I’ve sent over 300 emails this month. Got 2 replies. One was an auto responder. I keep seeing people post “I made 10k from cold outreach” like it’s easy.
At this point I’m convinced there’s something they’re not saying.
Anyone here actually getting real results from cold email?
what’s the actual trick
Do people actually make money from cold emails or is that just Twitter talk?
byu/Deeceness inEntrepreneur
Posted by Deeceness
16 Comments
you’re probably not emailing the correct addresses and or your emails are automatically flagged as spam
Ask yourself. How many times have you gotten a cold email to sell you a product/service that you actually bought and didn’t delete?
Cold email still works but only if you treat it like research not spam. Most people scrape random leads or buy lists that haven’t been updated in years. The difference between 0 replies and deals is sending to people who are actually buying or importing what you sell right now.
You can find that by looking at trade data instead of generic databases. I’ve had better luck pulling fresh company info and shipment records from Tendata since it shows who’s active in your product line. used to mess with Import Yeti too but the refresh rate there’s slower.
Hello, my name is Alex, and I’m German, I just started my SaaS last week and so far I sent 50 cold-outreaches, out of those 6 visitors (No closing Leads yet). Not much but something and I have one problem, I don’t live in the US and we have other time zones. That said, my close rate is worse. If I start my day UTC +1 6pm, I would get more responses.
My stats (Daily) : 6 reps, 15 cold-outreaches.
My default approach: Create Trust (One foot inside the door), Provide Micro-Value, take them to your SaaS or product.
people do make money from cold emails, but it’s definitely not the magic “send 100 and make 10k” story Twitter makes it sound like. The trick isn’t the email volume, it’s the targeting and offer. Most people blast generic messages to random inboxes and wonder why no one bites.
When it works, it’s because the person sending them spent way more time on research than writing. The email is short, specific, and actually relevant, like, “I saw your site’s missing X, here’s how I can fix it in two days.” Not “hope you’re doing well” spam.
It’s also a numbers game after the system is dialed in. 300 random emails is noise, but 50 emails to people who actually need what you’re selling can crush. Cold outreach works, but only if you treat it like a craft, not a lottery.
I’ve brought on around 70 customers in the past 2 years via cold email. I sell a SaaS to colleges & universities. Took around 25,000 cold emails. That’s about 25-35 per inbox per business day, using 2-4 inboxes at a time.
It works for me because I know exactly who buys my product at schools. I email them directly, and start & end my emails with a question. No links, no images, no HTML – the #1 goal is not to trigger spam.
People reply yes, they want to connect & learn more. I send them a meeting link, we connect over Zoom, our sales cycle is around 6-18 months…and then they either sign up or we never hear from them again. Classical B2B/B2E sales approach.
Email is a good if you want to send a quick introduction but you need to follow up with other touch points like calls.
Wdym actual trick? There’s no trick. They have a good offer and they blast that offer using cold email as traffic. I have gotten clients from literally cold email alone.
That’s crap no way people making 10k from cold outreach, most of it these days will end up in spam and never get seen anyway.
I have a rule. If I get a cold email and cannot click to unsubscribe, I mark it spam and block the sender. Period. Nobody gets to break federal spam email law and get my business from it. I get especially pissy when people pulling this nonsense are selling marketing services of any kind.
Cold emails usually only work if they have the following:
Something that peaks their interest, Do a bit of research on them, their industry, their pain points..
Real life examples with numbers to back them up.. We do x which saved money/ enhanced productivity by (this much).. Insert number here
Your email doesn’t start with ” Hi Bob, Hope this email finds you well”
100 emails on average have 10% open rate with 2% interaction ( source: me)
Good Luck
Cold outreach success has been on a harsh decline for the last few years. Email servers like google and outlook are more strict on what they’ll even let thru to the inbox.
300 is actually a fairly low number in today’s standards. On my last campaign I got about 1 reply per thousand, and it was for a free trial. 🤷
Cold emails can still work, but not the way most people on Twitter make it sound. You need good targeting, a short and relevant message, and some form of personalization. Sending 300 generic ones usually gets buried. Try focusing on smaller, better-qualified lists instead of volume.
I’ve gotten clients from cold emails but it was carefully researched and customized. Needs to be specific and high effort not just spray and pray to work
cold email works but 300 is actually pretty low volume and you’re probably hitting spam filters. most people making money from it are sending thousands with proper domain setup and warmup.
the real issue is deliverability. if you’re not landing in inbox, volume doesn’t matter. use a proper platform like campaign monitor for cold outreach so you don’t wreck your main domain reputation. they handle spf/dkim properly and your emails actually get seen.
also target better – 50 hyper-relevant emails > 300 random ones.
Your experience mirrors what a lot of people go through honestly. The 2 out of 300 response rate sounds about right for untargeted cold outreach.
From what I’ve seen, the people actually making money aren’t just blasting generic templates. They’re spending hours researching specific companies, finding real pain points, and crafting personalized angles. It’s less about volume and more about relevance.
That said, it’s a grind and the ROI can be questionable when you factor in your time. Some folks get traction, but they’re usually in specific B2B niches where decision makers actually check email.
Out of curiosity, what kind of service/product were you pitching, and were you targeting a specific industry or just casting a wide net?