4 Tactics for Using Social Proof in Email Outreach
Check out 4 ways to use social proof in email copy
When people see others using and trusting your product, they’re more likely to try it themselves. That’s why mentioning your happy customers in sales emails works so well.
Success stories and other types of social proof help you stand out from the hundreds of generic cold emails your prospects receive every week. The right social proof can even double or even triple your response rates.
To boost your outreach, check out 4 proven ways to include social proof in your emails.
Why use social proof in B2B emails?
Buying an unfamiliar product always carries a risk. It might not perform up to expectations or turn out inconvenient or simply unnecessary. Why should your customers step outside their comfort zone if they can safely stick to tried-and-tested products?
The situation changes when your prospect comes across other real people who are using your product and are happy with it. Seeing their positive experience, they become more open to trying it themselves. That’s how social proof works.
In B2B outreach, social proof plays an equally important role. A B2B product is not only a substantial investment; it must integrate seamlessly into the client’s business processes, helping them achieve their goals. This is usually not something they can confirm before committing.
However, the stories of your actual customers can provide your leads with much-needed information about how well your product performs in real life.
What types of social proof can you use in emails?
Social proof comes in many forms and shapes: customer reviews, influencer endorsements, case studies, media mentions, and more. Technically, word-of-mouth also qualifies as social proof, albeit that’s not something you can insert in emails.
Here’s a look at the most common forms of social proof in B2B sales and how they can drive your outreach effort.
Customer testimonials
A customer testimonial is any feedback your customer shares about their experience with your product. Some might post their testimonials on Google Reviews or Clutch, while others share their comments with you privately.
A glowing five-star review posted on a reputable website can instantly boost your email’s credibility. To maximize impact, make the testimonial clickable – embed a source link so your leads can verify it’s authentic.
Case studies and success stories
Case studies and customer success stories are fairly similar, but there is a slight difference.
While both describe how you helped a customer solve their problem, a case study talks more about the collaboration process and specific ways in which you overcame challenges when deploying your solution. At the same time, a success story centers on the customer and how they benefited from your product.
You can introduce a case study with something like:
“Discover how we helped ABC slash hiring time by 35% and cut employee turnover by 16%.”
A success story needs a different type of intro:
“ABC’s journey to faster, smarter hiring: A 35% reduction in time-to-hire and 16% lower turnover with our platform.”
Both case studies and success stories work great – just choose the format that best showcases your product and its impact. Feature them on your website and include a teaser and a link in your emails, inviting the leads to check out how your product solved a similar problem.
Statistics and data points
With dozens of successful cases in your portfolio, you can crunch the numbers to highlight your impact. Calculate your customers’ average revenue growth, cost savings, and other KPI changes after implementing your solution. Hard data speaks louder than words.
Numbers are a straightforward, powerful way to communicate your product’s advantages. Unlike weasel words that equivocate and weaken your sales copy, hard numbers make it strong and convincing.
Compare these two email lines:
- Our product reduces your hiring time and turnover.
- Over 500 companies that joined our hiring platform have seen hiring times drop by 35% and employee turnover by 16%.
You can make the numbers clickable, linking them to your website, where proof-demanding readers can check out the full stats. This adds transparency and builds trust.
Expert and influencer endorsements
People trust authority figures. A celebrity or opinion leader recommending your product can skyrocket its credibility.
If an influencer or an industry expert comments positively on your product, don’t be shy – share it with your leads. A brief endorsement can go directly into your email in full, complete with a clickable source link. For longer, more detailed reviews, use a teaser instead (along with the link!): “That’s what [Endorser Name] is saying about us on their latest podcast.”
User-generated content
User-generated content (UGC) includes any social media posts, photos, or videos about your product created by customers or free demo users – not your company’s spokespeople.
What makes UGC so powerful as social proof is its authenticity. Someone was so excited about your product that they decided to share this experience with others unprompted. Genuine emotions resonate with readers, convincing them that your product is worth trying.
Whenever your customers praise you on social media, don’t let it go unnoticed. Share their post and embed it in your emails with a simple invite: “See what [Endorser Name] had to say about us!”
