10 best email outbound tools you shouldn’t miss

Does cold email still work?

That question has probably been asked since companies started sending cold emails in the late 1980s. 

The answer is still a resounding yes.

Data shows that cold email generates responses at a rate of between 0.5% and 5%, depending on industry.

And an integrated, well-calibrated stack can drive results beyond 5%.

Let’s look at ten of the top apps currently on the market. 

1. Artisan 

Artisan is an AI-first cold email and social media outbound platform. Businesses use it to automate all of the initial and middle-stage parts of an outbound email campaign, from prospecting to delivering follow-up messages. 

Its regularly updated and hygiene-monitored B2B database, straightforward learning curve, and intuitive dashboard make it easy for sales teams to start using it. 

What makes Artisan different is its atypical approach to AI. Most software providers layer AI on top of their existing functionality. It’s an add-on. Artisan, on the other, has put AI right at the core of its platform. It runs the whole system, and users have access to unmatched features as a result. 

Key Features

• Powerful AI engine built into the software

• Database of hundreds of millions of B2B, local business, and ecommerce leads

• Email deliverability optimization for multiple mailboxes

• Automated email and social media outreach and follow-up

• Scalable personalization using advanced web scraping and a unique personalization waterfall

• Automated A/B and multivariate testing 

• Campaign creation based on proven playbooks

• In-depth analytics and reporting

Pricing

Artisan uses a custom pricing model so businesses of different sizes get the best possible value. Contact the sales team for a quote. 

2. Instantly.ai

Instantly splits its offerings into three packages: email “sending and warmup,” lead generation, and a proprietary CRM. You’ll have to pay separately for each if you want all the functionality on offer. 

If you’re looking for a more narrowly focused solution, such as outbound email automation without lead prospecting, it could be a viable option. Its ease of use also makes it a good choice for smaller, less tech-savvy businesses. 

Instantly lacks advanced AI functionality and relies on more traditional personalization methods like customizable templates. Additionally, CRM integrations are only available on the higher-tier plans, and email volume is capped at 5000/month on the entry-level plan. 

Key Features

• Automated email warmup, delivery, and follow-up

• Lead prospecting from a 160 million-strong database

• Reporting and metrics tracking

Pricing

Plans start at $37/month for the email automation packages. Lead prospecting and CRM plans carry additional costs. 

3. Reply.io

If you’re looking for a platform that supports multichannel outreach, Reply.io could be the one for you. It gives you the ability to extend your outreach efforts across email, social (LinkedIn), SMS, and cold calling, although the full package of outreach tools is costly. 

Reply.io also has an attractive sliding pricing model. As such, it’s suitable for businesses of all sizes, from small independent companies to large enterprises. The extensive AI and automation features allow small businesses to run comprehensive omnichannel B2B campaigns without requiring a large marketing and sales team. 

Key Features

• Multichannel outbound outreach 

• Advanced AI functionality, including an AI SDR

• Extensive database of B2B leads 

Pricing

Reply.io has multiple plans with different sets of features. The email automation package starts at $59/month and runs up to $210/month (for the agency subscription). 

4. Mixmax

Mixmax focuses on streamlining the creation and delivery of emails. It’s not a full-campaign tool and doesn’t include a lead database for automated prospecting. However, its efficiency-driving features are solid. They include an AI writing assistant, inbox side chat (so you can collaborate on emails without leaving your inbox), and CRM integrations with Salesforce and HubSpot. 

If you currently spend a lot of manual time sending emails, Mixmax will likely be a worthwhile addition to your stack. It also has some excellent team collaboration features, and its CRM integrations are very popular, although you will need to pay extra to access them. 

Key Features

• Email sequence automation

• Team collaboration tools and shared templates

• AI composition and email delivery management

Pricing

Pricing starts at $34/month per user for individuals. Team plans begin at $199/month for 5 users. 

5. Lemlist

Lemlist is a good option for small and medium businesses looking for a full suite of outbound email automation tools. The platform has a large B2B lead database (although there are caps on the number of verified emails on each of the different plans), automated email sequences (including follow-ups), and lead status monitoring.

The AI functionality is mainly restricted to email creation and personalization. Other nifty features include a central multichannel dashboard, lead intent signals, and an integrations library with a Zapier integration. All in all, it’s a solid solution with competitive pricing. 

Key Features

• Email sequences and follow-ups

• Lead database with over 450 million entries

• Support for multichannel outreach

Pricing

Plans start at $39/month for one email domain and go up to $159/month. A limited free plan is available. 

6. QuickMail

QuickMail is designed to streamline bulk cold email outreach. Its plans are well-priced and begin at $49/month for 30,000 monthly emails. However, QuickMail doesn’t provide access to a lead database. It’s focused solely on assisting users in speeding up and automating the delivery and follow-up stages of their campaigns. It also lacks advanced features when it comes to AI.

If you already have access to a lead database with valid email addresses, QuickMail can help warm up your domains and automate your outreach. You’ll also have access to HubSpot, Pipedrive, and Zapier integrations, an API (on the higher-tier plans), and LinkedIn outreach tools. 

Key Features

• High-volume cold outreach

• Automated email sequences and follow-ups

• Blacklist monitoring

• Warmup and deliverability optimization

Pricing

Individual plans start at $49/month and agency plans at $399/month. 

7. GMass

GMass is the only Gmail-specific email outreach tool on this list. It lets you send bulk email using Gmail by merging with a list of leads in Google Docs. It’s not a heavy-duty automation platform like most of the other entries, but it’s ideal for beginners and those managing smaller outreach campaigns using Gmail. 

Features include sequences and follow-ups, email address verification, custom tracking links, and a Zapier integration. It lacks AI-powered features, but it does add a layer of efficiency to a typical Gmail-based outreach workflow. 

Key Features

• Gmail add-on 

• Unlimited email campaigns and contacts

• Automated sequences and follow-ups

• Zapier integration

Pricing

Plans start at $18/month for individuals and $115/month for teams. 

8. Outreach.io

Outreach.io’s name doesn’t leave much to the imagination. Leaving aside questions of whether or not it’s even possible to trademark the word “outreach,” the platform aims to be a comprehensive platform for all stages of sales process execution. And it succeeds pretty well. 

It has five different packages of features. “Engage” covers email automation and lead tracking. “Call” is for assisting with cold calling (including a sales dialer). “Meet” is for streamlining meetings. “Deal” is for improving and tracking deal outcomes. Finally, “Forecast” is the analytics and forecasting component of the platform. 

Outreach.io doesn’t provide a lead database. Beyond that, however, it is an end-to-end solution for sales teams with good cold email marketing features. 

Key Features

• Full suite of sales execution tools

• Cold email automation

• Deal and sales meeting management

• Forecasting and analytics

Pricing

All pricing is on a custom basis. Contact the sales team for more information. 

9. Mailshake

Mailshake automates email warmup, delivery and follow-up, and A/B testing. It also has features for LinkedIn outreach, VoIP calls, and lead prospecting. AI functionality is primarily via its email writer. 

It’s a well-reviewed platform with an intuitive dashboard and a good set of multichannel B2B automation tools. You’ll need to purchase the top-tier “Sales Engagement” plan to access the lead database and monthly “finder credits” are capped at 2500. 

Key Features

• Multichannel outreach automation

• Deliverability optimization and email domain warmup

• Email list cleaning (scrubbing)

• AI email content writer

Pricing

Mailshake has two plans at $49/month and $99/month. A limited free plan is available. 

10. Woodpecker

Woodpecker is an outbound platform with a comprehensive set of features and flexible usage-based pricing. It focuses on email automation but also has tools for outreach via LinkedIn and cold calling. 

Its unique pricing model, which increases based on the number of contacted prospects, makes it a good option for cost-conscious businesses looking for access to a wide set of features on their own terms. 

Key Features

• Email outreach automation

• AI email writer 

• Combined email, LinkedIn, and cold-calling sequences

• Integrations library (for a small additional price)

Pricing

Pricing starts at $29/month. There are lots of packages, so review them thoroughly to find the best one. 

How to Choose the Right Features in Email Outreach Tools 

Picking the right features in your email outreach and email marketing software involves five steps:

1. Identify your primary goal

2. Evaluate automation needs

3. Assess personalization options

4. Prioritize deliverability and compliance

5. Consider integrations with existing tools

Let’s look at each of these steps in a little more depth. 

