How to Do Cold Emailing Right with Apollo

Before you send cold emails, link your mailbox to Apollo. If your mailbox is already connected, explore the sending options that fit your workflow.

Review Email Deliverability Best Practices to check your sending setup before starting outreach.

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If you already work in Gmail, the Apollo Chrome Extension lets you use Apollo features while composing emails. This is an optional alternative to working directly in Apollo.

For example, you can start with a template, add a snippet that explains your product's relevance, and personalize the message for the recipient. Review the introduction and closing question so the email fits the conversation you want to start.

Refer to Use the Apollo Chrome Extension in Gmail for setup and feature instructions.

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Choose your sending approach based on the amount of individual attention and follow-up your outreach needs.

• Individual emails: Use an individual email when you want to write a message for a specific contact. This can be useful when you have a clear reason to reach out, such as a relevant company announcement or a challenge the contact has shared publicly. Refer to View and Respond to Emails for the places you can work with email in Apollo.
• Sequences: Use a sequence when you want to organize outreach and follow-up steps for multiple contacts. Group contacts with similar roles or needs, then create messaging around that shared context. Refer to Create a Sequence for setup instructions.

Give each email one main purpose. Explain why you're reaching out, connect your message to the recipient's situation, and end with a question they can answer.

For example, if your product helps operations teams reduce manual data entry, you could ask:

How does your team keep contact details current before outreach?

Use this question only when it fits your product and audience. A specific, relevant question gives the recipient a clear topic to respond to.

Before sending, check the recipient, sending mailbox, subject line, and message. Remove details that don't support the reason for your outreach.

For more guidance on subject lines, message structure, and calls to action, review How to Write Effective Sales Emails.

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Personalization should explain why your message matters to the recipient. A name or company detail can help, but it should support a relevant reason for reaching out.

For priority prospects, spend more time researching their role, company, and potential needs. Use details you can verify. For example, if a company announces an expansion, explain how your product could help with a related challenge without assuming you know its internal priorities.

For a broader audience, start with a shared need. You could group operations leaders who manage prospect data, then adapt the introduction and closing question for each person.

Use Apollo's tools to support that approach:

• Dynamic variables: Add contact or company details to your message. Start with basic variables, and explore advanced or custom variables when you need additional personalization.
• Snippets: Reuse short passages, such as a product explanation or a response to a common question. Adjust the surrounding text so the passage fits the recipient.
• Personalized videos: Consider a short video when a demonstration would explain your point more clearly than text. Refer to the Vidyard guide to add videos to Apollo emails.

For example, you could reuse a snippet explaining how your product reduces manual data entry. Pair it with an opening sentence about the recipient's role and a question about their current process.

Review the completed message before sending. Check that contact details are accurate, variables have the information they need, and reused content fits the recipient.

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Use Apollo's AI Writing Assistant when you need help creating a first draft, rephrasing a message, or reviewing your email. Keep your audience and reason for reaching out clear as you revise.

For example, if a draft spends too much time describing your product, refocus it on one relevant problem and one question. If it sounds too formal, adjust the wording to match how you would speak to the recipient.

Before sending, check:

• Accuracy: Verify names, company details, and claims about your product.
• Relevance: Remove assumptions about the recipient that you can't support.
• Voice: Replace generic wording with language you would use.
• Next step: Make sure the recipient can understand what you're asking.

Refer to Use the AI Writing Assistant in Your Emails for the available tools and instructions.

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