Kat Boogaard

From:Subject:

Let's talk about cold emails 😬


Well hi there Smiles Davis,

How was your week? Mine was pretty busy. 

So busy, in fact, that I have all sorts of exciting things to catch you up on. I'm going to do so in what I believe to be the most efficient way possible—bullet points!

  • I officially launched my online shop for freelancers this week! It has tons of helpful tools and templates that I use in my own freelance business. They're great for new freelancers who are confused about how to get started, as well as established freelancers who want to save time, win more projects, and streamline their systems. Check them out if you haven't already. 👍
     
  • This Sunday, I'm speaking at a "How to Be a Better Freelancer" session hosted by Tim Herrera, the editor of The New York Times' Smarter Living section. I'm pumped! These panels are free and provide so much value for freelancers. Unfortunately, I think the session I'm part of is maxed out (all of the panels fill up so quickly!). But, here's the link, in case you'd like to join the waiting list.
     
  • I'm also a speaker for The Freelancer's Conference, which is a totally virtual event happening next weekend! I'm hosting a workshop about finding freelance gigs and opportunities. Again, it's totally FREE! You can learn more and register right here, if you're interested.

See? I told you I had a lot to share. Now that we have that (exciting!) housekeeping out of the way, let's get into the meat and potatoes.

This week, I sent a cold email to a prospective client for the first time in a long time. I tweeted about it and, as I expected, so many people responded with their hatred for sending cold emails.

I get it. Like I said, cold emails sort of make me want to throw up too.

But here's the thing: They can also be super effective. That one I sent this week? I received a positive response less than 12 hours later. I'm doing an initial assignment with that client super soon and am hopeful it's the start of an awesome writing relationship.

Cold emailing gets a bad rap, but I think that's because a lot of people don't know how to do it right

Personally, cold emails have been key in growing my freelance business (they're how I've landed some of my best clients!). So, I thought I'd share a few tips for cold outreach that actually gets results.

Don't play the numbers game.

Like so many things in life, cold emailing is about quality rather than quantity. I know some people tend to think volume is the key to success, but I have to disagree.

You're much better off sending one thoughtful email than blanketing the entire world in a message that's obviously copied and pasted.

Sink the time and effort into your cold emails. I spent a little over an hour preparing the one I sent this week—and even then, I let the draft sit for a day so I could take another look at it with fresh eyes. 

Find personal contact information.

This one can be a little trickier, but it's well worth the effort.

In my experience, if you submit a request, pitch, or introduction through a website's contact form or to a general "info@email.com" email address, it's way tougher to get a response.

Make it your goal to find an actual person you can get in touch with. This is going to require that you put on your internet detective hat and do some digging. 

Here's what this process looked like for me: 

  • Looked up the company on LinkedIn
  • Navigated to "people" to see their employees
  • Searched for any employees with "content" in their title
  • Found their content manager/blog editor
  • Searched for that person's name on social media, etc. to learn more
  • Tried searching a few different email combinations (i.e. firstname@company.com, firstname.lastname@company.com, firstiniital.lastname@company.com, etc.) until I found a result that confirmed the correct email address

Is that a little cyber-stalkerish? Maybe. But it's also effective. 

Identify a way to connect.  

Now that you know you're emailing an actual person, it's helpful to find some sort of tidbit you can connect over—beyond the fact that you want to work with them.

In my case, my research enlightened me to the fact that this contact is a fellow Midwesterner. And, even better? They live in a city that I love to visit!

Boom. I had my in, and I was able to make some references to that place and establish a connection before I made any sort of pitch or request. 

Not so bad after all, right? Of course, there's a lot more that I could go into when it comes to successful cold emailing. But, I think these three tips are some of the most important.

Give them a try yourself, and I'm sure you'll bump up your own success rate—and your confidence, to boot! 😎

RELATED: How to Stand Out When Freelancing Seems Way Too Competitive

My Favorite Reads This Week:

Here are a few bomb-diggity reads I sunk my teeth into these past few days. If you're looking for something to read, go ahead and give these a peek!

Noteworthy Freelance Gigs:

Looking for some new freelance writing gigs and opportunities? You're in luck, because I've rounded some up for you.

Don't feel like you're a fit for any of these gigs or opportunities? Get out there and proactively pitch the outlets you're interested in. You can do it, I promise. Here's what you need to know.

That's all for this week, Smiles Davis. Go make the most of your weekend! ☀️

Happy freelancing!

P.S. Have you joined my private Facebook community to connect with other creative freelancers yet? If you're feeling lonely (umm...aren't we all?), come on over and join the conversations.