# How to write a cold email with AI

> A plain way to use ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini to write short cold emails that sound like a person and get answers. Prompts included.

By Corey Leon. First posted 2026-10-28. Updated 2026-10-28. Source: https://www.simpleai.community/blog/how-to-write-a-cold-email-with-ai/
License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Credit Simple AI with a link.

Question: How do I write a cold email with AI that gets replies?

To write a cold email with AI that gets replies, give the AI three things: who the person is, one real reason you are writing to them, and what you sell in one plain line. Ask for under 75 words, no fancy openers, and one easy question at the end. Then cut anything that sounds like a robot and send it from your own inbox. Short, specific and about them beats long and clever every time.

## Steps

1. **Pick one person, not a list.** Look up their title, company and what the company does. Check their LinkedIn and the company site for something real, like a new location, a job post, or a product line.
2. **Write your reason in one line.** Why them, why now. "You are hiring two inside sales reps" is a reason. "I came across your company" is not.
3. **Write what you do in one line.** Use the buyer's words. "We run cold calls for distributors" is clear. "We provide end to end revenue solutions" is not.
4. **Paste all three into a prompt.** Use one of the prompts below in ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or Copilot.
5. **Edit hard, then send.** Cut the first sentence if it is a warm-up. Make sure every fact is true. Send it like a normal email, not a newsletter.

## Prompts you can copy

### The short cold email

```prompt
You are a sales rep writing a cold email to one person. Write like a real person typing fast, not like marketing.

Who they are: [name, title, company]
Why I am writing to them now: [one real, checked reason]
What I sell, in plain words: [one line]
What I want: [a 15 minute call / a yes or no / to send them something]

Write the email under 75 words. Start with them, not me. One idea only. End with one question they can answer in a few words.

Rules: no "I hope this finds you well", no "I wanted to reach out", no "quick question". No buzzwords. No exclamation marks. Give me a subject line of 2 to 4 plain words, lower case.
```

### Make my draft sound human

```prompt
Here is a cold email I wrote:
[paste your draft]

Make it shorter and plainer. Keep my facts. Remove anything that sounds like AI wrote it, like "I hope", "I wanted to", "solutions", "best in class", or long lists. Keep it under 70 words. Show me what you cut and why in one line each.
```

### Three openers to test

```prompt
I sell [what you sell] to [job title] at [type of company].

Here is what I know about this prospect: [facts you checked]

Write 3 different first lines for a cold email. One about their company news, one about a problem people in their role often have, one that is a direct question. Each under 20 words. No flattery.
```

## Example

This is a made-up example.

Input: "Mark, sales manager at a plumbing supply distributor with 6 branches. They posted two inside sales jobs last week. I run a team of cold callers who call contractors for distributors."

A good answer looks like this:

Subject: inside sales hires

"Hi Mark, you are hiring two inside sales reps. While you hire, my team could call your contractor list for you, so the pipeline is warm when they start. We are senior callers in Canada and the U.S. Worth a 15 minute call next week to see if it fits?"

It is 55 words, it is about Mark, and the ask is easy.

## Tips

- Check every fact the AI writes. If you did not give it a fact, it may make one up.
- Ask for 3 versions and blend the best lines.
- Read it on your phone. If it needs scrolling, it is too long.
- Write the email you would answer yourself. If you would delete it, they will too.
- Find better reasons to write by looking at [LinkedIn for leads](/leads/linkedin/).

## What not to do

- Do not paste a big list and ask for 500 personal emails. You get 500 emails that all sound the same.
- Do not open with praise you did not mean, like "I was so impressed by your website".
- Do not stack three asks. One question, at the end.
- Do not attach PDFs to a first email. It looks like spam and spam filters agree.

## FAQ

### How long should a cold email be?

Short enough to read in 20 seconds on a phone. Most good ones are 40 to 80 words. If you need more, you are probably saying two things.

### Should the AI write the subject line too?

Yes, but keep it plain, 2 to 4 words, like you would write to a coworker. Avoid clickbait and all caps.

### Is it OK to send cold emails written by AI?

Yes, as long as you check the facts and it is honest. The AI is a fast first draft. You are still the one sending it, so make sure it is true and sounds like you.

### What do I do after the first cold email?

Plan a few follow ups that each bring something new. Our post on [AI prompts to follow up on leads](/blog/ai-prompts-to-follow-up-on-leads/) has prompts for that, and the [cold email library](/prompts/coldemail/) has more.