Glossary Writing and sequences
What is a cold email? Definition and examples
A cold email is a first email sent to someone you have no existing relationship with, written to start a relevant business conversation, such as a sale, a partnership, a hire or an introduction.
Good cold email is one to one: written for a specific person, about something that matters to them, from a real person's mailbox, with an easy way to say no. Spam is the opposite: the same message sent to many people who have no reason to want it.
Short works best. Four to six sentences, one clear ask, and a personal opening line tied to something the reader actually did or said.
Why it matters
- It is one of the few ways to reach people who do not know you yet.
- It costs little per person but rewards care: relevance drives replies.
- Done badly, it hurts your domain's reputation for all your email.
How Reach Crew handles it
Reach Crew is built around one-to-one cold email. Scout finds the right person, Checker checks their work email twice, Writer drafts one email for that reader, and Courier sends it from your own mailbox at 9:30 am on a weekday, their time. Nothing sends until you approve, one by one or all at once.
Related terms
- Personalization. Personalization in cold email is writing each message around something specific and true about the recipient...
- Email sequence. An email sequence is a planned series of messages to one person, a first email followed by timed follow-ups...
- Email deliverability. Email deliverability is the share of the emails you send that land in the recipient's inbox, rather than in...
- CAN-SPAM Act. The CAN-SPAM Act is the US federal law, enforced by the FTC, that sets rules for commercial email, including...
- Guide: How to write a first cold email someone answers
- Template: A first cold email to a VP of Procurement