7 Sales Email Sequence Examples to Help You Close More Deals

You’re hot on the trail of a juicy lead, so you send them an email packed with useful info. Everything they could ever want to know about your company and product. 

Then, you wait to hear back. 

And wait, and wait, and…

Nothing. 

Crickets.

What could possibly have gone wrong? 

Well, for a start, one-off emails alone are very unlikely to get a response. These days, competing for a prospect’s valuable time and attention takes a well-organized military-style campaign involving multiple channels and exquisite timing. 

Fortunately, sales email sequence tools make it easy for you to put one together.  

At Mixmax, we sell to salespeople, so we know exactly what you need. We asked our reps to share their secrets about how to write sales email sequences and achieve your goals faster. 

Kind folk that they are, they even threw in some sales email sequence examples you can steal. 

Let’s get started. 

Creating the perfect email sequence for your sales process and goals is a highly personal matter, and takes practice. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach but we recommend the following to get you started:  

• Define your situation and goals, and choose the right sequence to achieve them. You won’t get far trying to use a prospecting sequence to upsell to an existing customer, for example. 
  
  
• Define your buyer persona and customize the sequence to them. Do your research to find out their specific challenges and preferred channels.  
  
  
• Define the problem you’re trying to solve for them. Again, prior research will allow you to be confident you have the cure for their pain before you get in touch. 
  
  
• Determine the right sequence length, number, and frequency of touches for your sales cycle. B2C ecommerce is likely to be shorter, less personalized, and more intense than B2B SaaS, for example. 
  
  
• Vary your value proposition and information delivered with each touch. Nobody needs more “just checking in” emails clogging up their inbox. Add value every time you reach out, dispensed in bite-sized portions per touch.  
  
  
• Don’t skimp on calls and voicemail either. “Think about how many emails you get in a day vs how many voicemails,” says Daniel Kleinowski, Business Development Manager at Dairy.com, “It’s easy to get lost in the inbox but if you’re calling and leaving voicemails it certainly helps.” 
  
  
• Work those enhancements, baby. Use a sales engagement platform like Mixmax that includes one-click meetings, polls & surveys, calls to action, and more to break up the monotony of all that text and make it easier for prospects to respond.  
  
  
• Once you’ve got someone’s attention, consider removing them from fixed sequences and designing custom ones that are heavier on phone and LinkedIn than email. Remember to also give your reps the freedom to tweak sequences according to what they find works for them. 
  
  
• Track campaign performance. Never settle for what you’ve got and always be trying to improve. It takes time and trial and error to find the approach that works best for your prospects. Define your objectives in advance so you can assess whether your email sequence software tools are helping you achieve them. Finally, keep it simple and stick to testing two sequences at a time rather than overcomplicating things. 
  
  

Again, what makes your prospects bite will depend on their specific needs but, as a rule, you’ll get better results if you:  

• Make it personal. The point of sales automation tools is to free you up to spend more time personalizing interactions, so use it. Sales engagement solutions like Mixmax come packed with customizable email templates and integrate with your CRM and prospecting tools, making it easy to tailor communications to your persona, their industry, role, and challenges. The more relevant you are, the more engaging, authoritative, and authentic you appear. 
  
  
• Go multi-channel and mix it up, which also helps you seem more human. Instead of email, think about whether you can get your point across with a call, video, GIF, or simple 125 word email. You also want to vary the type of touches by persona. For example, adding in more personal touches using phone or LinkedIn for high-level decision-makers.
  
  
• Hook them with a killer subject line that’s short, eye-catching, and promises value so they’d be crazy not to open it.
  
  
• Provide value right upfront. You’ve got to give to get back, so don’t ask for their time until you’ve given them a reason to trust you.
  
  
• All killer, no filler. Get to the point or go home. Ideally, before they have to scroll down, which is especially important on phone.
  
  
• Mind your language... and your formatting. Nobody expects you to be a copywriting wizard right off the bat, but there’s no faster way to ruin a first impression than poor grammar and untidy formatting. No need to be excessively formal though; just keep it natural and about them by using language like “you/your company” more than “I/we.” 
  