Reviews
Product reviews are sometimes mistaken for customer reviews or testimonials, which we discussed above, but they’re not the same. A customer testimonial can be brief; a product review is always detailed. A customer testimonial can lean positive or negative; a product review strives for balance, covering strengths and weaknesses alike.
Product reviews are usually written by industry media or bloggers. They might focus entirely on your product or compare it to competitors. The balanced approach and the reviewer’s expertise give this kind of social proof high credibility.
If you submitted your product for review and it performed well, make certain to share the link with your leads. It’s an excellent way to build trust and spotlight your product’s strengths.
Logos of recognizable brands: partners and customers
If you have worked with a renowned company, showcasing their logo as your customer or partner is a savvy move – it signals that market leaders trust you.
Featuring high-profile customer logos on your website reinforces your credibility and is easy to do.
Put your customer logos in the email footer, right beneath your signature and contact details. Highlight two or three top customers. More logos might overcrowd your emails, making them look cluttered. Include the logos – but keep it clean and professional.
How to add social proof to your email copy?
There are several ways to build social proof into your sales outreach. Here are a few fail-proof tactics we use in AiSDR.
Lead with social proof in your opening line
Don’t tuck social proof into the middle of your emails. Use it to grab the lead’s attention right away! Customer successes, endorsements, and product reviews can make strong, catchy subject lines that get your foot in the door:
How we slashed ABC’s hiring costs by 35%
“Totally nailing it”: Adam Smith reviews our XYZ Product
Our XYZ #1 in 2024 DEF rating
And if you lack space to fit social proof into the subject line, go for the opening line:
We are the company that slashed ABC’s hiring costs by 35%.
We scored #1 in the 2024 rating of hiring platforms by DEF.
For best results, you should try to personalize the social proof by picking examples that are relevant to a lead’s industry.
Use visual elements
Everyone loves eye-catching visuals that break up a wall of text – but it’s even better when these visuals are relevant and informative. Instead of adding generic stock photos to your email, use visual social proof such as:
- Screenshots of five-star customer reviews
- Graphs illustrating your numbers
- An influencer’s photo paired with a standout quote from their review
- Customer logos in your email footer
To avoid overwhelming your readers, limit visuals to three or fewer per email, making each one count.
Sprinkle micro-proof throughout the email
Social proof doesn’t have to come in large chunks. It works much better when spread throughout the message.
Let’s take the cold email example we fixed before and further refine it with micro-doses of social proof:
Subject line: [Recipient’s name], improve [Recipient’s company]’s online reputation like [customer company 1]’s?
Hi [Recipient’s name],
I saw that [Recipient’s company] is working on its online presence. [customer company 1] is boasting a 5.0 reputation on Crunch thanks to our help, and we can do the same for you.
We only use “white” reputation management techniques. This spring, [customer company 2] and [customer company 3] received even more five-star reviews on Crunch, bringing them to the industry top.
I’d love to discuss working together. Let’s set up a call?
[Sender’s name]
[Customer logos]
By showcasing the success other companies had with this provider, the social proof bits (highlighted in bold) make this email more specific and convincing.
Add a call-to-action
The moment your lead sees compelling social proof, they’re ready to slip down your sales pipeline. Seize the opportunity and nudge them to the next step with a strong call-to-action (CTA). That’s what it can look like:
Just as the social proof, the CTA should be clear and match the lead’s current decision-making stage.
Tailoring social proof to different funnel stages
On their way to becoming customers, leads proceed through the sales funnel, which can be described using AIDA or other models. At AiSDR, we prefer the TOFU-MOFU-BOFU model that breaks the customer journey down into three parts:
- Top of the funnel (TOFU): your product captures the lead’s attention
- Middle of the funnel (MOFU): you nurture the lead, building their interest
- Bottom of the funnel (BOFU): the lead only needs a final push to make a purchase
For each stage of the sales funnel, you should try to use different kinds of social proof.
Top of the Funnel (Awareness)
For prospects that have just learned about your product, use general proof points and high-level stats:
80% of our customers have seen turnover drop by 35%.
We have a 5.0 rating with 132 reviews on Clutch [link]
Our platform is the go-to choice of [big names].
