Most cold emails fail for one reason:
They’re written to be acceptable.
Polite. Friendly. Careful.
Designed not to offend anyone.
And that’s exactly why they get ignored.
Top sellers don’t write to be acceptable.
They write to be interruptive.
Here’s what I coach teams to stop doing immediately — and what to do instead.
❌ DON’T: Try to sound nice
- “Hope you’re doing well.”
- “Just wanted to reach out.”
- “Sorry to bother you.”
This is submissive language.
It signals: I don’t deserve your attention.
Executives smell that instantly.
Cold email isn’t a dinner invitation.
It’s a pattern interrupt.
❌ DON’T: Hide the uncomfortable truth
Most reps dance around the real issue.
“We help teams optimize outreach.”
No. Say the thing everyone’s thinking but no one wants to admit.
If scaling is breaking their GTM, say it.
If reps are stepping on each other, say it.
If leadership has no visibility, say it.
Playing it safe is invisible.
❌ DON’T: Sell curiosity
“Thought this might be interesting.”
Interesting doesn’t move pipeline. Tension does.
If there’s no implied cost to doing nothing, there’s no reason to
reply.
Now the flip side — the stuff that feels wrong, but works.
✅ DO: Write like you already know the problem
Assume competence. Assume pattern recognition.
“Teams that add SDRs before fixing coverage always end up with
duplicate outreach.”
You’re not asking if this is happening.
You’re stating that it usually does.
✅ DO: Make the email slightly uncomfortable
The best cold emails trigger this reaction:
“Damn… how did they know?”
That comes from specificity, not politeness.
Name the mess.
Name the friction.
Name the thing they complain about internally.
✅ DO: Make replying the path of least resistance
Don’t ask for time.
Don’t ask for a meeting.
Ask for permission to receive something useful.
Low effort. Low risk. Easy yes.
Here’s a cold email that breaks almost every “rule” — and gets replies:
Subject: This usually breaks first
Hey [First Name] — every time I see a team scale reps without fixing account
ownership, the same thing breaks:
- Multiple reps on the same accounts.
- No real coverage model.
- Leadership flying blind.
It’s not a rep issue. It’s structural.
We helped [peer company] clean this up in under two weeks, no re-org, no
Salesforce overhaul.
Want me to send the teardown?
No friendliness.
No fluff.
No pretending this is optional.
Just a clear signal: I’ve seen this before.
Most sellers are trying to be liked.
The best ones are trying to be believed.
If you want your team writing emails that actually interrupt, not blend in —
let’s talk.
Alan "Modern Seller" Ruchtein.
Act like +1000 heroes:
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