Minimalist prospecting emails: Do they work?
When 50 words can get you more replies
Short, informal emails are a complete disruption of the sales templates for prospecting. You do nothing of what you are generally told in a training. No long introduction, no explanation of the problem, no discussion of the benefits, no lead magnets attached, no pitch. You ignore most of the popular recommendations.
Does it work? If done well, and only in the right context, short, informal prospecting emails can actually be quite powerful.
They sound real. They are not the prepackaged, polished templates copied and pasted. The prospect feels already inside a real conversation and not exposed to a marketing ad.
They lower the defenses. There is no pitch, no hook, no attachment. Just curiosity. It can surprise people who are expected to be sold.
Evidence from multiple sources, Gong, Lavender, Outreach.io show higher open and reply rates for email with 100 or even 50 words only.
But you have to do them right.
Certainly, they do not work for complex problems, large clients, and long sales cycles. They might work for smaller tickets.
They never work if they are generic, vague, and have no context at all.
You need to establish credibility not in the text but in the signature. So, your signature, domain, LinkedIn in the signature become essential.
What’s the structure? Name, who you work for, one sentence knowing what they do, and the problem they might have, and then a polite request if they want to talk with you about it.
Identifying their problem is more important than explaining that you have the solution. This can be implied. But you need to show you understand their problem to establish a connection. The “we can help you solve it!” should be implied, as the prospect clearly surmises you are not just reaching out to tell them their problems. In your question, you can specify a desire to discuss whether you can help them solve the problem, and this already establishes a connection.
It works best when there are negative stereotypes for sellers. So ask yourself. How are sellers perceived in your buyer industry? How many of these emails do they get? What is their reaction when they receive the classic template, polished, structured email? Do they immediately trash it without even reading it? If that is the answer, then the minimalist approach might yield higher returns.