  
• Include calls to action. Give them something to do every time, whether it’s to download content, book a meeting, sign up for a trial, etc.
  
  
• Include social proof if it’s a thing in your industry or you need to establish trust. So, known customers, referrals, testimonials, case studies, certifications, etc.

Sequences in Mixmax

Here are a few of our go-to formulas for sequence success right across the pipeline. 

How you space out touches in each will depend on your persona, goals, and sales cycle. As a rule, every three business days is good for cold B2B prospecting but you can be more in their face in the run-up to signing a deal or if you know they’re actively researching your solution.

1. Cold prospecting

SDRs can adapt this multi-channel sequence to different personas and verticals to convert cold outreach into opportunities. The goal here is to get that first meeting on your AE’s calendar and turn cold prospects into sizzling hot leads. 

A mix of calls and emails every other day, interspersed with some LinkedIn in the middle, works well here. You don’t want to overwhelm prospects with touches every day, but neither do you want to spread them too thin.

• Day 1. 
• Kick off with an email showing you understand their industry, nailing their pain points and introducing yourself and your company, and stating how you can help them. Include social proof if necessary.
• Touch 2. Send a LinkedIn connection request to put a face to the name.

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

I spend a lot of time talking to sales reps in [PROSPECT’S INDUSTRY] and they tell me admin is one of their biggest time sinks. Is that the case at [PROSPECT COMPANY NAME]?

Companies like Gong and Meltwater use Mixmax to automate and personalize outreach at scale for better results. It syncs with Salesforce in real time, thus eliminating busywork and making it your source of truth.  

Does this sound like something that could save time and help your team hit targets? 

Look forward to hearing from you.  

[SENDER SIGNATURE]

• Day 3: 
• Touch 1: Follow up with a phone call.  
• Touch 2. Follow up with an email.

• Day 6.
• Touch 1: Manual email task to insert in-email calendar availability
• Touch 2: Hit LinkedIn again to message them or even better engage with their posts. Kyle Coleman gives you all the reasons why you should do it.

• Day 8. Time for another email, this time with a video testimonial from one of your biggest fans, aka your best customer. 

• Day 10. Follow up with a phone call. Leave a message if they don’t pick up.

• Day 14. Email them a video demonstrating a key feature of your product and how it can benefit their business.  

Example: 

You can also make calls, search/connect/message on LinkedIn, manage tasks, and a ton more. Could this improve your reps' workflows? Let's talk if so!

Appreciate it,

[SENDER SIGNATURE]

• Day 17. 
• Touch 1. Engage on LinkedIn again. 
• Touch 2. Give them a call.
• Day 20. Email them with a video of your product and request a meeting. If you’ve dangled enough juicy carrots throughout this sequence, they should be keen to talk by now.
• Day 24. For total non-responders (happens to the best of us), send one final email with a poll asking if they want to continue to hear from you. If not, politely thank them for their time and leave it there. For now.

I’m happy to see myself out

[SENDER SIGNATURE]

If you’re using Mixmax (and why wouldn’t you be?), you can set up workflow automation rules that will now trigger sending the prospect to a nurture sequence, assuming your prospecting was successful.

Related post: How to Improve Your Cold Calling Scripts

2. Re-engagement

Timing, as they say, is everything, and SDRs and AEs can use this sequence in multiple scenarios to revitalize a prospective deal, whether they got zero previous engagement or it just wasn’t the right time for the prospect. 

The good news here is that you can take a more laid-back approach than with cold prospecting. You should already know their pain points and understand their operational structure, company procedures, and processes, so use those to build out your sequences. 

Reengagement sequences can be triggered automatically after a decent interval following the end of the prospecting. The one below is designed to start two weeks after things went cold. It’s heavy on email and social but you can adapt on the fly and add-in calls if they’re biting. Have a mix of proprietary and third-party content on hand to establish credibility and trust, and keep emails brief; no need to bombard them with information.

