First Customers (GTM)

How do I build a targeted list of the right people to cold email?

A starting point

Define your ideal customer sharply, then hand-build a small list of exactly-fit prospects instead of blasting thousands. Use LinkedIn, community memberships, and who your existing best-fit users resemble to source names, and enrich with tools only after you know who you want. A tight list of 50 perfect targets beats 5,000 random ones every time.

Go deeper

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📄 Article
Freemium Intermediate

How to win your first 10 customers via direct outreach

From Lenny's Newsletter by Lenny Rachitsky ~15 min read

Why we picked it

Shows exactly how top startups turned early cold/warm outreach into paying customers, with real message-level detail. Grounds cold outreach advice in what actually worked.

  • Build a tight, targeted list of ideal-fit prospects instead of blasting.
  • Warm the intro where possible; personalize every message.
  • Direct outreach to influential users is a proven early channel.
  • Convert early users into paying customers deliberately, not passively.
Open lennysnewsletter.com →
📄 Article
Freemium Intermediate

How today's fastest-growing B2B startups found their first ten customers

From Lenny's Newsletter by Lenny Rachitsky ~15 min read

Why we picked it

A data-backed teardown of how companies like Figma, Gusto, and Vanta actually sourced their earliest customers. Replaces guesswork with real patterns.

  • Only three sourcing strategies power nearly all very-early B2B growth.
  • Tap your personal network first (Gusto's first 10 were friends/YC batchmates).
  • Reach influential users via direct outreach (Figma cold-emailed top designers).
  • Start with the highest-trust channels and work outward.
Open lennysnewsletter.com →

People also ask

How do I write a cold email that people actually reply to? Keep it short, personal, and about them, not you. Nail a subject line that sparks curiosity, open with a specific reason you're reaching out to *th... Beginner 3 resources → How many times should I follow up before giving up on a cold prospect? More than you think, most replies come after the first email, not on it. Follow up persistently but politely, adding a little new value each time, ... Beginner 2 resources → Cold email or cold LinkedIn/DM, what works better for reaching first customers? Use whichever gets you in front of your specific buyer, and often combine them, a warm LinkedIn touch before a cold email lifts reply rates. Email ... Intermediate 2 resources → Is cold outreach even worth it, or is it just spam that hurts my brand? Done lazily it's spam; done well it's just starting a relevant conversation with someone who genuinely needs you. The difference is targeting and p... Beginner 2 resources → What tools should I use to send and track cold outreach without spamming? For your first customers you often need nothing more than your normal inbox and a spreadsheet, send personal 1:1 emails and track replies by hand. ... Intermediate 2 resources → Where do I find the very first people to even talk to about my product? Start with the channels that already have trust and work outward: your personal network, then your extended network via warm intros, then the influ... Beginner 3 resources →