Write client outreach messages with Claude

What you'll make

A cold outreach message and a 3-step follow-up sequence, tailored to a specific type of local business. Written to sound like a person, not a template — and specific enough that the business owner feels like you actually looked at their situation.

What you need

• A Claude account
• A target business type (e.g. dentists, restaurants, plumbers, gyms)
• A real business to practise with (look one up online)
• 20 minutes

Steps

1. Tell Claude who you're reaching out to and what you're offering:

I build websites for local businesses. I'm reaching out to [business type] in [city/area]. My offer is: a new website for [price range], built in [timeframe], with [what's included — e.g. mobile-responsive, contact form, SEO basics].

Write a cold email to a [business type] called [business name]. The email should:
1. Open with something specific about their business (not "I came across your website")
2. Mention one concrete thing their current site is missing or doing poorly
3. Explain what I'd build for them in one sentence
4. End with a low-friction question (not "book a call")

Keep it under 120 words. No buzzwords like "revolutionise" or "synergy". Write like a human talking to another human.

2. Ask Claude for the follow-up sequence:

Now write a 3-step follow-up sequence for this same business:
- Follow-up 1 (3 days later): one sentence referencing the first email, plus one new detail
- Follow-up 2 (7 days later): a short value-add — one tip about their online presence they can use whether or not they hire me
- Follow-up 3 (14 days later): a brief "last email" that leaves the door open

Each follow-up should be under 80 words. Don't use guilt or pressure. Don't say "just following up" or "circling back".

3. Customise the first email with a real observation. Look at the business's actual website and find one specific thing — a broken link, no mobile menu, missing contact info, slow loading. Replace Claude's placeholder with the real detail.

4. If you're sending DMs on Instagram or Facebook instead of email, ask Claude to adapt:

Rewrite the first email as an Instagram DM. Keep it under 60 words. No links (Instagram filters messages with links from strangers). End with a question they can answer in one sentence.

Check your result

• The first email mentions something specific about the business that proves you looked
• No sentence could be copy-pasted to a different business without changing it
• The follow-ups add value, not pressure — the reader doesn't feel chased
• The total word count is short enough to read on a phone without scrolling

If the emails sound generic, you haven't given Claude enough specifics. Feed it real details: "Their website has no menu button on mobile, the address isn't clickable, and the last Google review mentions they couldn't find opening hours." Specificity is what separates outreach that gets replies from outreach that gets ignored.