• Day 13 (after last contact). Email to thank them for any previous engagement. Don’t forget to provide some sort of value.

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

We spoke back on [LAST DATE]. I know things got pretty busy for you and we weren’t able to continue the conversation, but I hope you're having a great 2022. I wanted to reconnect to see whether you found a solution for [CHALLENGE]. I came across this interesting report the other day and thought of you so I’m sharing it here. Hope it’s useful for you. 

Let me know if we can reconnect sometime to see how [YOUR COMPANY NAME] can help you this year. 

Have a great day,

[SENDER SIGNATURE]

• Day 26. 
• Touch 1. Send an email with value-added content.

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

Last time we talked you told me you struggle to [CHALLENGE]. [YOUR COMPANY NAME] can help with that because [USE CASE]. So instead of you having to [PAIN POINT], it’s all taken care of automatically. All you need to do is [POSITIVE OUTCOME].  

Here’s a video showing how it works.  

Do you have time to connect this week and see how [YOUR COMPANY NAME] can help you achieve [DESIRED STATE]?

• • Touch 2. Engage with their content and/or connect with them on LinkedIn. 
    
    

• Day 39. 
• Touch 1. Email them with value-added content. 

Hi [FIRST NAME],

[PROSPECT’S JOB TITLE] in your industry are becoming overwhelmed trying to [PAIN POINT]. 

From our previous conversations, I know this is something you struggle with so I thought you’d find this recently published blog an interesting read. I hope you enjoy it.

• • Touch 2. Engage on LinkedIn.

• Day 52. Follow up with another email including value-packed content. 

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

I know one of the biggest challenges for [THEIR JOB TITLE] is [PAIN POINT]. So I think you’ll get a lot of value out of our upcoming webinar, (webinar title and link to page), on (date). Among other topics, we’ll discuss how to help you nail [GOALS]. 

You can sign up and find the agenda here. 

Look forward to seeing you there!

3. Inbound contact (not sales-ready) follow-up

These sequences come into play for SDRs and AEs in various opt-in scenarios So, when new subscribers are added to your email list, download content, fill in a form, etc. Because they reached out to you, these sequences are often short. For example, as few as 4-6 touches with an alternating mix of call and email over 7-10 days.

This particular sequence is designed to court leads who signed up for a webinar. Touches should be spaced out during the run-up to the event according to how long there is to go.

• Day 1. First, the basics: Send a confirmation email thanking them for registering. Share the agenda, and useful content for them to promote on social media.

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

Thanks for signing up for our [WEBINAR] on [DATE, TIME]. We’re thrilled to have you join us. 

Attached you’ll find the agenda for the event and some messages you can share on your social media in the run-up to the event. 

Look forward to seeing you soon!

• Day 2. 
• Touch 1. Send an email addressing their pain points and how your solution can solve them.

Hi [FIRST NAME],

Since you signed up for our [WEBINAR], I’m guessing you, like other [PROSPECT’S JOB TITLE] in [PROSPECT’S INDUSTRY], struggle to [PAIN].

If so, you’ll be interested to learn how [YOUR COMPANY NAME] [USE CASE 1] and [USE CASE 2], all without ever [KNOWN BLOCKER]. Which [DESIRED STATE 1] and [DESIRED STATE 2]. 

Am I wrong? Would you mind sharing your biggest challenge today with 1 click?

• • Touch 2. Follow-up with a LinkedIn connection request.

• Day 3. 

• • Touch 1. Email them with an event reminder, and useful resources designed to address their poll answer. 
  • Touch 2. Follow up with a call.

• Day 4. Send them a tempting offer, like a free trial, consultation, resources, etc., via email.   

For example:

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

 Your session is X days away, and we couldn’t be more excited! While there is social chatter about the [WEBINAR], I wanted to check in with you personally. In my earlier email, I had mentioned how [YOUR COMPANY NAME] could help improve your [USE CASE]. 

As the sales manager for [PROSPECT COMPANY NAME], you know the difficulties faced in [PAIN]. So here is a free trial of our solution. It’s super easy to set up, and we offer 24/7 support. So go ahead and give us a try! 

