How to Find Companies to Cold-Email + Get Freelance Writing Clients Through Cold-Emailing

How to Find Companies to Cold-Email

How do I find companies to cold-email?

If you’ve asked this question, you are not alone. This is one of the most common questions I see freelance writers asking. (Besides how to make money as a freelance writer, of course.) Many freelance writers feel overwhelmed looking for companies to cold-email. Yet, this process couldn’t be more simple. 

In today’s article, I want to go over some of the best practices on how to find companies to cold-email, how to find their email addresses, and how to increase your chances of booking clients through cold-emailing. Let’s get into it.

1. Figure Out What Kind of Clients You Want to Work with

When freelance writers ask how to find companies to cold-email, the biggest problem I see is overwhelm. The sea of clients is neverending. There are so many companies, brands, and professionals online, it’s so easy to get lost. You have to narrow down what kind of clients you want to work with before you start cold-emailing random companies without a strategy.

Pick a Niche

Choosing a niche can help you stand out from the crowd. Better yet, choosing a niche can also help you narrow down your potential clients and help you find companies to cold-email. If you have a niche, you can focus on only companies within one industry.

If you are not ready to niche down, that’s okay. A generalist approach can help newbies and may work for some writers long-term. I still recommend picking a few niches. Even if you are a generalist, you can’t write about everything from automobiles to finance, from dogs to mental health, from SaaS to spirituality. Pick two to five industries that interest you the most to narrow down your options.

Some popular niches that can help you find companies to cold-email include:

  • Finance

  • B2B

  • SaaS

  • IT/Technology

  • Marketing and business

  • Real estate

  • Beauty

  • Medical and pharmaceutical

  • Health and wellness

  • Mental health

  • Cannabis

  • Fitness

  • Lifestyle

  • Caregiving and parenting

  • Non-profits

  • Pets

Choose a Writing Service

Another great way to narrow down your choices when trying to find companies to cold-email is picking a writing service or writing speciality. Whether you have a niche or not, it’s a good idea to get clear on what kind of writing services you want to offer. 

Again, you can’t offer everything. Offer things that you are good at and love doing and forget about everything else. Narrow down to one to four types of writing services. You can automatically rule out companies that don’t need these services and target those that absolutely do.

Some popular services that can help you find companies to cold-email include:

  • Short-form blog 

  • Long-form blogs and long-form content 

  • SEO blogs and SEO content/copy

  • Emails and newsletters

  • Web copy

  • Conversion copy

  • Sales copy

  • Landing pages

  • Product descriptions

  • White papers

  • Case studies

  • Online course content

  • Linkedin and resumes

Figure Out What Kind of Clients You Want

This is the step that most freelance writers forget when trying to find companies to cold-email. Yet, this is probably the most important step. If you find a company to cold-email and they say yes, you want to love working with them. 

There is nothing worse than booking a client that you don’t enjoy working with. You want to love writing for them and have a good relationship with them. But this is all subjective. My dream client may be your nightmare. Someone that aligns with your goals and values may not be right for me.

Start journaling and brainstorming about your ideal clients. Once you know the answers, it will be easy to narrow down brands on the internet and find companies to cold-email. 

Here are some questions to consider to help you find companies to cold-email:

  • Do you want to work with small, medium, or large companies, or solopreneurs?

  • Do you want to work with female-led businesses or female professionals, or perhaps the opposite?

  • What kind of relationship are you looking for with your client? Do you want to be part of a big team or looking for a hands-off approach?

  • Do you want to work with a client who is selling physical products, digital products, or services?

  • What are your client's values and goals?

  • Are you looking for a stereotypical official and professional relationship or a more casual, friendly, yet professional one?

  • What age group do you want to write for and/or work with?

  • Do you want to be in direct communication with the founder/CEO or work with a team of writers, editors, and other members of a content marketing team?

One important note: Having a niche, writing specialty, or an ideal client does NOT mean you can’t work with someone who doesn’t fit this category. You absolutely can! Having a niche, writing specialty, and an ideal client can simply help you narrow down your choices, get clear on your own goals, and find companies to cold-email and book for the job.

2. How to Find Companies to Cold-Email

I am in a lot of Facebook groups. (Shout out to Female Freelance Writers! They are my favorite!) I also get a lot of messages on Facebook and Linkedin. One of the most common questions I see from new freelance writers is how to find companies to send cold-emails to.

Look at Your Own Life

Consider brands and products you are already using and love. Seriously, your life is full of products and brands from your face wash to your car insurance, from your shoes to your food, from your computer to your pillow cases. Seriously, the options are endless. 

