Great Cold Emails — October 2025 Edition
I’ve sent millions of cold emails and wrote The Cold Email Handbook, widely considered the best writing on the subject. Here I’m sharing more examples of emails that have performed well for friends, so you can get some inspiration for what a good cold email might look like.
Remember, though, that your email should be perfect for the person you are cold emailing, and that examples you see online might not reflect what’ll work for you.
I try to do this each month, and this is the October Edition.
Example One – Equip
Screening candidates is one of the most painful bottlenecks in hiring. Most companies can’t give resumes the attention they deserve, which means good candidates slip through and time gets wasted on the wrong ones. Equip flips that with an AI-driven platform that ranks CVs, runs skill tests, and even conducts structured interviews to make sure the best people rise to the top.
Hi Mark,
When I was hiring, the hardest part wasn’t the interviews—it was the screening. Dozens of resumes came in, and I never had the time to give each the attention it deserved. Good people slipped through, and I wasted hours on the wrong ones.
Equip fixes this. It’s an AI platform that:
- Ranks CVs automatically
- Runs skill-based tests
- Conducts structured AI interviews
The result: the right candidates move forward, and the rest don’t clog up your pipeline. You save time, and candidates feel the process is fairer.
Would it be worth a quick call if I could show you how to cut your screening time in half while still surfacing better candidates?
Best,
Jamal
Example Two – Wishup
The next example is around Wishup, a virtual assistant company. They have 1500 or so VAs at any given time that doctors, real estate agents, startup founders, or ecom brands can hire in 60 minutes for help. For this example, I’m going to be reaching out to other startup founders.
Hey Carter, do you ever wonder how your favorite founders are so productive? They seem to find time to do it all.
It’s rarely because they work harder. It’s because they delegate the parts that slow them down.
At Wishup, we’ve built one of the largest VA companies in the world—1500+ assistants, all vetted, aptitude-tested, and trained to manage inboxes, calendars, research, ops tasks—so founders like you can focus on growth.
Would it be crazy if I introduced you to a couple of VAs who are already helping founders save 10–15 hours every week?
Best,
Jamal
A word on creative ways to increase open rates
You’ve done the hard part: writing the email. But it’s wasted if no one opens it. Two levers matter most once deliverability is handled:
- Subject lines that don’t look like subject lines
The best test: could this plausibly be an internal email? If yes, you’re on the right track. Examples:
- “Need your input”
- “Follow-up on last week”
- “Quick thought re: Q3 plan”
What doesn’t work: long, title-case headlines. They scream “newsletter.”
- A sender that feels real
Most inboxes are full of faceless senders. A profile picture—ideally the person sending—immediately sets you apart. It’s a subtle but powerful trust signal.
Neither of these moves the needle if your email lands in Promotions. But once you’re in the primary inbox, small details—natural subject lines and a human sender—compound to meaningfully higher opens.