Let me know if you need more information.

[SENDER SIGNATURE]

• Day 6. Send out a post-webinar thank-you email. Include a CTA for those wanting to learn more about your product.

Hi [FIRST NAME] 

Thanks for attending our [WEBINAR] event. I hope you got some valuable, actionable tips from our 1 hour session.
Some info may have been generic with so many different companies attending, but we'd really love to sit down with you one on one and see what sort of issues you're facing in 2022 and how [YOUR COMPANY NAME] can help.

Would you have time next week for a chat?

With a sequence like this, if you don’t manage to get them in the pipeline, put them on the back burner and revisit the contact after a decent interval. 

4. Nurture

If you are running a gift campaign to get meetings with selected prospects, this is a sequence your AEs could use to stay connected and deliver value as the prospect moves through the funnel from awareness to consideration to decision. Once they’re engaged, this should prove to be a high-performing sequence, as long as you’re selective about whom you drop in there. 

The goal here is to educate them about your product, build trust and develop a relationship rather than push for a sale. Keep emails short; there’s no need to flood them with information. A solid content library of proprietary and third-party content like whitepapers, case studies, comparison guides, etc. will help establish authority and overcome objections. Ideally, space this sequence to 2 months before their renewal date or to the point when they said it would make more sense to explore this opportunity.

• Day 1.
  • Touch 1. Intro/discovery call with a prospect.
  • Touch 2. Thank you email
• Day 3. Email. Send an email addressing their pain points and sharing educational content, like an e-book. At this stage, it’s all about showing you get them.

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

Thanks for your time last week, I understand your team is [CHALLENGE]. That’s a lot of time taken away from core [THEIR CORE JOB] activities! 

I know you’d love to improve on that, so I’m sharing this workbook, [SOLUTION TO CHALLENGE WORKBOOK]. 

Hope it’s useful for you.

• Day 5.
  Touch 1. Follow up with a call. Leave a voicemail if they don’t answer.
  Touch 2. Request to connect on LinkedIn (that can be sent directly from your email if you are using Mixmax).
  
  
• Day 7. Email. Send an email showing how to get the most out of the resource you shared, or helpful tips to solve their main challenge.

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

I wanted to check in and see if you found the e-book I shared helpful. Based on the experience of our customers, we recommend working through it week by week using a test case, before moving on to do [JOB TO BE DONE]. 

Here’s a video showing how to set up and test [JOB TO BE DONE] using [YOUR COMPANY NAME]. 

Don’t hesitate to let me know if you have any questions.

• Day 10. Follow up with a call.
• Day 12. Email them with a video showing how your product can solve another of their key challenges.

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

Hope the workbook I shared was useful for you. I thought you might also be interested in how [YOUR COMPANY NAME] enables [END USERS OF YOUR PRODUCT] to do [YOUR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE]. Here’s what you can do with it: 

✅ [USE CASE 1]
✅ [USE CASE 2]
✅ [USE CASE 3] 

Our integrations include (but are not limited to): [TOP INTEGRATION 1], [TOP INTEGRATION 2], & [TOP INTEGRATION 3]. Which has been a huge life-saver for the [END USERS OF YOUR PRODUCT]  I've been working with. 

I know visuals are much more effective, so see here’s a GIF of [USE CASE 1] using [YOUR COMPANY NAME]:

Would you be interested in learning more during a 30 min demo call tailored to your needs?

• Day 15. Follow up with a call.
• Day 17. Email them with a free consultation offer or a special promotion, and a link to book a time. 

• Day 19. Send out an email poll asking if they want to continue hearing from you.  

5. Reinvigorating sequence

You can’t win ‘em all, so sequences like these allow AEs to play a long game using a mix of automated email and LinkedIn to slowly but surely breathe life back into a lost or cold deal. You can bring them into play whenever a prospect signs with a competitor (as in this example) or delays a decision for several months.

