Cold emailing remains one of the most effective ways to reach potential clients in B2B marketing. However, with crowded inboxes, it can be challenging to stand out. Personalising your outreach is crucial to improving engagement, and this is where behavioural signals come in. By tracking signals like website visits, email interactions, and social media engagement, you can craft more tailored and effective cold emails that increase response rates and conversions. In this blog, we’ll explore how to use signals for personalising cold email sequences to boost your outreach efforts and build stronger relationships with your leads.
Why Personalisation Matters in Cold Email Outreach
The Role of Personalisation in Engagement
Personalisation in cold emails plays a key role in capturing the recipient’s attention. Generic emails often go unnoticed, but when a lead sees content that speaks directly to their interests, needs, or behaviour, they are far more likely to engage. HubSpot reports that personalised emails have an open rate of 29.3%, compared to just 19.6% for non-personalised ones. This shows that personalisation can significantly improve email engagement, making it a vital part of any cold email strategy.
How Personalised Emails Impact Response Rates
Personalised emails tend to have higher response rates because they are more relevant. When you refer to specific actions a lead has taken, such as visiting your website or interacting with your content, they feel more valued and understood. Mailchimp found that personalised emails have a 5.7% higher click-through rate compared to non-personalised emails. This improvement directly leads to better conversion rates, as prospects are more likely to follow through when they feel their needs are being addressed.
What Are Signals in Cold Email Outreach?
Defining Signals and Their Importance
In the context of cold emailing, "signals" refer to any piece of data that provides insight into a lead’s behaviour, interests, or actions. These can include website visits, social media interactions, email opens, and engagement with content. Signals help marketers understand where a lead is in their buyer journey, allowing for more precise messaging.
Types of Signals to Watch For
There are several types of signals to monitor for effective cold email personalisation:
Website Visits: Tracking which pages a lead visits can give you insight into their interests and challenges.
Email Interactions: Opens, clicks, and replies indicate interest and intent.
Social Media Activity: Likes, shares, comments, or mentions on social platforms provide valuable context about a lead’s interests.
By monitoring these signals, you can send emails that are highly relevant to your audience, increasing your chances of success.
Scraping Signal Data for Personalisation
Job Platforms: LinkedIn and Career Data
LinkedIn is a powerful tool for gathering signals related to job changes, role details, and professional interests. By monitoring job updates or shifts in responsibilities, you can tailor your email sequences to highlight relevant solutions or products that align with their current role. For example, if a lead moves to a managerial position, you could send a personalised email discussing how your solution can help them manage teams more effectively.
Website Interactions: Tracking Leads’ Behaviour
Using website tracking tools like Google Analytics or specialised software such as Hotjar, you can identify how leads are interacting with your site. For example, if a lead frequently visits your product page, this is a strong signal of interest in that specific offering. Tailoring your cold email to mention this interest can significantly increase the chances of a response.
Social Media Activity: Leveraging Engagement Insights
Social media platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook offer real-time insights into a lead’s interests and activity. If a prospect engages with your content on these platforms, it’s a signal that they are open to communication. You can use these interactions as a way to start a conversation in your cold emails, referencing their recent activity or the content they engaged with.
Interested in improving your cold email outreach?
Get in touch with usto learn how you can optimise your email strategy using behavioural signals and automation tools.
How to Use Signals for Personalising Cold Emails
Identifying Key Signals in Your Lead Database
The first step in personalising your cold email sequences is identifying key signals in your lead database. This requires setting up tracking systems for website visits, email opens, social media interactions, and more. Once you gather this data, look for patterns that indicate a lead’s level of interest and engagement.
Segmenting Leads Based on Their Signals
Once you’ve identified key signals, the next step is to segment your leads accordingly. Group your leads based on their behaviour, such as:
Hot Leads: Those who have visited your product pages or clicked on a demo request button.
Warm Leads: Those who have engaged with your content on social media or opened your emails multiple times.
Cold Leads: Those who haven’t interacted with your brand recently.
Segmenting your leads allows you to send more relevant emails that are tailored to their current stage in the buying process.
Crafting Personalised Cold Emails
Now that you’ve segmented your leads, you can craft personalised cold emails based on the signals you’ve gathered. Personalisation doesn’t mean just adding a first name. It involves referencing the lead’s specific actions or interests. Here’s an example of a personalised cold email:
This email references the lead’s website interaction, adding a personal touch while remaining relevant.
Example of Personalised Cold Email
Here’s another example for a lead who engaged with Kynection on social media:
These personalised touches can make a significant difference in cold email success.
Leveraging Automation to Scale Personalisation
CRM and Marketing Automation Tools for Signal-Based Outreach
Using CRM and marketing automation tools, such as HubSpot or Salesforce, can help scale your personalised cold email efforts. These tools allow you to track signals, segment leads, and automatically send personalised emails based on triggers like email opens, website visits, or social media engagement.
Setting Up Trigger-Based Email Workflows
One of the best ways to automate personalisation is by setting up trigger-based email workflows. These workflows automatically send emails based on a lead’s actions, such as clicking on a link, visiting a specific page, or engaging with a social media post. By setting up these triggers, you ensure that your outreach is timely and relevant without manual intervention.
Benefits of Using Signals for Personalisation in Cold Emails
Increased Relevance and Higher Engagement Rates
Personalising cold emails based on signals increases their relevance to the recipient, which naturally leads to higher engagement rates. When an email feels tailored to the individual, the recipient is more likely to open it, read it, and respond.
Better Conversion and ROI
Personalisation improves conversion rates because you are addressing the prospect's specific needs. By showing that you understand their pain points, your emails are more likely to convert into meaningful conversations and sales. This increased conversion rate translates directly to a better return on investment (ROI) for your email campaigns.
Long-Term Relationship Building Through Personalisation
When you consistently use personalisation in your cold emails, you build stronger, long-term relationships with your leads. By showing that you understand their interests and needs, you’re positioning yourself as a valuable partner in their business journey. This can lead to future opportunities and a deeper, more trusted relationship.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the best signal to track for cold email outreach?
The best signals to track depend on your goals, but generally, website visits, email opens, and social media interactions provide the most valuable insights into lead engagement.
2. How can I use LinkedIn to gather signal data for personalisation?
LinkedIn provides useful data about job changes, company updates, and personal interests. Monitor your leads’ updates to tailor your emails based on their professional journey.
3. What tools are best for automating personalised email sequences?
CRM and marketing automation tools like HubSpot, Salesforce, and Mailchimp are excellent for automating personalisation, tracking signals, and setting up trigger-based workflows.
4. How can I segment my leads based on signals?
Segment your leads based on their level of engagement: hot leads (high interest), warm leads (some interest), and cold leads (low or no engagement). Personalise your emails based on these segments.
5. How does personalisation impact cold email response rates?
Personalisation significantly improves response rates by making your emails more relevant and engaging. Leads are more likely to respond when they feel the email speaks directly to their needs.
Interested in improving your cold email outreach?
Get in touch with usto learn how you can optimise your email strategy using behavioural signals and automation tools.
