Blog
Plain answers to the questions people ask about cold email, deliverability, sequences, company temperature, offers and the API.
How do you write a first cold email?
A first cold email needs six parts and about 90 words. Here is the structure, a worked example with placeholders and the lines to cut before you send.
Cold email basicsShould you track opens in cold email?
Apple Mail Privacy Protection and image proxies fire the open pixel before anyone reads. See why replies and clicks give a cleaner signal.
Company temperatureWhat is account-based cold email, and how do you score a company's temperature?
Account-based cold email treats a company as the unit of outreach. Learn how to score each account from replies and clicks, with weights and a scale.
ComplianceIs cold email legal under GDPR?
GDPR does not ban cold email. Legitimate interest can be a legal basis, but you owe recipients information and an opt-out, and national rules apply.
DeliverabilityWhat is a catch-all domain, and should you send cold email to one?
A catch-all domain accepts mail for any address, so verification cannot confirm a mailbox. Learn the risk, a safe way to send and the options.
DeliverabilityHow many cold emails can you send per day from one mailbox?
Providers set a hard cap per mailbox, and cold senders should stay far below it. See a working range, the maths for many mailboxes and when a send pauses.
DeliverabilityDo you need to warm up a mailbox for cold email?
A new mailbox needs a gradual ramp. A paid warm up tool is a separate question. See what is certain, what is disputed and how to ramp up by hand.
DeliverabilityWhat is a good bounce rate for cold email, and what should you do when you pass it?
Most deliverability specialists want hard bounces under 2% and treat 5% as the line to stop at. Here is how to measure it and what to do after.
DeliverabilityWhat are SPF, DKIM and DMARC, and how do you set them up for cold email?
SPF, DKIM and DMARC are three DNS records that prove a message comes from you. Learn what each does, the setup steps and the mistakes that break them.
Integrations and APIHow do you connect cold email to your CRM, such as HubSpot or Pipedrive?
Connect HubSpot, Pipedrive and other CRMs to cold email in 5 steps. Pull lists in as prospects and send replies back as contacts, notes and deals.
Integrations and APIWhat is a webhook, and how do you verify an HMAC signature?
A webhook is an HTTP POST sent to your URL when an event happens. Verify its HMAC-SHA256 signature in Node or Python before you trust the body.
Offers and trackingHow do you see who read your offer, and whether they forwarded it?
Send your proposal as a personal link instead of an attachment. You see who opened it, which pages they read, whether they returned and who else joined.
Pricing and comparisonsHow much does cold email software cost, and what drives the price?
Cold email software prices follow one of four meters: mailbox, seat, contact or emails sent. See what each one charges for and how to compare plans.
SequencesHow many follow-ups should you send, and how far apart?
Plan one first email and two to four follow ups, spaced from three days to a week. See a sample schedule, what each step adds and when to stop.
SequencesHow do you stop a sequence when someone at the company replies?
A reply should stop that person's follow-ups and pause their colleagues in the same campaign. See what to stop, what to keep and how anymail does it.