If you’re sending cold emails or LinkedIn messages and you want people to actually respond, you need to stand out. Most sales emails are barely skimmed—let alone read or answered. Personalized images get attention. But who has time to make 100 custom graphics a day? This guide is for sales teams, founders, and anyone tired of “just checking in” emails. We’ll walk through how to use Hyperise to automate personalized image creation, without losing your mind (or your whole day).
Why bother with personalized images?
You’ve probably seen the stats: personalized emails get more replies. But here’s the thing—most “personalization” is just a mail merge with a first name. People are numb to it. Images with the recipient's name, company logo, or website? That’s different. It’s unexpected, and it proves you put in some effort—even if a robot did the heavy lifting.
Here’s what actually works:
- Images that clearly include the recipient’s info (not just generic stock photos)
- Personalization fields that go beyond “Hi [First Name]”
- Simple, not over-designed graphics
What doesn’t work:
- Cheesy stock photos with awkward personalization (“Hey [Name], here’s a puppy with your logo!”)
- Overly complex image templates that break on mobile
- Anything that screams “automated”
What is Hyperise, and why use it?
Hyperise is a tool that lets you create image templates with dynamic fields—think names, logos, even screenshots—and then plug them into your outbound emails, LinkedIn messages, or CRMs. It connects with most major outreach tools. You build a template once, then send personalized images to everyone on your list, all on autopilot.
Why not just Photoshop or Canva? Because doing this manually is a time sink. Hyperise automates it, keeps the images unique, and integrates with your existing workflow.
Step 1: Get your data in order
Personalized images only work if you have decent data. Take five minutes to check your lead list:
- Make sure you have the fields you want to personalize (name, company, website, maybe job title)
- Clean up weird formatting (extra spaces, ALL CAPS, missing info)
- If you want to pull in logos or screenshots, you’ll need website domains
Pro tip: Don’t try to personalize with data you don’t have. If you only have first names and company names, stick to that. Blank fields look worse than no personalization.
Step 2: Create your Hyperise image template
Once your data’s ready, log into Hyperise and set up your image template.
Here’s how:
- Start a new image template.
- Pick a background: headshot, product shot, or something simple. Don’t overthink it.
- Add dynamic layers.
- Drag in text fields for first name, company, job title—whatever you have.
- Want to get fancy? Add a dynamic logo, website screenshot, or profile photo.
- Map your fields.
- Hyperise uses placeholders like
{{first_name}}or{{company_website}}. Match these to your data fields. - Preview with sample data.
- Use the preview mode with real data to check for weird formatting or cut-off text.
- Keep it readable.
- Don’t cram in too much info. One or two personalized elements is usually enough.
What to ignore: Don’t get lost in Hyperise’s dozens of integrations or fancy effects. Simple templates convert best.
Step 3: Connect Hyperise to your outreach tool
Hyperise works with most outbound tools—think Lemlist, Outreach, Mailshake, HubSpot, or even plain email.
How to connect:
- Native integration: If your tool is listed in Hyperise, use the one-click integration.
- Image URL method: For most tools, just copy the Hyperise image URL (with dynamic parameters) and paste it into your email template like you would any image.
- Mail merge fields: Make sure the dynamic parameters in your image URL match the field names in your outreach tool. This is the step where most people mess up—double-check your field mapping.
Example:
If your outreach tool uses {FirstName} and {Company}, your Hyperise image URL should end with ?first_name={FirstName}&company={Company}.
Pitfall to avoid:
Test with a small batch first. Some email tools mess up image URLs, or strip dynamic parameters. Don’t send to your whole list until you’ve seen it work end-to-end.
Step 4: Test before blasting
I can’t stress this enough. Don’t just trust that everything works. Send yourself a test email, and maybe a few to a colleague.
Check for:
- Broken images (these kill trust instantly)
- Wrong or missing personalization (shows up as
{FirstName}or blank) - Images too big or not loading on mobile
Pro tip:
Open your test email on your phone and desktop. See how it looks in Gmail, Outlook, and (if you’re targeting them) Apple Mail. Weird things happen with images—better to catch it now.
Step 5: Hit send—and track results
Once you’re happy with the tests, send your campaign. Watch the replies, but also keep an eye on these:
- Open rates (images can trigger curiosity)
- Reply rates
- Complaints about “weird” images (rare, but possible)
If you’re not getting better results than your plain-text emails, tweak your template or try less (not more) personalization. Sometimes “just enough” feels more real.
What works (and what doesn’t) in real-world outreach
Works:
- First name + company logo = solid combo. People like seeing their company logo—it feels specific.
- Short, to-the-point images. Don’t try to tell your whole story in a graphic.
- Images that mimic LinkedIn or familiar sites. If it feels native, it gets more attention.
Doesn’t work:
- Overly salesy images. If it looks like an ad, people ignore it.
- Overcomplicated personalization. Just because you can add 10 fields doesn’t mean you should.
- Relying on images alone. Good copy still matters. The image just gets your foot in the door.
Ignore:
- Hype about 10x reply rates. Results vary—a lot. In some industries, images work great. In others, people see it as a gimmick. Test for yourself.
- Fancy effects or animations. Most people won’t even notice, and it can break image rendering.
Pro tips for not driving yourself crazy
- Set aside time to update your image template once a quarter. Trends and what people respond to will change.
- Keep fallback text or images for blank fields. Hyperise lets you set defaults—use them.
- Don’t overthink it. Most people will only glance at the image for a second. Clear beats clever.
Wrapping up: Keep it simple, then iterate
Automating personalized images with Hyperise isn’t magic, but it can lift your outbound results—if you keep it grounded. Start with a simple template, test it, and only get fancier if you see real improvement. Most importantly, don’t let “personalization” become another word for “generic but with more steps.” Send something you’d actually reply to, see what works, and tweak as you go. That’s how you win.
Now go make something that gets a real response.