Does cold emailing investors work? Yes, and no

Investors such as VCs do read all cold pitch emails/LinkedIn messages — also known as inbound dealflow. Do the investors respond to these cold emails/messages? Maybe, but it depends on how compelling your copy is, and whether you personalized it. The big question you probably want an answer to is: Do these VCs invest based on cold emails?

Steve Molino, Principal at Clear Current Capital actually dug into the numbers to find the answer to that question (btw, check out the investor profile we did on him).

First, he learned that of the hundreds of opportunities (startups to invest in) that Clear Current Capital sees each year, 25% were from cold inbound.

But when he looked at the startups that have actually received investment from Clear Current Capital in the last few years, it was almost a 50/50 split between intros from relationships, and outreach by CCC. In other words — zero percent of their investments was a result of cold inbound through their website, email, or LinkedIn.

Steve therefore suggests founders aim to get a warm introduction to investors they want to pitch — e.g. through a mutual connection, by meeting at an in-person event, or by building a relationship with portfolio company founders of the target VC, as they might then be open to an intro to that investor.

Of course, this is just based on data from one firm. But it’s very likely the pattern looks similar at other VCs.

What if you’re unable to get a warm intro?

If you just can’t get a warm intro, and you decided to do cold outreach, at least keep the following in mind:

1. Personalize your message
   Research the investor you want to get in touch with. Understand their sweet spot (investment geography, stage, vertical, business model, etc). Customize your message, whether you send it via email, LinkedIn, or a website, based on the individual you’re writing to.

2. Contact the right person
   Do you really need to get in front of a Partner, or is it an Analyst or Associate who is the real decision maker to help champion your case?

3. Write a great subject line. Make sure the email even gets opened!

4. Decide on a reasonable ask. You’re a stranger asking someone who never heard of you to do a Zoom call; that’s a big ask. Just aim to kickstart a conversation instead. That could potentially lead to a digital or IRL meeting later on.

Short template:

Subject: AI assistant that boosts food safety

Body:
- Your name, title (Founder/CEO), company name
- No more than two sentences about your startup; what it does, and your stage/traction.
- Why you’re writing (We’re raising [stage][round size][valuation])
- Why you’re contacting this particular person (you invested in X, you’ve written about Y, you’ve mentioned you have a strong interest in Z)
- Mention mutual connections, if you have any
- Link to deck (just add a PDF) or demo video
- Thank the investor, ask if they’re interested to take a deeper look

That’s it!