If you’re tired of blasting generic emails and hoping someone bites, you’re not alone. B2B buyers get hundreds of emails a week and most get ignored. If you want to stand out, personalization isn’t just a nice-to-have—it's table stakes. This guide is for marketers, SDRs, and anyone who wants to use 6sense to actually make their email campaigns relevant (and not just another name in the inbox graveyard).
I’ll walk you through a no-nonsense approach to using 6sense insights to craft emails that feel personal, not automated. You’ll get real steps, honest takes on what’s worth your time, and some pitfalls to avoid.
Step 1: Get Your 6sense House in Order
Before you even think about email copy, make sure your 6sense setup isn’t a mess. Garbage in, garbage out.
Checklist: - Connect your data sources: 6sense works best if it has access to your CRM, MAP (like HubSpot or Marketo), and website analytics. If something’s missing, fix it now. - Define your ideal customer profile (ICP): Don’t let sales “just know” this in their heads. Spell it out in 6sense—firmographics, technographics, company size, industries, etc. - Set up intent keywords: These are the signals 6sense uses to know who’s actually shopping, not just browsing. - Check your segments: Outdated or too-broad segments? Clean them up. The more focused, the better.
Pro Tip: If your 6sense dashboard is full of “unknown” data or your segments are basically just “everyone," stop here and fix that first.
Step 2: Identify High-Intent Accounts (Don’t Chase Ghosts)
Not everyone in your TAM (total addressable market) is ready to buy. 6sense’s real value is showing you who’s actually in-market.
How to do it: - Look for buying stage signals: Use 6sense’s buying stage data to find accounts in the “Decision” or “Consideration” phase. “Awareness” is mostly tire-kickers. - Check engagement spikes: Who’s suddenly visiting your pricing page or downloading case studies? That’s gold. - Use filters: Don’t waste time on accounts with no recent activity or low fit scores. Focus on high-intent, high-fit accounts.
What to skip: Don’t bother personalizing emails to everyone. Start with the 10-20% of accounts showing strong intent.
Step 3: Pinpoint the Right People at Each Account
Personalization falls flat if you’re emailing the wrong contacts. 6sense can help you see who’s actually involved (not just the “decision-maker” on LinkedIn).
Action Steps: - Use 6sense’s contact insights: Find out who’s engaging with your content, visiting your site, or opening previous emails. - Prioritize based on role and activity: Look for buying committee members with recent activity. Don't just hit the C-suite—sometimes the real research is happening below. - Supplement with LinkedIn: If contact data is thin, cross-reference with LinkedIn Sales Navigator or similar tools.
Pitfall: Don’t just default to titles like “VP” or “Director.” Sometimes the person with “Manager” in their title is driving the project.
Step 4: Mine 6sense for Actual Insights (Not Just Data)
Here’s where most people screw up: they get a list of accounts and go straight to mail merge. The gold is in the why—why is this account showing intent? What are they interested in?
What to look for: - Intent keywords: What topics is the account researching? Use these to inform your email subject line or opening sentence. - Engagement details: What content have they downloaded? What web pages did they visit? Mention these specifically (but don’t creep them out). - Historical activity: Have they engaged before and gone cold? Reference that history.
How to use these insights: - Reference real activity: “I noticed your team’s been checking out our guide on [specific topic]—curious if that’s a current focus?” - Tie to pain points: If they’re researching “integration with Salesforce,” don’t pitch your generic product. Talk about your Salesforce integration.
Skip this: Don’t just drop in generic “I see you’re interested in digital transformation” lines. That’s not personalization. That’s Mad Libs.
Step 5: Craft Emails That Don’t Suck
Now you’ve got your list, your contacts, and specific insights. Time to write emails that don’t sound like they came from a robot.
How to write it: - Start with relevance: Open with something that shows you did your homework (see Step 4). - Keep it short: Nobody has time for a wall of text. 3-5 sentences is plenty. - One clear ask: Don’t cram in three CTAs. Ask for one thing—usually a quick call or answer to a question. - Human, not hype: Write like you’d talk to a peer, not like a press release.
Example structure:
Subject: Quick question about [topic they’re researching]
Hi [Name],
Saw your team’s been looking into [topic/solution]—especially around [specific keyword or page]. We’ve helped [similar company] with this, and I thought it might be worth a quick chat. Is [day/time] open?
If not, no worries—just wanted to reach out since it looks like this is a focus for you.
Best,
[Your Name]
Common mistakes: - Overusing the account’s name or industry. Once is enough. - Copy-pasting the same “personalized” line for every account. - Focusing on your product, not their problem.
Step 6: Set Up Smart Email Cadences
One-off emails rarely do the trick. Use 6sense to schedule follow-ups based on actual activity.
How to do it: - Trigger-based follow-ups: If 6sense shows a spike in activity, send a timely follow-up (not just “checking in”). - Adjust based on engagement: If someone clicks but doesn’t reply, try a different angle. If they go cold, pause instead of spamming. - Mix up your content: Use different hooks—case studies, value props tied to their research, or even a short video.
What to avoid: Don’t send a sequence of “just bumping this to the top of your inbox” emails. You’ll get ignored, or worse, reported.
Step 7: Track, Measure, and Actually Learn
Personalized emails aren’t a silver bullet. Some will land, some won’t. The trick is to pay attention and adjust.
Metrics to watch: - Reply rates: The best sign you’re hitting a nerve. Open rates are nice, but replies matter. - Positive responses: Are you getting meetings, not just “not interested” replies? - Account progression: Are accounts moving down the funnel after your outreach?
Iterate ruthlessly: - If a certain insight or approach is getting replies, double down. - If you’re seeing crickets, change it up. Don’t be precious with your templates.
Don’t obsess: Some accounts just aren’t ready, no matter how good your email is. Move on and focus where you’re getting traction.
Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Personalization with 6sense doesn’t have to be complicated. The key is to use real insights, not just fill-in-the-blank tokens. Focus on the accounts that are actually showing intent, write like a human, and be ready to tweak your approach when something’s not working.
You don’t need to automate everything or buy into every new “AI-powered” tool. Start simple, test what works, and build from there. Most importantly, remember: if you wouldn’t reply to your own email, neither will they.