5 Cold Email Templates That Work For SaaS companies

Cold email outreach is effective and affordable for generating leads for SaaS businesses.

But it takes more than a catchy subject line to create cold emails that actually get opened––not to mention replied to.

In order for real engagement and success with cold email outreach to occur, SaaS businesses need to understand more profoundly how to create cold email templates that are fueled for success.

Why cold email templates matter for SaaS companies

The true magic of cold email is the fact that you can start real, business-changing conversations at scale. This allows SaaS companies to grow relationships and broaden their customer pool without the limitations of just relying on inbound channels.

But cold email outreach is only as good as the emails you send—and that’s where cold email templates come in.

Although cold email can be quite a game-changer for SaaS companies, it does bring along some unique challenges with it:

• The SaaS world is a tough one, and your emails are competing for eyeballs with a lot of other companies and solutions.
• If your email isn’t memorable in some way, it can easily get lost in the sea of messages.

• Email service providers (ESP) maintain tough filtering to prevent spam from reaching their users. SaaS brands can have real issues with deliverability due to spammy keywords, low sender reputation, or simply being flagged.

• If your email ends up in the spam folder, it doesn’t matter how great your offer is—you’ve lost that potential lead.

4 key elements of high-converting cold email templates for SaaS companies

Take a look at your current cold email templates and try to see if these key elements are present:

1. A subject line that grabs attention

If your email lands in your prospects’ inboxes, then hats off to you! That deserves congratulations—but it’s not over yet. You’ve simply jumped over the firs major hurdle. Now, you’re in a crowded inbox with perhaps hundreds of other businesses vying for this lead’s attention. What’s your move?

The subject line is the first thing your prospect will see—and 47% of recipients decide to open an email based on the subject line. Some tips to keep in mind:

• Limit it to 6-8 words for good readability.
• Some hints of personalization would be good, like using the recipient’s first name or the company.
• Avoid sketchy words and click-bait tactics like “Free” or “Urgent”

2. An email body with a great structure

Landing in the inbox—check. Subject lines that made the recipient open the email—check. Now, it’s the email body’s turn to do its job. Remember, they have no idea who you are. 

• Grab the reader’s attention. Use a hook like an interesting question or a strong statement.
• Limit your paragraphs to about 2-3 lines each to make the email easy to read on mobile devices.
• Stay on topic. Don’t try to cover everything about your SaaS product in a single email. 
• Instead of enumerating features, show how your SaaS will solve their problems.

3. A strong value proposition

Your value proposition needs to articulate how your SaaS application will alleviate their pain. This is your opportunity to tell them why your product is the best product. So what is the framework to define your SaaS value prop clearly?

• Focus on their pain points. Find out what their problem or issue is and explain how your solution can solve it.
• Don’t be vague. Instead of “we help you increase sales,” try “we help SaaS companies increase conversion rates by 25% in the first 30 days.”
• Show quantifiable outcomes: Highlight measurable results that demonstrate the effectiveness of your solution.

Great value proposition examples for SaaS:

• “We help SaaS businesses reduce customer churn by 40% with our automated onboarding solution.”
• “Cut 15 hours of team communication a week with our collaborative project management solution.”

4. A clear Call-to-Action (CTA) at the end

What do you want your prospects to do? Reply, book a demo, schedule a call, or sign up for a free trial?

• Tell them what you want them to do (“Schedule a 15-min demo”).
• Insert buttons or hyperlinks to make things more convenient for them.
• Use only one CTA per email.

Cold email mistakes to avoid in SaaS campaigns

Cold email outreach is effective for SaaS businesses but common mistakes can hurt your results.

When working on cold email templates for SaaS companies, make sure you avoid these:

Mistake #1: Using spammy language

There are certain words or phrases that can set off spam filters. Email service providers (ESPs) use algorithms to detect potentially suspicious activity. If your email has any traces of these, you can be flagged as spam—even if you’re a legitimate sender.

Here are some examples:

• “Free” (often associated with offers that sound too good to be true)
• “Earn Money” or “Guaranteed” (sounds too promotional)
• Overusing ALL CAPS or exclamation points!!!

🔖 Relevant Reading: Write Better Cold Emails Using a Template Checker

Mistake #2: Focusing too much on the sale

Yes, the end goal of cold email outreach is to drive conversions. The ROI of email marketing is an amazing $36 per $1 spent—which is more than enough to get SaaS companies excited. 

However, if you come across as too aggressive, you may come off as pushy and insincere. Recipients may feel like you’re only after a sale, and not that you really want to help them. The goal of a cold email should be to start a conversation, not to close a deal in one email.

Mistake #3: Sending campaigns without warmup

Sending cold emails from a new email address or domain without warming it up first is one of the fastest ways to end up in the spam folder. Email warmup is the process of gradually increasing the volume of emails sent from your account over time, which allows ESPs to build trust with your domain. Without a proper warmup, your emails are likely to be flagged as suspicious or sent directly to spam.

You can go more in-depth into this topic by checking out this report from the Warmy Research Team: The Science and Process of Warming Up Newly Created Email Domains.

Best practices for writing cold emails for SaaS

Keep your emails short

Inboxes get flooded, so you need to make your email easy to read. Decision-makers like emails that don’t beat around the bush.

Short emails (say 3-5 short paragraphs only) are easier to scan—especially on mobile. Here’s another trick in case you’re struggling to determine which information takes precedence: only include what your SaaS product will do for them, and nothing that doesn’t directly help them.

Focus on benefits, not features

Prospects are more concerned with how your product can help them solve their problems, or make their lives better. You have time to discuss all the features when you’ve already booked a call.

