replied to Griffin. What can I say, cold emailing is a game of persistence!
5th Email - May 12th
5th Email Breakdown:
Great opening question.
Social proof - a strong brand and a great case study.
The email had a GIF that gave a quick demo of the product (this was a killer idea).
Again, I’m not in the market shopping for a chatbot. However, I’m getting educated about Drift and the use cases it can solve. But I still don’t feel moved to reply to Griffin. The prospects do not owe you a reply to your emails. 5 emails from Griffin, and no reply yet from me. What would you do in his place? Will you give up or still pursue? Let’s see how Griffin played this out.
6th Email - May 15th
6th Email Breakdown:
Social proof, Social proof, and more Social proof.
This email is all about Social proof.
Had one clear CTA - ‘How would it feel to be the one at Almabase delivering all those results?’
This email had a GIF that is overloaded with social proof and frankly it aimed at creating FOMO. Griffin had smartly put human faces and names to the social proof, instead of just sharing links. He also concluded the email with a great question that made me think - ‘How can Almabase get these results?’
7th Email - May 21st
This is a simple email circling back to the video he sent me in the first email. I still did not watch the video. I thought this would be Griffin’s last email and he would say bye!
But nope, he did not. He persisted with me.
8th Email - May 27th
8th Email Breakdown:
Awesome subject line. Makes you want to open the mail.
Followed up the subject line with a great opening question
He explained a case study in class STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) framework
This email also featured a great GIF.
I finally replied to this email. This goes to show that sometimes you only get replies for the 7th or 8th email. Don’t give up. Keep giving value. Right when you feel like giving up, remember Griffin and his persistence. A reply could always be right around the corner!
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I started the SeSaMint project to help founders and aspiring salespeople sell SaaS. As part of the project, I spoke to 15 global SaaS leaders, referred to some of the best books, spoke to 40+ founders, and reflected on all my learnings in the last 6 years. This book is distilled from all of that, packaged in an easy to read format, filled with immediately actionable takeaways that get results.
SeSaMint - Guide to Selling SaaS is available online. I’m offering a 50% discount on my book today Here’s the link to grab the discounted copy: SeSaMint Guide to Selling SaaS - First Job.
Go get that Job! Close that Deal!