At the top of the funnel, it’s important not to overwhelm your leads with information. They’re unlikely to spend fifteen minutes reading a long, elaborate message from someone they barely know. Instead, they want a quick glimpse of why your product is worth their attention. A strong, concise piece of social proof, like in the examples above, will do the job.
Another smart strategy? Include top customer logos in your email footer. This will reassure TOFU prospects that your product is trusted by recognizable names and, thus, worth considering.
Middle of the Funnel (Consideration)
At the middle of the funnel, prospects are considering your product as a potential solution to their problem but need more information to commit. It’s a good time to share mini-stories about your customer successes:
After joining our platform, ABC saw a drop in hiring time by 35% and a 16% turnover.
We helped DEF secure 60% more online bookings!
For MOFU prospects, your insights can go deeper than for TOFU – but not too deep. Provide information highlighting your product’s ability to solve their challenges while keeping it concise. Media reviews and influencer endorsements can be especially effective at this stage.
Bottom of the Funnel (Decision)
A bottom-of-the-funnel lead is one step short of making a purchase. Nudge them in that direction by sharing testimonials and success stories that demonstrate your product’s ROI:
Here’s how we reduced ABC’s hiring time by 35% and turnover by 16% [link]
Here’s what our customers say about us: [testimonials from companies in the same industry as the prospect]
At the BOFU stage, relevance is key. The social proof you share should come from companies or situations that closely mirror your prospect’s. They need to see that your product works effectively in a similar context.
When choosing which social proof to include in your emails, consider not only your lead’s position in the funnel but also factors like their industry, company size, or specific pain points. Tailored social proof resonates more deeply.
Do’s and Don’ts of social proof in email outreach
Not all social proofs should end up in your emails. To pick the best, most effective examples, follow these simple rules:
| Do | Don’t |
| Make it relevant to your audience Use examples of companies from the same industry as your leads, preferably of the same size and type (startup, mid-sized business, etc.). | Overload your email with stats and testimonials Keep your email short and sweet, limiting yourself to one detailed case or 2-3 smaller ones. |
| Be specific Add numbers, measurable results, and/or brand names rather than make generic claims. | Use outdated social proof or metrics Your readers don’t care about any successes you achieved more than a year or two ago. |
| Ensure the proof is verifiable and genuine Include source links to customer testimonials, product reviews, and influencer endorsements on third-party websites. | Use irrelevant testimonials Try to avoid cases and reviews that don’t relate to the prospect’s industry or pain points. |
| Set the context Refer to the prospect’s pain points, then use social proof to demonstrate how you have solved this problem for someone else. | Paraphrase what others have said Keep your teaser lines short, letting your cases and testimonials speak for themselves. |
With these strategies, you can use the power of social proof to move your prospects down the funnel and turn them into customers.
Examples of social proof in emails
Here are two sample emails by companies from different industries – a hiring platform and a website development agency – which use different kinds of B2B social proof.
Example 1: Hiring Platform
Subject line: How [prospect company] can cut hiring time by 35%
Hi #first_name,
[Icebreaker]
Hiring quickly and retaining top talent can be a real challenge, especially in [prospect’s industry].
At [my company name], we’ve helped over 500 companies cut their hiring time by 35% and reduce turnover by 16% using our platform. Our data-driven process identifies the best candidates faster and matches them to roles they’re more likely to stick with long-term.
If [prospect company] is looking to build a stronger, more efficient team, I’d love to show you how we can help with that.
Are you free [today +3 open days] @3:00 pm for a quick chat?
Best regards,
[Your Name]
[Your Job Title]
[Your Company]
Example 2: Website Development Agency
Subject line: Why [prospect company] deserves a 5-star website
Hello #first_name,
[Icebreaker]
Did you know that 75% of people judge a brand’s credibility by the design of its website?
At [my company name], we build websites that earned a 5.0 Clutch rating and praise from [influencer name], a leading voice in [prospect’s industry]. Companies like [company example 1] and [company example 2] have seen a 40% increase in lead conversion within months of working with us.
I’d love to discuss how we can help [prospect company] make a lasting impression and turn visitors into customers.
Would [today +3 open days] @3:00 pm work for a brief call?
Best regards,
[Your Name]
[Your Job Title]
[Your Company]