• Day 1. Show how mature you are in defeat by emailing them to say thanks for having considered you. Make the most of the touch by including a survey link to get feedback you can use to tailor future approaches.

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

Just wanted to thank you for your time these past few weeks. It was fascinating learning about [PROSPECT COMPANY NAME] and [CHALLENGE]. Sorry it didn’t work out this time, but I wish you all the best with [YOUR COMPETITOR]. 

We’d love to know how we can improve next time. Do you have a few moments to complete our feedback survey? It takes no more than 2 minutes and there’s a gift card waiting for you at the end of it. 

Thanks in advance. 

• Day 38. Wait a while and email to ask them how things are going with your competitor. It’s long enough that you don’t look pushy but not so long they’ve forgotten you ever existed.  

• Day 38. Wait a while and email to ask them how things are going with your competitor. It’s long enough that you don’t look pushy but not so long they’ve forgotten you ever existed.  

For example: 

Hi [FIRST NAME],

It's been a while since we last connected. Are you perfectly happy with [YOUR COMPETITOR]? I still believe [YOUR COMPANY NAME] is a better solution for [PROSPECT COMPANY NAME]

On top of that, here are a few reasons companies are switching from [YOUR COMPETITOR] to [YOUR COMPANY NAME]:

1. [REASON 1]. 
2. [REASON 2] 
3. [REASON 3]

Does all this sound like it could help your teams [DESIRED STATE 1] and [DESIRED STATE 2]?

Thanks,

• Day 44. Engage with them on LinkedIn.
• Day 52. Send an email with value-added content, like news of a new feature, upgrade, or publication you just released.

Hi, 

I wanted to let you know that we just released a brand new feature for [YOUR COMPANY NAME]. I’d love to show you the improvements we made and how they can help you with [CHALLENGE]. 

Have time to connect this week so I can show you how it works?

• Day 58. Follow up with a call.
• Day 61. Email them with value-added content.

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

As you know, we recently introduced a killer new feature for [YOUR COMPANY NAME] that [USE CASE] and I thought you’d find this case study interesting. It shows how [YOUR CUSTOMER] [OUTCOME] by 18% in the first month after installing this upgrade. 

If that sounds like something you’d be interested in, let’s find a time to talk. 

• Day 74. LinkedIn engagement.
• Day 85. Send an email with value-added content. 

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

I hope you found the case study I shared interesting. I think it’s a really good example of how [YOUR COMPANY NAME] improves [OUTCOME 1] and [OUTCOME 2]. Speaking of which, we have a couple of good posts on how to achieve [OUTCOME 2], which is something that is near and dear to [YOUR END USERS].

Happy reading! 

• Day 100. Email them to find out if they still want to hear from you. Include a calendar link and/or call to action in case they do. 

Subject line: [FIRST NAME], should I stop reaching out? 

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

I haven’t heard back from you in a while so I wanted to check in and make sure I’m not wasting your time or mine. Should I stop reaching out? If it’s not a great time now, perhaps we can meet for 20 minutes next week to catch up? 

When works best for you? 

6. Onboarding emails

Onboarding sequences can be used by different sales reps to streamline sign-up or convert a trial into a customer, as in this example designed to run over a week-long trial.

• Day 1. 
• Touch 1. Send a “here to help” email introducing yourself as their point of contact and including a poll to find out why they’re trialing your product.

Hi there, 

I noticed that you recently signed up for a trial so I wanted to introduce myself as your point of contact here to make sure you're set up for success over the course of these next two weeks. 

With that being said, if you are evaluating the tool for your team, I would love the opportunity to connect live to review your goals around a [YOUR CATEGORY] tool and help integrate [YOUR COMPANY NAME] with any other internal systems you may be using ([INTEGRATION 1], [INTEGRATION 2], [INTEGRATION 3], [INTEGRATION 4], etc). 

Before we connect, I want to ensure that the below question is answered so I can help steer you in the right direction.

• Touch 2. If your prospect is qualified and in this case answers Yes! In the poll, a Mixmax rule will be triggered and they will automatically receive another automatic email with a CTA to book a call with a sales rep.

