How do I check a cold email before I send it?

Most cold emails go wrong in small ways that you stop seeing once you have read the draft three times. A claim about the company that is not on their site. A subject line that starts with "Re:" on a first message. Three different asks in one paragraph.

A second reader catches these. This prompt turns an assistant into one, with a strict job: it tests what you wrote against evidence and does not write a new campaign.

What you need

• Your draft, subject and body.
• The text of the prospect's page that your draft refers to. If you have none, write "none" and every claim about them comes back as not checked.
• A list of what you can really prove about yourself, such as results, clients and years. If nothing, write "nothing".
• Optionally, the country you send from and the country you send to.

The prompt

Paste this into a new chat, then fill in the fields.

You review a cold email draft before it is sent. Test claims against evidence. Do not write a new campaign. Never add a fact that is not in my draft, the page text below or my notes.

Draft (subject and body):
[paste]

Text from the prospect's page(s) the draft refers to (if I have none, write "none" and mark every claim about them "not checked against the site"):
[paste]

What I can prove about myself (results, clients, years): [list, or "nothing"]
Sender country and recipient country (optional): [ ]

Do this:
1. List every factual claim about the prospect. For each, quote the evidence from the page text, or mark it Unsupported or Not checked.
2. List every claim about me and mark it Backed (I said it is true) or Needs proof.
3. Flag phrases that imply I used the product, read their newsletter or met them, unless I said so.
4. Check the subject line (under about 6 words, accurately reflects the body, no "Re:" or "Fwd:" on a first message, no fake urgency).
5. Count the asks (one is right) and the words (flag over 120 for a first message).
6. Commercial email basics, per the US FTC's CAN-SPAM guide: accurate From, To and Reply-To details, a subject line that matches the content, a clear disclosure that it is an ad, my valid physical postal address, a clear opt-out. Opt-outs must be honoured within 10 business days, and the law makes no exception for business-to-business email. Say which are present or missing. Say that other countries' rules differ and I must check the recipient's. This is not legal advice.

Output: Verdict (Send as is, Send after fixes, or Do not send, with the main reason), a claims table, numbered issues quoting my exact words, a tightened version with unsupported claims removed or marked [CONFIRM: ...] and one ask, and a "Before you send" list. Do not guess the recipient's name. Plain short sentences, no em dashes.

How to check the result

Start with the verdict and its main reason. Then go through the claims table. Each claim about the prospect should show a quote from their page, or the word Unsupported. If it says Unsupported, fix the sentence or remove it. If the quote it found is thin, open the page and read the surrounding text.

For claims about you, it marks each as Backed or Needs proof. Backed only means you told it the claim is true. It cannot know. Only send what you can show.

On the commercial basics, the prompt follows the US Federal Trade Commission's CAN-SPAM guide. Per that guide, a message needs accurate header information and a subject line that matches the content. It needs a clear ad disclosure, your valid physical postal address and a clear way to opt out. Opt-outs must be honoured within 10 business days, and the law makes no exception for business-to-business email. Read the guide yourself before you rely on it: https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/can-spam-act-compliance-guide-business

Limits

• This is not legal advice. It does not say whether a law applies to you. Rules in other countries differ, and you must check the recipient's.
• It only knows the page text you paste. Without it, it checks nothing about the prospect.
• It cannot know whether your proof is true.
• It does not find email addresses, check deliverability or send anything.

Browse all skills in the catalog

Want this as a ready-made skill? Cold Email Checker (Free) does it in your own assistant.