The customer story cold email template is one of the most powerful tools in a salesperson’s outreach arsenal. By showcasing customer success, this type of email builds credibility and grabs recipients’ attention.
In this post, we’ll define the customer story template, explain when and how to use it effectively and provide examples and tips to help you craft compelling customer story cold emails.
What is a Customer Story Cold Email Template?
The customer story cold email template strategically incorporates client success stories into an outreach message.
The goal is to showcase how your product or service has helped other customers achieve meaningful results.
This establishes credibility and builds trust with prospective leads who may be unfamiliar with your company.
The core components of a customer story cold email are:
- Brief Background: Provide a short introduction to your company and product/service. Focus on your target customer and their challenges.
- Customer Profile: Spotlight a specific customer persona who achieved success using your offering. Provide details on their situation.
- Solution Implementation: Explain how you provided value to this customer. Keep it concise but highlight the key activities or deliverables.
- Resulting Outcomes: Quantify the customer’s successful results, ROI, or other metrics after partnering with you. Use numbers to demonstrate impact.
- Call to Action: End by urging the prospect to learn more, request a demo, or take another next step.
This template works well when contacting prospects in the same industry vertical or with similar pain points as your successful customer examples.
Stories resonate and enable prospects to see themselves achieving similar success with your solution.
Why is the Customer Story Cold Email Template Useful?
The Customer Story Cold Email Template is a gem in the realm of email marketing, offering a personal touch amidst a sea of generic outreach attempts. By showcasing real-life testimonials or experiences, this template brings a slew of advantages to the table:
- Authenticity and Trust: Sharing actual customer stories lends authenticity to your email, helping to build trust with the recipients. It showcases the genuine value and effectiveness of your offerings, which can significantly enhance the credibility of your brand.
- Engagement: Real-life stories are relatable and engaging. They pique the curiosity of the readers and encourage them to learn more about your products or services. This natural engagement can lead to higher open and click-through rates, making your email campaign more effective.
- Overcoming Objections: By addressing common concerns or objections within the narrative, you can help alleviate doubts that potential customers might have. They get to see how others overcame similar issues, making them more likely to consider your offerings.
- Humanizing Your Brand: Stories help humanize your brand, showing that behind the business facade are real people who have helped others achieve success. This human touch can foster a deeper connection with your audience.
- Highlighting Benefits, not Features: Through a customer’s story, prospects can see the benefits of your product or service in action, rather than just reading a list of features. This practical demonstration can be far more persuasive.
- Encouraging Action: A well-crafted story culminating in a compelling Call to Action can encourage the readers to take the desired step, be it making a purchase, signing up for more information, or another desired action.
- Versatility: This template is versatile and can be tweaked to suit various industries and target audiences, making it a valuable asset in different marketing scenarios.
Utilizing the power of storytelling, the Customer Story Cold Email Template is a formidable tool in nurturing relationships, overcoming objections, and driving conversions, thus playing a pivotal role in enhancing your email outreach strategy.
When to Use Customer Story Cold Email Template?
The effectiveness of the Customer Story Cold Email Template is significantly influenced by its timely utilization within the cold email sequences.
Here’s how you can strategically leverage this template at different stages:
Early Engagement
After an initial introduction or a brief insight into your offerings, employing the customer story template as a follow-up can provide a real-world testament to the claims made in the initial outreach. It helps in reinforcing the benefits early on, nurturing curiosity and trust.
Middle of the Sequence
If a prospect has interacted with your previous emails but hasn’t taken the desired action, introducing a customer story can provide that extra nudge. It helps in showing the practical application and success others have achieved, which might motivate the prospect to engage further.
Overcoming Objections
If during the sequence, objections or concerns are raised by the prospects, a well-timed customer story can address these hurdles. By showcasing how similar issues were resolved or benefits were realized by other customers, you can help alleviate their concerns.
Re-engagement
If a prospect has gone cold or hasn’t interacted for a while, sharing a fresh success story can reignite their interest. It’s a way to show ongoing satisfaction and success among your customer base, which can draw them back into the conversation.
Pre-Closing Stage
When the prospect is in the consideration phase, sharing a customer story that aligns with their scenario can help in tipping the scale in your favor. It provides them with a clear picture of the positive outcomes they can expect.
Post-Sale Follow-Up
After a sale, sharing success stories related to maximizing the value of the purchased product or service can encourage customer loyalty and upsell opportunities.
The strategic placement of the Customer Story Cold Email Template within different stages of the outreach sequence can significantly enhance its effectiveness.
It’s not just about sharing a customer story, but sharing it at the right time to resonate with the recipient’s current mindset or concerns, thus moving them closer to the desired action.
Through this tailored approach, you can ensure that the narrative strikes a chord and propels the prospect through the sales funnel.
