128: Why Personalization is Overrated

Welcome back to The Practical Prospecting Newsletter!

I’ve been running some experiments lately that flipped a lot of what I thought I knew about cold email. Instead of trying to make every message feel personalized, I went the other direction: no personalization at all.

The results surprised me, and they might change the way you think about cold email.

Agenda:

• Why personalization isn’t always required

• The “yes/no” offer template

• When this approach works (and when it doesn’t)

Before we jump in, I’ve been a long-time partner of ZoomInfo; it’s one of the main data providers we use at Practical Prospecting to support dozens of clients across many industries.

If you’d like to try it out for free, you can use my link to get started!

P.S. Grab a free custom-built outbound strategy from me (including messaging and campaign ideas) by clicking the link here and filling out the form.

Why personalization isn’t always required

Most outbound advice today tells you to personalize everything.

Obviously, that’s good advice.

In a sea of automated spam emails, a well-personalized email is what stands out to buyers.

But at the same time, personalization can backfire. It’s usually obvious when someone forces a “personalized” line that doesn’t feel genuine.

Here’s what I found:

Sometimes the offer itself carries all the weight.

If your value prop is simple and obvious, personalization can actually get in the way.

Instead of writing clever intros or trying to scrape personal details, you can strip the email down to the essentials and let the offer do the work.

The “yes/no” offer template

First, I highly recommend you check out this video from Taylor Haren. It breaks down the cold email strategy he used to book hundreds of meetings for RB2B.

And it totally flips the script. Instead of trying to personalize, he focused entirely on the offer. Communicating it as clearly as possible, and making it stupid-simple to respond to.

Here’s the template we use (which is a variation of the templates he shared):

[First_Name],

We’re offering a free [Custom_Audit] where we’ll review your [Process] and give you 3 specific ways to improve [Metric] (based on real data from [Customer Type]).

Reply back with “yes” and I’ll send you the link to grab your free audit.

If this isn’t relevant, just reply “No.”

Thanks,  

Here’s an example of the results we got for one campaign after a month of sending:

5,248 leads contacted, 35 meetings booked.

One meeting for every 150 contacts.

And this was on the first iteration.

When this approach works (and when it doesn’t)

This isn’t a one-size-fits-all play. If your product is complex or requires education, you’ll still need context and personalization.

But when the offer is simple, valuable, and easy to explain in a single sentence, clarity beats cleverness.

Obvious value + a frictionless yes/no CTA will often outperform any personalization trick you could come up with.

Think of it this way: personalization earns attention, but a strong offer earns action.

And here’s the kicker, the yes/no CTAs also generatex more “No thanks” replies.

A lot of people see that as a loss.

Here’s why we see it as a win:

(a) Every reply, even negative, improves deliverability. Email providers reward engagement.

(b) A “no” is data. It tells you where the prospect stands today, which is far more useful than being ignored. You can track it, revisit later, and re-engage when timing shifts.

Silence leaves you in the dark. A polite “no thanks” gives you clarity and keeps the door open.

If you’re struggling to scale personalization, try running a campaign where the only variable is the offer. Don’t overthink it.

Just ask: is this valuable enough that someone would reply “yes” with no extra context?

Keep it short. Make the value obvious. Give prospects a simple yes/no choice.

It won’t work everywhere, but when it fits, it’s one of the fastest ways to drive scalable replies and test if your offer actually stands on its own.

Thanks for reading,

Jed