Use clear and professional language

Find that perfect balance between sounding professional and still being approachable. Avoid jargon even if SaaS pros will know what you mean, because simplicity will make your message more relatable (and quicker to read). You want to sound legit but not uptight—keep it conversational rather than wordy.

Personalize where relevant

Including the prospect’s name or their company can help your email stand out. Mentioning their particular pain points and objectives will also make it clear your email is not just another boring sales pitch.

Examples of personalization strategies for SaaS outreach:

• “I’ve seen [Company] grow its product line. Our mobile app could make it easier for your team to flow during this period of growth.”
• “As a [Role], you’re probably looking for ways to cut down on time spent on manual reporting. Our solution could automate this process for you.”

Conduct A/B testing for cold email templates

A/B Testing comes into play to help you see what’s working and what’s not. You can keep fine tuning to potentially further boost your email performance results as you go along.

• To improve open rates, test your subject lines. 
• If you’re looking to improve your click-through rates, try testing out various CTAs (e.g., “Book a demo” vs. “Start your free trial”)

5 examples of cold email templates for SaaS companies

The right cold email template can make all the difference, whether you’re reaching out to new prospects, scheduling demos, or seeking to convert leads. 

Template #1: The problem-solution template

This template is about highlighting the prospect’s pain or challenge and presenting your SaaS product as the solution to that pain. This email must have three elements:

• Acknowledgement of their challenge or pain point.
• A brief description of how your SaaS offering can assist.
• A strong CTA for the desired action.

Example template:

Subject: Struggling with [pain point]? Here’s a solution.

Hi [First Name],

I saw that a lot of [industry] executives are struggling with [specific pain point], especially with regards to [related problem].

With [your SaaS product], [pain point] can be [measurable result]. (Example: With SaaS product A, hours spent on [Task A] can be brought down to more than half.

Would you be up for a 15 minute call to see where we can help you get the same results?

Best regards,
[Your Name]
[Your SaaS Company]

Template #2: The social proof approach

Social proof establishes credibility. Adding client references or names of other businesses that use your solution, adding testimonials and case studies, show prospects that you are the real deal. 

Step 1: Name-drop a big client or insert a testimonial.

Step 2: Add a short result or outcome

Step 3: Add a straightforward CTA.

Example template:

Subject: See how [Client Name] achieved [result] with [Your SaaS Product]

Hi [First Name],

We just assisted [Client Name], a leading [industry] company, to [achieve X% more of specific outcome] using our [SaaS product]. In fact, they experienced an improvement of [insert metric].

I’d love to show you how we could do something similar for you. Let’s chat?

Looking forward,
[Your Name]
[Your SaaS Company]

Template #3: The straightforward approach

Some recipients prefer a direct approach that gets straight to the point and this template does the job. The focus is on remaining concise and effective—stating your point without any unnecessary prose.

Step 1: Cut the fluff. Be direct and straight to the point.

Step 2: Specifically call out how your SaaS can benefit them

Step 3: Offer up an easy call to action like booking a quick call. Link your calendar for easier booking.

Example template:

Subject: Watch your [desired metrics] jump by [X%] in just 30 days

Hi [First Name],

I know you’re busy, so here goes. With [Your Product], [Existing Client] raised [key metric] by as much as [X%] in 30 days. 

This can be your story too. Let’s find 15 minutes this week. When’s a good time for you?

Best regards,
[Your Name]
[Your SaaS Company]

Template #4: The “AIDA” cold email template

The AIDA formula (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action) is a classic marketing strategy that also works really well for cold email outreach. Here’s how:

• Attention: The subject line and opening sentence should both be striking.
• Interest: Hold their interest by discussing how your SaaS product can solve their problems.
• Desire: Entice them on what’s in it for them.
• Action: Close with a clean CTA.

Example template:

Subject: Watch your [key metric] increase by [X%] in just 30 days

Hi [First Name],

Who wouldn’t be interested in [addressing a certain challenge]? Recently a lot of [industry] leaders have found that [SaaS product] is the answer to level up [key metric].

With [Your SaaS Product], [Prospect’s Industry] companies are seeing a rise in [key metric] by up to [X%]—on top of saving [Y] hours per week. 

And yes, this can be [Prospect’s Company]’s story too. 

Do you want to book a 15-minute call to discuss how we can leverage this support for your team?

Looking forward to connecting,
[Your Name]
[Your SaaS Company]

Template #5: The “Paint a Picture” cold email template

This approach allows you to trigger your prospect’s imagination. Make your email more personal and more convincing, by making them see the advantages of having your SaaS product as part of their daily work.

Step 1: Describe a picture of their current pain points.

Step 2: Move into giving them an opportunity to imagine how your solution could transform their daily workflow or results.

Step 3: Conclude with a CTA that motivates them to move forward.

Example Template:

Subject: Imagine [Prospect’s Company] cutting down [pain point] by [X%]

Hi [First Name],

Imagine if [Prospect’s Company] could decrease [pain point] by [X]%, meaning your team would have more hours each quarter to focus on strategic projects? That is precisely what [Your SaaS Product] has been able to do for clients like [Client Name] who are now saving [X hours] a week.

Would you be interested in a short call to discuss how you can do the same?

Best regards,
[Your Name]
[Your SaaS Company]

How Warmy.io can improve your SaaS company’s cold email outreach

Cold email outreach can be an effective method for SaaS companies to gain new business, but it’s essential that your emails land in the inbox and not the spam folder.

That’s where Warmy comes into play—to help you improve email deliverability and sender reputation so your cold emails actually land in the inboxes and deliver the results you‘re looking for.

AI-powered warmup for better outreach results