Hey, it's Isaac from Leads to Earnings (2 minute read)

I attended a networking event for entrepreneurs last week and the conversation turned to what actually drives cold email results.

Here's the counterintuitive truth: Relevance beats personalization every time.

Most people spend hours researching prospects' colleges, hobbies, and recent posts. But here's what I've learned from booking over 1,000 qualified calls:

Your offer matters more than your research.

I responded to a cold email last week. Zero personalization. But it solved exactly what I was working on right then. Perfect timing, perfect relevance.

The Relevance Framework

Instead of surface-level personalization, focus on situational relevance:

Step 1: Identify your ideal customer's situation when they buy

What was true about their company? What pain were they experiencing? What were they missing?

Step 2: Build lists around situations, not just demographics

Real Example: We helped a CPA firm reposition as fractional CFOs. Instead of targeting "all businesses," we found companies that:

Were 10+ years old

Had 10+ employees

Lacked a CFO or controller

Step 3: Write messaging that speaks to their situation "I noticed you don't have a full-time finance leader. Companies your size typically face [specific challenge] without this role..."

The Results

This approach increased our interested reply rates from 10-20% to 30-40%.

Why it works: You're not just personalizing - you're demonstrating you understand their exact situation and have a solution.

Your Action Item

Look at your last 5 closed deals. What situation were those companies in when they bought from you? Use that as your new targeting criteria.

Stop researching their LinkedIn posts. Start researching their business situation.

Talk later,

Isaac

PS. Build a GTM system that will convert cold traffic and increase revenue per salesperson 👉 levergrowth.io

How I Can Help You

If you like this newsletter and want to work with me, there are a few ways we can do so:

1. I have a ton of free content that will help you get more clients on my YouTube channel. I post insights from operating high converting cold email campaigns for dozens of B2B companies that have added hundreds of thousands in recurring revenue.

2. If you are looking to improve your cold outbound skills but don’t want to hire anyone, I have a free 71-page course that teaches everything you need to know about cold email.

3. If you want a custom cold email campaign specifically designed for your business & ideal target audience, I have a few slots available to show you how it works. Book in here and on the call I will deliver a full 5-angle cold email campaign for you to use to bring on more high paying clients.

4. If you’d like to hear about how I can help you and your company grow, you can book a call with me here. I might be able to help you grow faster, or I might be able to refer you to someone who can.

Share this with 3 people and get a free training showing you how to convert more cold prospects into warm leads with cold email.

I hope you enjoyed this brief email.

Talk later,

Isaac