Read these examples before you hit send

As I have written previously, a well crafted cold email can get you attention from a VC and stand out in the crowd. I wanted to share a few real redacted examples of the type of inbound requests I get and what they imply. As you will read, it is not hard to spend a few extra minutes and craft something that succinctly describes what you do, your traction, your ask, and is personalized to the firm.

Example 1:

The short nothing

This email sender clearly took zero time and provided no details about what they are working on. It is hard to be helpful in this situation.

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Example 2:

The self focused short

In this situation, the sender has not done any research on our firm, generically sending this to lots of people. It’s unclear what the specific traction and ask are, so, also hard to be helpful.

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Example 3:

Generic but pretends to be for you

In this example, the sender is providing more details than the previous senders, so I at least have a chance to do some research to see if there might be a fit. The sender, however, is missing an opportunity to personalize the outreach and has just vomited lots of information and links.

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Example 4:

The outsource to advisors

I’m usually not a fan of the CEO going through advisors for generic outreach unless it is someone who has/makes a personal connection. Fundraising is a critical task that should not be outsourced.

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Example 5:

Makes references to local connection

This example is okay, but because they mention the local connection, I can respond to try and be helpful.

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Example 6:

Has done some homework

This sender has clearly looked at our website and done some research, so they are already a step up on other cold inbound requests and have proven a good opportunity to connect.

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Example 7:

Detailed, but focused and engaging

This final example is a great cold email that led to a conversation and ultimately investment in the company. Good ones do not need to be this long, but this email told a great story and was well connected.

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In closing, if you do a little bit of research, have a clear statement of what you do and why it could be a good fit, a defined ask, and personalize the outreach even a little bit you can dramatically increase your chances of standing out from all the other inbound requests.

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