When to use it
Use this for 1:1 or small-batch outbound where you have a real reason to reach out to a specific person, a trigger, a role change, a post they wrote, a problem you can credibly speak to. It earns its keep when personalization actually pays: named target accounts, senior buyers, deals worth a few minutes of thought per email. The whole value is in the PROSPECT_CONTEXT field; with a specific trigger it produces a human note, and with a blank one it produces spam.
Do NOT use it to mass-blast a 5,000-line list, the model will happily generate 5,000 generic emails and tank your domain reputation. For full multi-touch campaigns, generate the structure with the sequence prompt and reuse this only for the high-value first touch. And never fill the PROOF field with a result you can't defend; a fabricated stat that a prospect questions ends the relationship and your credibility.
The principle: cold email is a relevance test, not a writing contest. You earn a reply by proving, in the first line, that this email could only have been written to this person, then by asking for one small, specific thing. Length is the enemy of relevance; every sentence about you is a sentence stolen from them. Sub-90 words, one idea, one ask, no 'I wanted to reach out.'
The prompt
Prompt, paste into Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini
You are a top-performing SDR known for short, sharp cold emails that get replies. You write like a person who respects the reader's time, not like a brochure. You never use hype, filler, fake flattery, or invented results. If a fact isn't given to you, you leave it out.
CONTEXT
Prospect (name / title / company): {{PROSPECT_NAME_TITLE_COMPANY}}
The specific trigger or relevant context, why them, why now: {{PROSPECT_CONTEXT}}
What we do (value prop, plain language): {{VALUE_PROP}}
Proof I can defend (a fictitious-OK customer, a real result, a credible detail): {{PROOF}}
The ONE action I want them to take: {{CALL_TO_ACTION}}
TASK
Write a cold email engineered to earn a reply.
METHOD
1. Open with THEM, the trigger or context, in the first line. Never open with us, our company, or 'I wanted to reach out.'
2. Connect that trigger to a problem they likely feel, in one sentence.
3. Offer one credible reason we can help, using only the proof I gave you. If PROOF is blank, lean on specificity, not a claim.
4. Make one low-friction, specific ask. No multi-part requests, no 'let me know your thoughts.'
5. Cut every word that doesn't earn its place.
OUTPUT FORMAT
1. Subject line (under 5 words, lowercase-feel, relevance over cleverness)
2. Email body
3. One alternate subject line
4. Word count
5. One line: why this should work (the relevance logic)
CONSTRAINTS
- Under 90 words total in the body. Shorter wins.
- 7th-8th grade reading level. Short sentences.
- Banned: synergy, revolutionary, game-changing, unlock, leverage, supercharge, seamless, 'I hope this finds you well,' 'just reaching out,' 'circling back.'
- One idea, one ask. No links unless I supplied one.
- Never invent a customer, number, or result. If PROOF is empty, do not manufacture proof.
- If PROSPECT_CONTEXT is vague or generic, tell me the email will read as spam and ask me for a sharper trigger before writing.
EXAMPLE (style reference, do not copy facts)
Subject: your new warehouse
Hi Priya,
Saw Acme just opened the Reno warehouse, that usually means a scramble to re-plan delivery zones fast.
We help regional carriers cut driver hours when volume jumps like this; one team trimmed ~10% in a quarter.
Worth 15 minutes next week to see if that's realistic for you?
[Name]Run it from the terminal
$# this prompt is long, so reference it from a file
$wc -l prompts/cold-email.md
41 prompts/cold-email.md
$# draft a single high-value cold email with Claude
$claude -p "$(cat prompts/cold-email.md)"
1. Subject: northwind + grocery routes
2. Body:
Hi Dana,
Saw Northwind picked up the grocery contract and is staffing up dispatch, that's a
lot of new routes to plan, fast.
We help regional carriers cut fuel and driver hours by handling routing automatically.
A carrier about your size trimmed driver hours ~12% in a quarter.
Worth 15 minutes next week to see if the same is realistic for you?
[Name]
3. Alternate subject: planning the new routes
4. Word count: 64
5. Why it works: opens on her trigger, names the pain it creates, one defensible
proof point, one low-friction ask. Nothing is about us until the reader cares.
$# 64 words, under the 90-word cap, no banned phrases
$echo $?
0
$
Variables to swap
| Variable | What to put there |
|---|---|
{{PROSPECT_NAME_TITLE_COMPANY}} | Who you're emailing, name, title, company |
{{PROSPECT_CONTEXT}} | The specific reason you're reaching out NOW, trigger, post, role change, news. This is what separates the email from spam. |
{{VALUE_PROP}} | What you do and the outcome, in plain language |
{{PROOF}} | A relevant customer, result, or credible detail you can defend (optional, leave blank rather than inventing) |
{{CALL_TO_ACTION}} | The single action you want, a 15-min call, a reply, a resource |
Worked example
Input
Filled-in example
PROSPECT_NAME_TITLE_COMPANY: Dana Ruiz, VP Operations, Northwind Logistics
PROSPECT_CONTEXT: Announced a new grocery delivery contract last month and is hiring several dispatch roles
VALUE_PROP: AI route optimization that cuts fuel and driver hours
PROOF: A similar regional carrier trimmed driver hours ~12% in a quarter
CALL_TO_ACTION: A 15-minute call next weekOutput
What the model returns
1. Subject: northwind + grocery routes
2. Body:
Hi Dana,
Saw Northwind picked up the grocery contract and is staffing up dispatch, that's a lot of new routes to plan, fast.
We help regional carriers cut fuel and driver hours by handling routing automatically. A carrier about your size trimmed driver hours ~12% in a quarter.
Worth 15 minutes next week to see if the same is realistic for you?
[Name]
3. Alternate subject: planning the new routes
4. Word count: 64
5. Why it works: opens on her trigger (new contract + hiring), names the specific pain that trigger creates, offers one defensible proof point, and makes a single low-friction ask. Nothing in it is about us until the reader already cares.Tips to get more out of it
- Garbage in, garbage out: the PROSPECT_CONTEXT field is the entire game. If you can't name a specific trigger, this is the wrong channel, pick a different prospect or use a different motion.
- Generate three variants and send only the one you'd actually reply to. Then delete any remaining sentence that's about you, not them, there's almost always one hiding.
- Keep PROOF relevant to their world; a fictitious carrier their size beats a famous logo from another industry. If you have no proof, leave it blank, specificity about their situation outperforms a borrowed claim.
- Read the final email out loud. If it sounds like a brochure or a robot, re-prompt with 'make this sound like a sharp person typing it on their phone, not a marketer.'
- Across models: Claude tends to write the most natural prose, ChatGPT can drift formal (tell it to loosen up), Gemini sometimes over-explains the value prop, trim it. Test the same inputs across two and keep the most human one.
- Watch for the model sneaking the word count over by padding the close. Make it report the count, and reject anything over 90 words.
- Never let it auto-insert a Calendly link unless you gave one, a raw link in a true cold email lowers reply rates and trips spam filters.