Why most outreach advise is misleading
Most business advice exists to benefit those who give it, not those who receive it.
Look at outreach advice. SDR agencies promote sending thousands of automated emails because that's the service they sell. LinkedIn personal branding coaches advocate building relationships one connection at a time because that's their business model.
Both approaches can work, but consider this:
Their advice serves their business model, not necessarily yours.
Let's avoid that trap. I'm not here to sell you on any one outreach tactic. Instead, I'm giving you a guide to quickly decide exactly which approach is right for your business, not theirs.
Instead of blindly trusting agencies and coaches, you can figure out your best move by understanding just two critical things:
Your ACV (Annual Contract Value): How much money do you typically make per new client each year?
Your TAM density (Target Addressable Market): How big and concentrated is your pool of potential customers? Are you fishing in a small, specific pond or the entire ocean?
That's it.
These two simple data points tell you exactly how much energy, time, and money you should spend per prospect—and therefore help you immediately pick the right outreach tactic.
Here's how to think about your options clearly, with no confusion:
1. Strategic, Highly Personal Outreach
What’s called ABM (Account Based Marketing). Carefully choose prospects and spend significant time researching each lead.
Average deal size (ACV): $50,000 per year or more
Target market size (TAM): Small—up to a thousand ideal prospects total
With big deals and small target audience, it makes sense to treat each lead like gold. Spend time understanding the company deeply, reach multiple stakeholders, and invest building authentic relationships through LinkedIn and email.
Use this when each deal really matters to your business. Think: winning deals with big, well-known companies.
2. Personalized Outreach with Moderate Volume
Reach out individually but quickly, balancing customization with efficiency.
Average deal size (ACV): Around $5,000–$50,000 per year
Target market size (TAM): Medium-sized—usually a few thousand potential prospects in your chosen market
You still need personalized messages, but you have enough potential clients that you cannot spend days researching every lead. Aim for relevant, tailored messages (mention company news, specific pain points, or roles), but use proven templates to save time.
Use this when you need consistency, efficiency, and good-quality meetings without breaking the bank on research time.
3. Segmented Outreach
Send semi-personalized outreach based on target groups or segments.
Average deal size (ACV): Around $1,000–$10,000 per year
Target market size (TAM): Large—tens of thousands of potential customers with common traits
If you have thousands of prospects, you can't realistically customize every message. Instead, group prospects into segments based on their job, industry, or company size. Send the same tailored message to each segment, staying relevant without deep individual research.
Use this when your market is large but prospects share many similar challenges.
4. Mass, Automated Outreach
Send automated messages to thousands with very little customization.
Average deal size (ACV): Very low, typically under $1,000 per year, often transactional or self-service products
Target market size (TAM): Huge—potentially tens of thousands or even millions of possible buyers
Here, sheer volume matters most. Expect minimal customization—maybe just their name and company. Anticipate lower response rates and higher effort spent to qualify leads later.
Use this when the market is huge, your product is easily understandable, deals close quickly, and each individual sale doesn't justify significant attention.
Your quick decision guide
OK, I can’t cover every single scenario, can I? You can have a a massive contract value and millions of prospects in your TAM.
But I can give you the best approximation of how to pick your perfect outreach approach based on the minimum ACV and maximum TAM that I think makes a given approach viable.
Stop letting agencies and coaches sell you their favorite "silver bullets." Check your numbers, honestly assess your situation, and choose what's the best for you—not what's best for somebody else's business model.
Which outreach method are you using right now and does it actually match your situation based on this guide?
Hit reply and let me know!