Making a great first impression isn't always easy, and it’s especially difficult when you're not in person. But don't discount the power of a well-written outreach email. For private equity professionals, these emails ideally lead to conversations, relationships, and, eventually, the deal table.
However, writing cold emails for outbound deal sourcing day in and day out gets tiring. There are only so many ways to write similar messages before your creative brain gets stuck in a writing rut. Don't worry, we're here to help.
We'll discuss our best tips for creating the perfect deal sourcing template and email, including the steps to take before putting your digital pen to paper, ways to make the process more efficient, and insights we’ve gleaned from writing a few thousand emails ourselves.
Content today is all about personalization, which means understanding your audience. Without knowing who they are and what's important to them, your messages won’t be relevant, and your audience will skip over what you send.
For private equity, this usually means first getting to know an entire market: industry growth, complementary and competitive companies, and macro economic trends. Identifying your competition is also crucial at this stage, so also pay attention to existing M&A players in the space.
Next, it’s time to zero in on a specific target company. What has it achieved recently? What milestones has it hit? Maybe it launched a new product or won an award. Perhaps they were in the news — or published a release themselves — about hiring a key executive.
Once you understand the market and specific company a little better, start building a profile for the person you're emailing. Start with the basics: their name, role, previous positions (at this company and others), board positions, etc. Then, delve into their social media. Have they attended any recent events or talked about particular interests? Knowing who they are inside and outside the company can help you find common ground and pique your contact's interest more quickly.
Take the approach of Corporate Development Charles Shannon, for example. “There was a business owner I was targeting who didn’t call me back for over a year, even though I was able to verify through a mutual connection that he was receiving my messages,” he says. After doing some digging, Shannon found his profile on a golfing website. “I hand-wrote him a note, signed it, and mailed him an empty driver head cover. I told him if he returned my call and agreed to meet with me that I’d bring the driver to fill the head cover — and he did!”
Finally, note down any mutual connections. According to Draftboard, warm intros can have a success rate of up to 60%, so take advantage of them when you can.
Any deal sourcing template for email outreach has three main parts: the subject, the body, and the call-to-action (CTA).
Email subjects are your hook to get your reader to open your email. It's your first impression in their inbox, so don't be stodgy or boring. However, don't be too “out there,” either. While Obama's simplistic presidential campaign email subjects of "Hey" worked for him, they may not for you.
The most important aspect is to keep your email relevant to your audience. Be professional but not standoffish. Be personal and friendly, but remember they're not your best friend (yet). Try to be memorable but safe, saving the more unconventional tactics for when you know your contact a bit better.
This is the meat of your email and where you should spend the most time. However, that doesn't mean your emails should be essays. Keep them short and relevant. For most, aim for 300 or fewer words to get your point across and mention your key points — without overstaying your welcome.
Of course, the overall length depends on your goal. Feel free to have a longer email if you want to showcase your firm's specific achievements better or go into more depth to showcase your expertise.
Regardless of its content and how much you have to say, keep your email simple and easy to read. Many people skim their emails, and simpler content will help increase comprehension. It's also important to remember that flexing your vocabulary may not always have the desired effect, since some folks find SAT-worthy words too formal or pretentious.
Finally, make the email about the recipient. They know you want something from them, so if you write about how doing what you want will benefit or impact them, they're more likely to engage in the conversation. However, this doesn't always mean offering a physical gift, as in Shannon's example earlier — sometimes inspiring and exciting them by sharing all the possibilities your partnership has to offer is all you need.
The most important part of your deal sourcing template email is the CTA, where you clearly explain what you want your audience to do. Maybe you want to schedule a meeting, so you want their available times over the next week. Or, maybe you put the ball entirely in their court and ask them to give you a call when they're free.
Owners and operators typically aren’t ready to transact after a single email or interaction. Perhaps you just want to continue the conversation and find out what they thought of the recent event they attended — and that’s okay. As long as you're clear with your intent and let them know exactly what you want from them, you can build rapport over time.
It's easy to forget about your email signature since so many email programs automatically add a templated version. But it's valuable real estate and offers a place to insert a little of your personality. Place a short quote about how you approach deals or your business philosophy. Or, maybe you have a fun stat that could be an ice-breaker.
Remember, this isn't a place where you necessarily want to brag. It's somewhere you can provide more opportunities to connect and encourage them to reach out and build a relationship.
When it comes to writing your deal origination emails, there are a few best practices you should follow:
Allowing generative AI (genAI) to craft initial email drafts saves dealmakers significant time. It also saves creative juices and wordsmithing efforts for a version much nearer to completion. However, keep in mind that there are a ton of different AI models out there that can help you with your draft. Each model has been trained on different data, so some will be better suited to writing emails than others.
As a reminder, many AI-powered tools like ChatGPT are open source with models that are trained to absorb and learn from each query folks make. Be aware they are almost certainly using the data you provide in queries with other people — some of whom may be competitors. We recommend only using tools that have been purpose-built for dealmakers to protect their proprietary information. These tools are also designed to incorporate the data points and events that matter most to investment targets in the email drafts they generate, enabling dealmakers to craft more personalized outreach at scale.
Using genAI to draft is a great time-saving first step. But don't just send whatever it produces. Other dealmakers will be using genAI to start their drafts, too. And, genAI isn't truly original — it merely regurgitates data it's ingested from other sources. It’s important not to sound like “everybody else.”
