The mistake:
Most outreach messages are bloated with unnecessary information.
People write long paragraphs explaining their company, services, achievements, and value propositions - all in the first message.
The negative impact:
Analysis of message engagement shows prospects rarely read beyond the first two sentences.
Every word after that is wasted effort.
Long messages signal "this will take effort to respond to" and get ignored or postponed indefinitely.
The solution to this is:
Apply the "5-Sentence Rule" - write your initial draft with a maximum of 5 sentences, then cut it down to just 2-3 sentences.
<aside> 💪
We’ve analyzed a lot of campaigns, and I believe we can confidently say that messages under 50 words achieve higher response rates than longer messages.
</aside>
The mistake:
Most outreach messages are bloated with unnecessary information.
People write long paragraphs explaining their company, services, achievements, and value propositions - all in the first message.
The negative impact:
Analysis of message engagement shows prospects rarely read beyond the first two sentences.
Every word after that is wasted effort.
Long messages signal "this will take effort to respond to" and get ignored or postponed indefinitely.
The solution to this is:
Apply the "5-Sentence Rule" - write your initial draft with a maximum of 5 sentences, then cut it down to just 2-3 sentences.
We’ve analyzed a lot of campaigns and I believe we can confidently say that messages under 50 words achieve higher response rates than longer
The mistake:
The "3-in-3" approach - sending three follow-up messages within three days when a prospect doesn't respond immediately.
The negative impact:
This aggressive follow-up pattern comes across as desperate and disrespectful of the prospect's time. It creates negative brand perception and can permanently damage relationship potential.
Plus, response rates drop significantly when follow-ups are sent within 48 hours of the previous message.
The solution:
Space your follow-ups strategically: