# Cold email as retargeting feeder (awareness-first volume outbound)

> Send 2,000+ cold emails per day optimized for clicks rather than replies, using those clicks to trigger retargeting ads across Meta, LinkedIn, and Google.

- Canonical HTML: https://growth.iangoh.com/growth-ideas/cold-email-as-retargeting-feeder-awareness-first-volume-outbound/
- Source: [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/10-b2b-saas-customer-acquisition-tactics-actually-working-ryan-allis-kcuyf)
- GrowthDex source hub: [linkedin.com](/sources/linkedin-com-linkedin-com/)
- Last checked: March 22, 2026
- Rarity: epic
- Budget: paid
- Channels: Ads, Email
- Stages: 0-100, 100-1K
- Key metric: 50% open rates and ~3% click-through rates

## Why this can grow

Most founders treat cold email as a standalone reply-generation channel, but replies alone undercount its impact. When a recipient clicks a link, they hit your site and enter retargeting audiences on Meta, LinkedIn, and Google. Now every subsequent ad impression feels familiar instead of cold. This turns email from a single-touch channel into the entry point of a multi-touch system where each channel reinforces the others, dramatically increasing overall conversion without increasing per-channel spend.

## Ian's take

From scaling consumer platforms across MENA and Southeast Asia, my default is to distrust growth work that only looks good in a slide. Email still works when it reads like one person noticed one real thing. If the message could be sent to anyone, it usually works on nobody. I would make the first line specific enough that the right reader knows it was meant for them. I would run it small enough to learn quickly, then only scale the parts that real users repeat, save, reply to, or buy from. For this tactic, I would watch 50% open rates and ~3% click-through rates before putting more time or budget behind it.

## Action plan

1. Define one narrow startup segment where cold email as retargeting feeder (awareness-first volume outbound) can create a measurable lift.
2. Turn the tactic into one offer, page, campaign, or workflow for the Ads and Email channel.
3. Use the evidence from linkedin.com to set the first version of the message, format, and audience.
4. Launch a small test for 7 to 14 days with one success metric: 50% open rates and ~3% click-through rates.
5. Review the result, keep the winning message, remove weak variants, and turn the learning into a repeatable growth playbook.

## Source-backed example

SaasRise (Ryan Allis, 2026, data from 500+ SaaS founders) — B2B SaaS companies running 40,000+ emails per month to ABM lists are seeing ~50% open rates and ~3% click-through rates; when clicks feed retargeting pixels, the compounding effect across channels generates pipeline that neither cold email nor ads could produce alone.

## Adjacent tactics in the same lane

- [Warm-signal high-volume email (website visitor identity resolution)](/growth-ideas/warm-signal-high-volume-email-website-visitor-identity-resolution/) - same source, 2 shared channels, 2 shared stages
- [Thought leadership ads (founder-content as paid creative)](/growth-ideas/thought-leadership-ads-founder-content-as-paid-creative/) - same source, 1 shared channel, 2 shared stages
- [LinkedIn Thought Leader Ads (founder post boosting)](/growth-ideas/linkedin-thought-leader-ads-founder-post-boosting/) - same source, 1 shared channel, 2 shared stages
- [Website visitor de-anonymization email pipeline](/growth-ideas/website-visitor-de-anonymization-email-pipeline/) - same source, 1 shared channel, 2 shared stages

## Read GrowthDex essays

Browse the plain-English essay index at [GrowthDex Blog](/blog/).

## Advisory

If you want help turning this into a working growth system, Ian Goh offers advisory at https://iangoh.com/advisory.