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Cold email template First contact

A first cold email to a VP of Procurement

Use it when you sell something a procurement leader buys, and you can point to a public sign of what they are working on.

The three emails

Written to Dana Whitfield, VP of Procurement at Cascade Foods in Columbus, OH. Every name and company here is made up. Text in [brackets] is what you change for each person.

First emailDay 0

Subject: inbound freight for the two Columbus plants

Hi Dana,

[Your post about cutting the supplier list for the two Columbus plants stuck with me.]

Northwind runs dedicated inbound freight for Midwest food makers out of Chicago, on one fixed weekly rate, so a single carrier can cover both plants.

Would a one-page lane comparison for the two plants be useful?

Jordan EllisNorthwind Logistics

Follow-up 1Day 3, if no reply

Subject: Re: inbound freight for the two Columbus plants

Hi Dana,

One detail I left out: [we already run the Chicago to Dayton lane twice a week, so Columbus sits on a route we drive today].

Happy to send the comparison with no call needed. Should I?

Jordan

Follow-up 2Day 7, if no reply

Subject: Re: inbound freight for the two Columbus plants

Hi Dana,

Last note from me on this. If freight is not on the list this quarter, no problem at all.

If someone else at Cascade owns carrier contracts, I would be grateful for their name.

Jordan

Want the whole sequence?

Why it works

  • It opens with her priority, not your product, so the first line in the preview is about her.
  • Procurement leaders weigh total cost and vendor count. One carrier for two plants speaks to both in a sentence.
  • The ask is a document, not a meeting. Saying yes costs her nothing.
  • Follow-up 1 adds a new fact instead of "just checking in". Follow-up 2 offers a graceful exit and a referral path.

The personal line to swap

The opening line. Name one public thing she said or did about suppliers, cost or operations in the last few months: a post, a talk, an earnings remark, a job listing on her team.

Specific, true, checkable

  • Saw you are hiring a category manager for packaging in Columbus.
  • In your interview with Food Logistics you said freight is now your second biggest cost line.

Could be sent to anyone

  • I came across your profile and was impressed by your experience in procurement.

How Reach Crew's Writer personalises it

Writer reads what each person has said and done in public, such as posts, talks and company news, and opens with the one detail that fits your goal. The source shows beside the opening, so you can check it before you approve.

Draft from WriterDana Whitfield, VP of Procurement

Opening from their public work. Source shown beside the draft.

ToDana WhitfieldCC / BCC
inbound freight for the two Columbus plants

Hi Dana,

Your post about cutting the supplier list for the two Columbus plants stuck with me.

Northwind runs dedicated inbound freight for Midwest food makers out of Chicago, on one fixed weekly rate, so a single carrier can cover both plants.

Would a one-page lane comparison for the two plants be useful?

Jordan Ellis

ApproveSkipEdit
Drawn example of a draft waiting for approval. The highlighted line is the personal one. Nothing sends until you approve it, one by one or all at once, and it goes from your own mailbox at 9:30 am on a weekday, their time.

Glossary:Decision makerBuying committeePersonalizationCold email

Updated November 10, 2026. All cold email templates