I had the opportunity to look at a tech executive’s inbox.
She was kind enough to let me do it for the sake of this newsletter.
What I found was brutal.
It was only 12:30pm and she had already received 30+ cold emails.
Just three were opened and none got a reply.
With the amount of outbound advice floating around on LinkedIn, you’d expect better.
Spoiler: nope.
Most were shockingly bad (but simple to fix).
Mistake 1: Selling in the subject line
Before your email even gets opened, the exec sees two things.
The subject line and the preview text.
In that order.
These two lines determine if your email gets opened or ignored.
So skip the sales jargon.
The best subject lines spark curiosity and feel relevant.
❌ Subject: “Introducing Our AI Platform At Your Upcoming SKO”
✅ Subject: “question regarding your SKO”
Mistake 2: Being overly formal
You know you’re about to get pitch-slapped when a stranger sends you an overly formal email.
So here’s the litmus test: If you wouldn’t say it in person, don’t put it in an email.
Conveying your message in simple English is far more effective than using fancy vocabulary.
Skip the fluff, especially with busy execs.
Mistake 3: Too long to read
Everyone's heard this before. But it’s really hard to follow.
Pruning your sentences is one of the hardest parts of writing.
That’s why most cold emails read like word vomit.
Brevity signals intelligence – and execs notice.
Aim for 3–5 sentences.
70 words or less.
Under 20 seconds read time.
Before you hit send, drop it on thereadtime.com to see how long it actually takes to read.
If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter.
Mistake 4: Asking too much
Asking for a meeting in the first cold email is like inviting someone over before you’ve even taken them out.
You haven’t earned it yet.
Start small. Make it easy for them. Ask a simple yes or no question.
❌ Here’s my calendar link. Feel free to schedule a time that works for you.
✅ Would that be of interest?
✅ Worth exploring?
✅ Mind if I send some more info?
✅ Mind connecting with the right person?
Mistake 5: Ignoring WIIFM (aka weak offer)
WIIFM stands for “What’s In It For Me?”
That’s exactly what execs are thinking when they open your cold email.
They don’t care about you.
They don’t care about your product.
They only care about what they get.
So your message needs to answer that fast.
Your offer should show you can solve a problem they care a LOT about – and what outcome they’ll achieve.
Bonus points if you name-drop competitors you’ve helped get similar results.
❌ Our AI-powered deliverability engine helps organizations mitigate ESP throttling, resolve reputation issues, and maximize inbox placement rates.
✅ We helped Shopify cut marketing emails landing in spam by 80% using our deliverability tool.
I ran a quick check on your domain and I’m confident we can drive similar results for Wix.
Mind if I send some more info?
