Email prospecting is one of the most difficult parts of a sales rep's job. Prospects are inundated with emails, so you have to make yours stand out. 

This article gives you downloadable, customizable templates plus a guide to writing your own effective prospecting email messages. Discover actionable advice on how to make your prospecting more successful.

Email prospecting is the most effective sales channel, but it's not easy.

Sales reps who prospect via email should know that they're fighting an uphill battle. Only 28% of emails are opened, and only 18% of those lead to a sale (see #s below).

Email prospecting is one of the hardest parts of a sales rep's job. Let us help you turn your prospecting your emails into opportunities by giving you some prospecting templates and tips to get started.

Here are 12 email prospecting template ideas to boost your sales:

- The quick win -

 this is a great way to immediately establish rapport with the prospect, especially if you're reaching out about an easy fix that they may be unaware of or need help with right away (e.g. "I noticed that you're using Salesforce and we recently made some updates to the new user experience...")

- The no-brainer - 

this prospecting template is a great way to get your prospect's attention without being too pushy or salesy (e.g. "Is now a good time to talk?"). This email template can be a great way to get your prospect on the phone with you.

- The status check - 

this email is perfect for when you want to follow up from an earlier conversation, send some critical information before a call, or just let them know that you're there and available if they need anything (e.g. "Just checking in on our last conversation about X. How are things going?").

- The good news - 

this email template is great for when you have some exciting or positive information to share with your prospect (e.g. "I'm happy to say that the new version of Y has launched successfully...")

- The introduction email - 

this email template is great to send when you don't have the personal connection with your prospect, but want to introduce yourself and make it easy for them (e.g. "I'm a new member of ABC Company's sales team...")

- The how we work on email - 

this email template is great for when you want to highlight how your emails work and the steps that are involved in making it happen (e.-g "To ensure success, XYZ Company works with us on a three step process...")

- The why prospecting email - 

this email template is perfect for when you're prospecting for new business or if you have a prospect that is just starting out in their journey to find the right solution (e.g. "I wanted to touch base and see how things are going...").

- The competitive email - 

this email template is perfect for when you want your prospect to know why they should choose you over the competition (e.g. "We're different than ABC Company because...").

- The event prospecting email - 

this template is great to send if you want your prospect to register for an upcoming webinar or conference that your company is hosting (e.g. "Our CEO will be speaking at XYZ Company's event next week. Click here to register.")

- The non prospecting email - 

this template is great for when you want your prospect to be aware of an upcoming company or industry event (e.g. "Did you know that ABC Company will be hosting our annual conference on XYZ date? We'd love it if you could attend this year...").

- The email about your product -

while it's best to avoid sending emails that talk only about your product, if you must send one then definitely use a template (e.g. "Our XYZ Company is the industry leader when it comes X because of Y"). 

Here are some other email ideas that you can customize to fit your own emails:

- The email about a past client - 

this email template is great if you want to stay top of mind with your prospects and provide them additional value (e.g. "I was reminded the other day about how ABC Company saved $YYY last year by using our product. 

I thought you might appreciate knowing about this as well.")

- The email to introduce yourself - 

this email is great if you want your prospect to know more about who they're working with (e.g. "Hi, my name is ZZZ and I'm a new member of ABC Company's sales team. 

I'd love to connect with you and see how we can work together.").

- The email about a joint venture - 

this email template is great if you want your prospect to be aware of an upcoming partnership or collaboration that they should know more about. 

e.g "I just wanted to quickly reach out and let you know that we have a joint venture going on right now to XYZ Company. You can read more about it here."

- The email for an introduction - 

this email template is great if you want your prospect to meet someone who could be really helpful in their decision making process

 e.g. "My email name is XXXX and I think you should meet. We have a mutual connection who can introduce us.

5 Easy Steps to Writing Great Prospecting Emails

While other marketing methods such as cold phoning might still be beneficial, many firms still rely on email to generate leads.

However, just because something is popular does not imply that it is simple.

Even a seasoned salesperson may find it difficult to write an email that leads to a sale.

So, when you sit down and start composing your email, keep the following in mind:

1. Research your prospect.

Before you can craft an email that will truly resonate with your prospect, you need to get inside his head.

So spend some time researching him before you actually start writing the email itself.

Find out what makes this person tick and how he spends his free time or manages certain situations in everyday life.  

But where do you even begin?

If your prospects are already on your email list, a good place to start would be to look at the materials they've used on your website, such as an ebook they might have downloaded. This can give them vital insight into what they're looking for.

Examine your prospect's social media accounts as well.

Because their posts are public, Twitter and LinkedIn are the most effective. You might also use Facebook and Instagram as alternatives.

Furthermore, looking at your prospect's company's or personal blog's "about page" may disclose vital information about their interests.

2. Use a catchy topic line.

It makes no difference how thorough your prospecting is since...

...you won't get far if you don't get the subject line of your email right.

69 percent of recipients will designate an email as spam based just on the subject line.

So here are a few pointers to assist you come up with a catchy topic line:

Make your subject line as brief as possible (ideally, less than 30 characters). This not only clarifies the subject of the email, but it also assures that it is displayed on mobile devices.

It's usually a good idea to mention the recipient's name in an email because it helps to personalise it.

Include a convincing question like "Can we assist you in accomplishing [goal]?"

You should also avoid utilising spam terms in your subject line, such as "Buy immediately" or "Great offer," as this can make your email appear spammy.

3. Keep your email to a minimum.

Outbound emails with roughly 20 lines of text (or about 200 words) have the highest click-through rates, according to a recent study.

People don't like reading long emails, so keeping them brief and to-the-point is a great approach to show that you respect their time.

Include everything you need to build a full email, but don't include anything that might divert the recipient's attention away from the main message.

You don't need to mention stuff like "I hope this email finds you well," for example.

Instead, get right to the point and stimulate their interest in order to elicit a response.

4. Make use of social proof

Including social proof in your prospecting email is a fantastic approach to make it look more credible. Including it in an email can boost response rates by up to 468 percent!

So, what is it about social proof that has such a beneficial impact?

Because it takes advantage of the way our brains have evolved to think, social proof is highly persuasive. Observing what others are doing is one of the most important clues our brain utilises to make decisions.

Attaching a study that reinforces the message is a practical way to incorporate social proof into your email. You might also include customer testimonials from a well-known client.

5. Make sure you send your email at the appropriate time.

When it comes to whether or not people open your emails, timing is crucial.

However, because there is no one-size-fits-all answer, determining when to send your email can be difficult.

As a sales professional, you'll know that the optimal moment to send an email is determined by the recipient. Experimentation is the greatest method to figure this out.

Certain days and periods, however, have been demonstrated to be more successful than others in tests. Tuesday, for example, has some of the greatest response rates, followed by Thursday and Wednesday, respectively.

According to the same study, the optimal time is late morning, about 10 a.m. Alternatively, larger response rates may be obtained at 8 p.m., 2 p.m., and 6 a.m.

6 Free Email Templates to Use Right Now If you want your sales emails to stand out among the hundreds of emails a prospect receives each day, make them as engaging as possible.

Manually drafting each email from scratch, on the other hand, might be time-consuming.