How to score a lead VC investor with a cold email – featuring real examples of emails that led to investment

If an unopened email sitting in a VC’s inbox is what's stopping your startup from reaching a world of opportunities, this blog post is for you.

Here, we share four essential tips to help you write cold emails that not only grab the attention of VCs but also keep them wanting to hear more about your startup. Plus, we'll showcase actual emails from our portfolio companies that successfully caught our attention and led to investments. All these examples have been carefully approved by our team, giving you a firsthand look at what works in the real world of VC pitching. So, let's dive in!

1. Keep it short and to the point

It is said that an average recruiter spends 6 seconds looking at a resume. While email engagement data for VCs may not be so readily available, we know that they are busy people, swamped with emails. So aim for a concise and clear email that’s easy to read and prompts action. Include at least these:

• Clear fundraising narrative – summarize the vision and what you’re looking for from investors
• Your funding stage
• Action point – suggest specific times for a meeting/call

A well-crafted email can be enough to pique interest, and you can also ask the VC if they wish to see a pitch deck. If you do choose to include a pitch deck, make sure it covers the following points:

• Team: Highlight their domain expertise, previous successes and impressive organizations, previous entrepreneurial and operational journeys, and unique skills in the industry.
• Market size and scale: Make it extremely persuasive by walking the investor through the equation: Number of potential customers x Revenue per customer per year = Market Size. Carefully explain each variable of the equation, citing sources, and multiply them together to get the market size.
• Product-market fit: Investigate competitors and any existing solutions that resemble your product to show dedication. Pick a growth metric that demonstrates the product-market fit, such as pre-orders, active users, or waitlist signups. Package this in a sentence stating where the metric was at the beginning and end of a specified timeframe.
• Competitive advantage: Prove customer love with metrics like retention, session length, and DAU/MAU.
• Cap table: When building your cap table, choose quality over quantity. Aim for key players like a lead investor, strategic partner, and supportive angel investors. Triple-check your calculations; we see math errors far too often that could trip you up in negotiations.
• Financial model: Provide VCs with a clear understanding of the company's financial health, growth potential, and the expected return on their investment. Beyond the standard components like Income Statements and Cash Flow Statements, include key assumptions, scenario and sensitivity analyses, and growth strategies. This comprehensive approach not only helps you assess risks but also demonstrates to VCs your readiness for navigating uncertainties and seizing opportunities.

2. Showcase relevant numbers

A picture may be worth a thousand words, but in this case, numbers are worth a whole lot more. Use key metrics to demonstrate achievements and potential. Whether it’s YoY growth, MRR, or Net revenue, concrete data adds credibility to your pitch, which in this case is the email. Highlighting these numbers upfront can quickly capture a VC’s interest.

3. Research the fund and its investors

Before reaching out, research the VC’s investment portfolio and focus area. Take the time to understand the individual investors, what they have been talking about, and which industries they seem to be following closely. For instance, an early-stage Nordic VC with a deep-tech & brand-driven focus, receiving an email from a research and commercial expert founder duo developing a novel, sustainable solution in material tech would be very spot on. Tailor your pitch to align with the VC’s interests and investment thesis. Show them that you’ve done your homework and how your startup fits their criteria.

4. Don’t copy-paste the same email

Make it personal. Every email you send should be tailored to the specific VC you’re reaching out to. Mentioning a recent investment they made or an article they wrote, that’s relevant to the case you’re making on behalf of your startup, can make all the difference. Don’t send mass emails; it’s easy to see right through them and very unlikely to resonate with VCs.

Here is a great example of a cold email that landed in our inbox from Alvar Pet. After many discussions, we ended up investing in them. Take a look:

Here is another cold email we received, that checks all the boxes:

Are you working on an industry-shaking idea that we should definitely hear about? Send us a snappy cold email at lets@maki.vc