The other benefit of editing the draft yourself is personalization, both in terms of customizing the email to your recipient and changing the wording to how you would say something. Remember, you're building a relationship, so keep it personal and make the email sound like you while still keeping it professional.
According to a Litmus survey, email is still the king of marketing channels, with a reported 3600% ROI. That said, on average, only a third of marketing emails are opened, so it's important not to put all your eggs in one basket. As you're planning your outbound deal sourcing efforts, experiment with different messaging channels.
For example, if you don't get a response for your first email, maybe send the second over LinkedIn. For really tough-to-reach contacts, snail mail might even be your best bet. As you're researching your contacts and companies, try investigating their preferred or most active communication channels and use what you find in your outbound deal sourcing tactics.
Dealmaking is all about making connections and building rapport. To that end, you must ensure your emails are timely, relevant, and personalized. Getting automatic, real-time notifications of important events can help you keep up and provide the unique messages your contacts deserve.
Remember, going from first contact to the deal table is a long process, and real-time alerts can help you maintain communication and show you're invested in them (pun intended) until they're ready to get down to brass tacks.
To help jumpstart your deal sourcing template and email creation, we asked Sourcescrub's SourcingGPT to draft different deal sourcing email examples for our fictitious firm, Dynamic Partners, based on three common dealmaking scenarios. After each email, we provide tips to put your “human intelligence” to work and make it your own.
Conferences, events, and networking have been and always will be a preferred dealmaking channel. Following up with a newly made connection after an event is crucial for keeping the relationship alive and moving it forward.
Create a deal origination outreach email to Acme Corp's founder, Jane Smith, that mentions our meeting at the SSA conference. Include relevant information, such as competitors' recent product announcements and funding rounds, stressing the help our firm can provide with keeping up. Keep the tone friendly and informal.
Subject: Great Connecting at the SSA Conference!
Hi Jane,
I hope this message finds you well! It was a pleasure meeting you at the SSA conference last week. I really enjoyed our conversation about the exciting developments at Acme Corp.
I wanted to follow up and share some insights that might be of interest to you. Recently, we've seen some notable product announcements and funding rounds from competitors in your space, which could have implications for your strategic planning. For instance, Competitor X just launched their new platform, and Competitor B recently secured a significant funding round, which could intensify competition.
At Dynamic Partners, we specialize in helping companies like yours stay ahead of the curve by providing timely data and insights on market trends and competitor activities. I believe we can assist you in navigating these developments effectively.
Let’s schedule a time to chat further about how we can support Acme Corp’s growth strategy. Looking forward to hearing from you!
The deal sourcing template SourcingGPT provided is mainly right on the nose, with relevant, industry-specific information scattered throughout. However, the CTA could be more direct. We recommend switching it up to something more specific and with clearer next steps.
Well-designed and put-together content can sometimes be your ticket to a conversation. By providing useful information for free, contacts are more likely to trust you and believe you have the experience they need. As private equity organizations become more specialized and niche, showing off your expertise is more important than ever.
Write me an intro email to the founder of this manufacturing company. Highlight our firm's expertise in the manufacturing industry, calling out our 3 recent acquisitions. Offer our latest report on industry trends and ask if they'd be interested to learn more.
Subject: Exploring Opportunities in Manufacturing
I hope this email finds you well! I’m reaching out on behalf of Dynamic Partners, where we focus on providing insights and support to companies in the manufacturing sector.
I wanted to introduce our firm and share some exciting developments. Recently, we successfully completed three acquisitions in the manufacturing industry, which have strengthened our expertise and expanded our network. We are committed to helping companies like yours navigate the evolving landscape and identify growth opportunities.
We’ve also put together a comprehensive report on the latest industry trends that I believe would be of great interest to you. Would you be open to a conversation to discuss these insights further and how we might collaborate?
Looking forward to your thoughts!
This AI-generated deal sourcing template email works, but remember that your contact should be the focus here. Instead of saying, "we focus on providing insights" and "we are committed," tweak the wording to make it about your recipient.
When you know one of your contacts will be at an upcoming event, use what you know of their interests to attempt to strike up a conversation. Who knows? Maybe you'll still get a meeting out of it if you keep chasing the thread.
Draft an email to the CEO of this company, who is attending the National Restaurant Association Show in a few weeks. Focus the email content on building rapport by mentioning his love of boats and ask if he'll catch a riverboat tour of the Chicago River while he's there.
Subject: Excited for the National Restaurant Association Show!
Hi Robert,
I hope this message finds you well! With the National Restaurant Association Show just around the corner, I wanted to reach out and see if you’ll be attending this year.
I remember you mentioning your passion for boating, and I thought it would be great to ask if you plan to catch a riverboat tour of the Chicago River while you’re in town. It’s a fantastic way to take in the sights and enjoy some downtime amidst the hustle of the conference!
I’d love to connect while you’re there to discuss industry trends and explore how we can collaborate further. Let me know if you have some time to meet up!
Looking forward to hearing from you!
Even direct, more personal emails like these can use a little extra “oomph” before you send them off. Generative AI can be verbose, so consider copyediting this deal sourcing template email to cut it down and make it easier for your recipient to skim.
Deals don't just happen on their own, and a great deal sourcing template and email are perfect for turning a potential contact into an investment opportunity. Sourcescrub is purpose-built for dealmakers to capitalize on every touchpoint, and offers AI-powered capabilities to help streamline your deal team.
See what our deal sourcing platform — including SourcingGPT — can do for you. Request a demo today!