1. Identify Your Primary Goal

Each of your sales and marketing campaigns will have multiple goals. But they should also have a single, overriding aim that unifies and guides your strategy. 

Here are some examples of high-level goals:

• Lead generation

• Conversion of existing contact lists

• Lead nurturing

• Brand awareness

• Media and journalistic mentions

• Joint ventures

Understanding your big primary goal will help you determine which features are essential. And there can be sizable differences between providers.

For example, a platform like Artisan, which is designed to generate leads from cold email outreach, works very differently from an application designed to connect with journalists for media coverage. 

2. Evaluate Automation Needs

Automation is important. It can save hundreds of employee hours and tens and even hundreds of thousands of dollars in resources. However, automation needs differ between businesses. 

A small local magazine running a cold outreach campaign to several thousand people won’t have the same requirements as a multinational enterprise with an addressable market of millions. 

Modern AI-based email tools have the following broad automation capabilities:

• Lead prospecting to find potential customers

• Email copywriting and content creation

• Email copy personalization

• Delivery and follow-up

• Analytics, email tracking, and reporting

Pick which automation features you need and verify that your chosen tool has them. Some businesses will need comprehensive automation, while others may need functionality in one or two areas, and can make savings accordingly. Approaches should be adjusted based on marketing strategies and sales automation needs. 

3. Assess Personalization Options

Traditional email personalization involves adding shortcode variables to a pre-written template. 

It looks like this:

Dear [first name],

I’m reaching out to you because I’m very impressed by [company name]’s work. 

This simple form of personalization has evolved in recent years. AI tools like Artisan use advanced behavioral data and comprehensive scraping to personalize emails in a way that matches (and even surpasses) human inputs. 

AI is the way forward with personalization. But not all tools have the same advanced functionality. 

Email campaigns with a high degree of personalization perform better than those without. Look at the sources of data that the AI engine uses and which parts of an email it can tailor to the recipient—is it just the opening line, or can it work with all of the email’s body content, for example?

4. Prioritize Deliverability and Compliance

If you end up in your recipient’s spam folder before they even get a chance to see your email, your chances of booking a meeting or closing a sale are nil. 

Ensure your chosen tool has email deliverability optimization features built in and adheres to up-to-date privacy regulations like GDPR and CAN-SPAM. 

Outbound tools should have all of the following:

• Email warmup features

• Sender reputation management

• Email address verification

• Ongoing data hygiene checking

• Platform regulatory compliance 

• Sender score monitoring

Deliverability and compliance are technical points on your checklist. However, they can kill a campaign before it’s even off the ground. You’ll be relying on your provider to look after this aspect of your email marketing strategy, so ensure they’re well-equipped before taking out a subscription. 

A platform like Artisan automatically warms up email domains for optimal deliverability prior to launching a campaign. It also monitors mailbox health and daily sending capacity. 

5. Consider Integrations With Existing Tools

Outbound tools don’t exist in isolation. They’ll be part of your existing stack, and it’s important that the integrations library includes native integrations with your existing apps. 

Ensure the following apps are accounted for:

• Customer relationship management apps (CRMs) like HubSpot and Salesforce

• Enterprise resource planning (ERP)

• Marketing automation tools

• Customer support platform

• B2B lead database (if not included in platform)

• Calendar

• Analytics

• Email client (like Gmail or Outlook) 

Many tools offer a Zapier integration. You can use this to overcome the absence of native integrations, but it’s not always ideal. If your tech stack is mostly covered, a Zapier integration can fill in the gaps. 

Automate Your B2B Outbound Workflow With AI 

Tech stacks aren’t static entities. A stack for sending email sequences that was innovative and cutting-edge ten years ago would look like a relic today.

Now, a new wave of all-in-one AI tools is helping sales reps become more efficient and effective. 

Artisan’s virtual business development revenue (BDR), Ava, handles all of the following processes on autopilot:

• Automation for all stages of outbound email campaigns right up until the meeting stage

• Prospecting, filtering, and scoring from a database of hundreds of millions of leads

• Human-like personalization (subject lines and body copy) at scale based on a proprietary waterfall algorithm

• Social media outreach for multichannel campaigns

• A/B testing and in-the-background optimization  

• Full-picture real-time reporting (bounce rates, open rates, response rates, etc.)