Examples of Customer Story Cold Email Template
Here are 5 example customer story cold emails along with an analysis of their effectiveness:
Example 1: Product Launch Outreach
Subject: Discover How [Product Name] Transformed [Beta Tester’s Name]’s Business Overnight!
Hi [Recipient’s Name],
I’m excited to introduce you to our newly launched [Product Name]. The early adopters have already seen remarkable improvements in their operations. One such success story is of [Beta Tester’s Name], who reported a [XX]% increase in productivity within just the first week!
[Beta Tester’s Name]’s team found [Product Name] to be a game-changer, particularly appreciating its [mention a notable feature/benefit]. They now manage their [specific task] with unparalleled efficiency.
Read their story [here] and discover how [Product Name] can revolutionize your operations too.
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
Warm regards,
[Your Name]
Purpose: To introduce a new product by sharing a beta tester’s success story.
Analysis: Sharing a success story from a beta tester can provide early validation for your new product. It demonstrates the practical benefits and can create anticipation among potential customers, making them more likely to check out the launch.
Example 2: Service Improvement Outreach
Subject: See How [Customer’s Name] Benefited from Our Enhanced [Service Name]!
Hi [Recipient’s Name],
We recently upgraded our [Service Name], incorporating valuable feedback to provide a superior solution. The new version has already made a significant impact on our customers’ [mention the area of impact].
For instance, [Customer’s Name] reported a [XX]% reduction in [specific problem] since they started using the enhanced service. They particularly enjoyed the [mention a notable feature/benefit].
Discover their journey [here] and learn how our improved service can benefit you.
Warm regards,
[Your Name]
Purpose: To inform existing or past clients about an improved service by showcasing a satisfied customer’s experience.
Analysis: This approach re-engages past clients and reassures existing ones. By presenting a tangible improvement through a customer’s story, you reignite interest and trust in your service.
Example 3: Overcoming Common Objections:
Subject: How [Customer’s Name] Overcame [Common Objection] with [Product/Service Name]
Hi [Recipient’s Name],
We understand that [Common Objection] can be a concern. However, [Customer’s Name] had similar reservations but found success with [Product/Service Name]. They are now enjoying [mention the benefit they experienced].
Explore their success story [here] and see how [Product/Service Name] could be the solution you’ve been looking for.
I am here to address any concerns you might have.
Best,
[Your Name]
Purpose: To address common objections by narrating how a customer had similar concerns but had a positive experience.
Analysis: Prospects with objections may relate to the story, helping to alleviate their concerns. It’s a proactive way to address hurdles and keep the conversation moving forward.
Example 4: Highlighting Unique Value Proposition (UVP):
Subject: [Customer’s Name]’s Journey to [Benefit] with [Product/Service Name]
Hi [Recipient’s Name],
Our [Product/Service Name] is designed to deliver [mention your UVP]. [Customer’s Name]’s story is a testament to the unique advantages you too can leverage.
They were able to [mention the benefit they achieved], which had a significant impact on their [mention area of impact].
Dive into their story [here] and envision the potential success awaiting you.
Cheers,
[Your Name]
Purpose: To emphasize your UVP by sharing a customer’s story who benefited uniquely from your offerings.
Analysis: A real-world example can vividly highlight your UVP, making it easier for prospects to understand and appreciate the unique benefits, which in turn could enhance engagement.
Example 5: Cross-Selling or Upselling:
Subject: [Customer’s Name]’s Success with Our Expanded Offerings!
Hi [Recipient’s Name],
Expanding to our [Additional Product/Service] has opened new avenues of success for many clients. [Customer’s Name] is one such success story, witnessing a [XX]% boost in [specific outcome].
They particularly appreciated the [mention a notable feature/benefit] which played a key role in achieving their goals.
Explore their success story [here] and learn how you can achieve similar results with our expanded offerings.
Looking forward to your success,
[Your Name]
Purpose: To promote additional products or services by sharing a success story of a customer who benefited from an upsell or cross-sell.
Analysis: Demonstrating the added value through a customer’s story can entice recipients to explore the additional offerings. It’s a less intrusive way to introduce upsell or cross-sell opportunities.
Each example illustrates how the Customer Story Cold Email Template can be tailored for various purposes while maintaining a personal and engaging tone.
By portraying real benefits through relatable narratives, these templates can significantly bolster the effectiveness of your email outreach, nurturing a more profound connection with the recipients and encouraging them to take the desired action.
How ProfitOutreach Improves Customer Story Cold Email Template
ProfitOutreach enables highly personalized and engaging customer story emails through its robust data integration and automation capabilities.
By connecting to LinkedIn and website data sources, ProfitOutreach can pull in relevant details to customize each email to the recipient. For customer story emails, it can intelligently select the most relevant case study or testimonial based on the prospect’s industry, role, and challenges.
