What would it mean to you or your company, in real dollars, if the prospecting emails you’ve sent turned into customers?
It’s hard to have your email stand out when there are 89 BILLION business emails sent every day!
Now think of your ideal customer. You are sending them emails and so are your competitors, along with their colleagues, bosses, customers, friends, family members, blog sites, and favorite stores.
Many of these emails don’t get opened, and those that do get deleted in just a couple of seconds.
Want to know why?
There are three fatal mistakes most people make when email prospecting:
Mistake 1: Subject Line
With inboxes overflowing with email, your critical mission is to write a subject line that is concise and relevant to the prospect. A subject line should never be about you or your offering. It needs to catch their attention, whether it be about their business, their role, a colleague, etc.
Also, every character counts…literally! The maximum number of characters should be no greater than 50 but ideally 25 to leverage mobile users.
Mistake 2: What You Say
If you are lucky enough to have the recipient open your email, you better grab their attention.
I can’t tell you how many emails I get every day where people tell me how great they are and how they can help me. Really?! I’m thinking to myself, “We haven’t even met and you are telling me how to improve my business?”
The purpose of your email is to engage them, not sell them. You must be relevant to their business or role and show them you are a thought leader worthy of their time.
Mistake 3: Way Too Long
The third issue is that most emails are way too long. If you haven’t noticed, most people are over extended and don’t have the time to read a lengthy email — especially from a stranger.
A rule to live by is a prospecting email should never be more than 80 to 100 words. While you may think there is no way you can say everything you need to say in so few words, I’m here to tell you that you can. In fact, the less you say, the more likely you will get a response!
If you are looking to leverage email more effectively in your prospecting, let us know if we can help! We work with companies training them how to write successful emails, and we would be happy to help you.
Guest post written by Beth Mastre, Vice President Strategic Development for The Sales Hunter. For the past 20+ years, Beth has honed her email marketing skills, not only out of sheer necessity, but also because she is passionate about connecting with people and helping them succeed. Beth’s experience and knowledge on this topic is truly second to none. Her experience is invaluable to The Sales Hunter and to other clients who look to her for guidance and advice.
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