First touch introduction email template
The opening email to someone who has never heard of you.
A first touch cold email should be under 120 words and do three things: show why you picked this person, say what you do in one line, and ask for a small yes. Long introductions get deleted before the ask is reached.
At a glance
| Use it when | Reaching someone for the first time with no shared context |
|---|---|
| Length | 80 to 120 words |
| Tone | Direct, specific, no flattery |
| Ask for | One small commitment, not a meeting straight away |
The template
Subject lines that work with it
- Quick question about [their company]
- [Specific thing they published] - one thought
- Idea for [their team]
How to write this email well
- Name the trigger in the first line: something they shipped, wrote or announced. Without it the email reads as a mail merge.
- Cut every sentence about yourself that does not help them decide. One line on who you are is enough.
- Ask for a reply, not a calendar slot. A yes to a question is far easier than a yes to thirty minutes.
Questions
How long should a cold email be?
Between 80 and 120 words. Anything longer gets skimmed, and the ask is usually the part that gets skipped.
Should I include a link?
One at most, and only if it proves something. Multiple links look like marketing and can hurt deliverability.
What is a realistic reply rate?
For a well targeted list, five to ten percent. If you are below two percent the problem is usually targeting, not the wording.
More cold outreach templates
Cold outreach
Referral introduction
Reaching someone through a mutual contact.
Cold outreach
Re-engagement
Restarting a conversation that went quiet months ago.
Use this template in Gmail
Copy the HTML above and paste it into Mailplate, the free Gmail extension that inlines the CSS so the layout survives sending. Or edit the wording directly in the preview and insert it into your message.
See Mailplate