The sequence builder allows you to easily insert dynamic customer story templates into an automated nurturing flow. The AI copywriting assists with generating compelling narratives that resonate with each prospect.
ProfitOutreach also saves these personalized details in each contact’s profile. So when you need to send new customer story emails, it already knows how to tailor them based on previous interactions and demonstrated interests.
Overall, ProfitOutreach transforms static customer story templates into adaptive sequences full of personalized social proof. This results in higher open and click rates compared to generic outreach. The platform’s automation also creates efficiency by handling personalization at scale across your entire prospect database.
By leveraging ProfitOutreach to integrate data and automate personalized customer story emails, you can cut through the noise to deliver tailored social proof that builds trust and credibility with each recipient.
Best Practices for Customer Story Cold Email Template
Utilizing the Customer Story Cold Email Template can be a powerful tool in your email outreach arsenal, but its effectiveness is maximized when best practices are adhered to. Here are some best practices along with common pitfalls to avoid:
Best Practices
- Authenticity and Relevance: Ensure the customer story you share is genuine and relevant to the recipient’s industry or challenges. It’s essential that the story resonates with the recipient and prompts them to explore your solution further.
- Concise and Engaging Narrative: Keep your email concise, engaging, and focused on the benefits experienced by the customer in the story. A well-crafted narrative can evoke emotions and pique interest.
- Personalization: Personalize the email by addressing the recipient by name and tailoring the introduction to reflect their specific interests or challenges. Tools like ProfitOutreach can automate this personalization process.
- Clear Call to Action (CTA): Include a clear and compelling cold email Call to Action encouraging the recipient to read the full customer story, get in touch, or take another desired action.
- Visual Elements: If possible, include visual elements like images or infographics to make the email more engaging. A link to a video testimonial can also be a strong addition.
- Follow-Up: Plan a follow-up sequence to re-engage recipients who don’t respond to the initial email. A gentle reminder or additional information could prompt a response.
- Test and Optimize: Analyze the performance of your emails and continuously test different elements like subject lines, messaging, and CTAs to improve engagement rates.
Common Pitfalls to Avoid
- Overwhelming Details: Avoid overwhelming the recipient with too many details. Stick to the key points that illustrate the benefits and outcomes achieved.
- Lack of Personalization: Sending generic emails without any personalization can lead to low engagement rates. Ensure each email is tailored to the recipient to some extent.
- Missing or Weak CTA: A missing or unclear Call to Action can leave the recipient unsure of the next steps. Ensure your CTA is compelling and clear.
- Ignoring Follow-Up: Neglecting to follow up can result in missed opportunities. A well-timed follow-up email can keep the conversation going.
- Unverified Claims: Ensure that all the claims made in your customer story are verifiable and accurate to maintain trust and credibility.
- Failure to Segment Audience: Not segmenting your audience can lead to sharing irrelevant customer stories with recipients, which could diminish the effectiveness of your outreach.
- Not Analyzing Performance: Failing to analyze the performance of your emails can hinder optimization efforts, leading to stagnant or declining engagement rates.
By adhering to these best practices and avoiding common pitfalls, you can significantly enhance the effectiveness of your Customer Story Cold Email Template, fostering better engagement and achieving your outreach objectives.
Conclusion
The customer story template helps sales and marketing teams boost cold email results by showcasing credible proof through client wins.
When used strategically within personalized narratives, customer examples grab attention, establish trust, and demonstrate how your solution drives ROI. Ready to incorporate compelling customer stories into your outreach?
Sign up for ProfitOutreach to start creating high-converting, tailored cold email sequences today.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Customer Story Cold Email Template
Here are some frequently asked questions about the customer story cold email template:
How often should I use customer story emails in my sequences?
Avoid overusing them – 1-2 customer story emails per 5-7 email sequence is ideal. Use them at critical points when social proof matters most.
Can this template work for companies in every industry?
Yes, customer stories are versatile. Tailor them to your prospect’s specific industry pain points and goals for maximum relevance.
Do I need permission to mention a customer by name in an email?
You should have their consent before directly referencing a customer by name in outreach emails.
How can I customize this for conservative industries like finance or healthcare?
Use more formal language and focus on conservative metrics like risk reduction, compliance, and cost savings rather than disruptive growth.
Is this template effective when prospecting new companies?
It can be if you reference a client in their industry and niche. But pair it with a demo or trial offer since they have no experience with you.
How do I make the stories feel authentic and genuine?
Pull specific details from case studies, avoid exaggerations, and write in an emotive, narrative style. Back up claims with data.
Should every email in my sequence use a customer story?
No, mix it up with value-driven emails. Use 1-2 customer story emails in a 5-7 email nurturing flow for best results.
Does this work for personal outreach as well as company sales?
Absolutely. Reference past individual clients you’ve successfully served in a relevant niche.