Hi [FIRST NAME],

We’d love to help you evaluate [YOUR COMPANY NAME] for your team.

Grab some time below to speak with a product specialist about how to best implement [YOUR COMPANY NAME]. 

• Day 3.
  • Touch 1. Email them with a poll to find out which features brought them to your product and a link to book a time to discuss their needs.

• • Touch 2. Connect with them on LinkedIn.
    
    
• Day 7. Email them with a GIF or Vidyard video demonstrating some useful product features and a link to book a full product demo.

For example: 

Hi [FIRST NAME],

Checking in again to see how your [YOUR COMPANY NAME] experience is going.

Let me know if you have a few minutes to connect this week to discuss your [YOUR COMPANY NAME] trial. I would love to learn more about your workflow and show you a few best practices with [YOUR COMPANY NAME]!

For example, our rules engine allows you to build custom workflows that take your customer communication to the next level. One popular rule is that when your email has been opened 'X' times, then you can set up an action in Slack:

Let me know if you have any questions!

Thanks, 

• Day 9. Follow up with a call
• Day 14. Crunch time: At the end of the trial, send out an email with a survey link to see how it went. Include some proprietary content with tips to solve specific challenges going forward so they take away value whatever the outcome.

Hi there,

I hope it's been a great 2 weeks of [TOP BENEFIT] bliss for you! 

Sadly, your trial is coming to a close. I'd love to get feedback from you on the highlights of your trial experience and see if it makes sense to continue your user experience with [YOUR COMPANY NAME]. 

7. Expansion

Sales opportunities don’t end when you seal the deal, so these sequences can be used to boost retention by reminding the AE to check in regularly with their customer and leveraging upselling or cross-selling opportunities.

This killer cross-sell sequence is designed to get more teams in your customer’s company using your product so you can jump straight in there. However, if you’re targeting an existing user, never open by trying to sell them something. Always check first to see how things are going and deal with any issues they’re having before you try and hit them up for a bigger commitment.

• Day 1. 
• Touch 1. Email them with a case study showing how current teams are successfully using your product. 
• Touch 2. Connect with them on LinkedIn.

Example email: 

Hi [FIRST NAME], 

I’m [YOUR NAME] at Mixmax. Your colleague [COLLEAGUE’S NAME] in [DEPARTMENT] has just been telling me how much [TOP BENEFIT] in the two months since they started using [YOUR COMPANY NAME] and I thought you could also benefit. 

I’m including this case study so you can see exactly how they’re leveraging features like [FEATURE 1] and [FEATURE 2] to [DESIRED STATE]. 

Hope you enjoy it. Any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out. 

• Day 2. Call and leave a voicemail.
• Day 4. 
• Touch 1. Another call, but no voicemail this time. 
• Touch 2. Send a follow-up email with a poll. 

Hey,

Not trying to jam your inbox, only streamline it. Let me know how to proceed.

• Day 5. Engage them on LinkedIn.
• Day 9. 
  • Touch 1. Email them with a Vidyard video demonstrating the product features they could most benefit from.
  • Touch 2. Follow up with a call. Leave a voicemail.

• Day 12. Email to ask which other teams in the company could benefit. Include a one-click poll to make it easy to answer.

So there you have it, some highly customizable sales email sequences and templates you can use to take a more structured, effective approach to building pipeline and moving buyers through it. 

Remember, though, that it takes more than templates to ensure success. Automation like this gives you back selling time, but it’s up to you to do your homework and leverage data-driven insights to personalize every interaction for best results. 

Get off to a good start by investing in a sales engagement platform that fits your sales processes and your teams’ roles and needs. In our humble (and only a teeny bit biased) opinion, fast-growing sales teams using Gmail can’t go wrong with Mixmax. It comes with a powerful rules engine, customizable email sequences, and templates, and a bunch of time-saving enhancements to reduce friction and increase the chances of getting a response.

From first contact to sealing the deal and keeping them coming back for more, we’ve got you covered.