The question is if these brands and companies fit into your ideal goals. Are they in your niche and expertise? Do they use or need the type of writing you are offering? Do you fit into your ideal client description? If the answer is yes, to all (or even one!) of these questions, you’ve found yourself a company to cold-email to.

Use Google

Google is full of treasures. Seriously. Google is the best place to find companies to cold-email. Search for the best brands in your niche. For example, if you are in the finance niche, search for the top personal finance apps, best personal finance blogs, personal finance professionals in NY, and so on for the personal finance niche.

Don’t forget to click past pages one and two of Google. Sometimes the companies that need the most help are still hiding on pages 10, 20, or even 50. This is especially important if you are skilled in SEO and can help them rank better.

Search Linkedin

Search Linkedin for companies and professionals in your niche. Use the search bar. Don’t just look for companies. Check out professionals too. If you find professionals in your niche, look at the company they work for. Chances are, you will find some companies to cold-email. 

Linkedin is generally a great place to find clients. To learn more about how to use Linkedin to find clients, read this guest article by Giada.

Search Social Media

Linkedin is not the only social media platform I recommend. Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and other social media platforms are full of companies that need freelance writers like you. Social media is a great place for companies to establish authority and advertise their products.

Look at hashtags and open your eyes when scrolling. Note the brands influencers are promoting. Chances are, you will find some companies to cold-email. 

Look at the Ads

In your normal life, you may hate ads. But as a freelance writer who is trying to find companies to cold-email, ads are your best friends. If a company is advertising a product or service, chances are, they have or need some writers on board.

Note the ads that pop up all over your social media once you start googling for clients. Ads will pop up all over the place on social media, Google, and the internet. Check out the ads in magazines, on billboards, and all over your city. Look at the brands influencers are promoting. Check Amazon’s sponsored recommendations. Ads will help you find some great companies to cold-email. 

Look at Directories

Looking at directories is a fantastic option if you are looking to work with a professional or a service provider. For example, if you want to work with a therapist, counselor, or mental health professional, you can use the directory of Psychology Today. There are directories for doctors, physical therapists, and other health professionals. You may even look at the directory that your insurance company offers.

There are directories for plumbers, electricians, pet sitters, nannies, organic farms, and all kinds of other things. Try using the Yellow Pages! Yes, it still exists. Just go through the page relevant to your niche to find some professionals or companies to cold-email. This is a great option for finding local clients. 

Look at Competitors

Don’t forget about the competition. If you’ve found some brands and companies to cold email, check out their competitors and send them a cold-email too. Maybe you’ve found your dream company to cold-email. That’s great. Go for it! But remember, they are not the only ones in the industry. For every client, there are hundreds, if not thousands (or millions!) of companies that offer similar products and services. Check out their competitors. 

Similar Web is a great place to find similar companies to a current client or a dream client. You can also find competitors through SEO software, like Semrush, MOZ, or Ahrefs. Or you can simply leave it to Google and social media. Once you start searching for a company, you will start noticing ads and recommendations for competitors. You will absolutely find some companies to cold-email among the sea of competitors. 

3. Time to Cold-Email

Once you’ve found some companies to cold-email, it’s time to start cold-emailing. But how? How do you find their email address? It’s more simple than you think.

To find email addresses to cold-email to, try the following options:

Tips for Cold-emailing and Booking Clients

Finding companies to cold-email is not enough. You want to increase your chances with an effective cold-email. 

Once you’ve found companies to cold-email, follow these cold-emailing tips:

  • Personalize: Don’t forget to personalize your cold-emails. Generic emails end up in someone’s trash. Personalize your emails to get results. Do your research and personalize your cold-emails.

  • Track Your Progress and Improve Your Emails: Track your cold-emails, including open rates and responses. Tweak your cold-emails based on your results. 

  • Book Your Discovery Call: Once you get a response and book a discovery call, don’t worry. You will be fine. Just follow these tips to avoid discovery call anxiety.

  • Set Your Rates Right: Not sure about how to set your rates as a freelance writer? Check out this no BS roadmap to freelance writing rates.

  • Follow these tips: If you want to know how to write a cold-email, I recommend reading this article on how to write an effective cold-email to get clients.

Pro Tip: Don’t Forget About Your Portfolio!

Without a great portfolio and good samples, you won’t find quality clients even if you’ve found companies to cold-email and send dozens of emails. Putting the time and effort into creating some great samples is critical. Having a great portfolio will help you get clients, keep clients, and avoid the feast and famine cycle.

You want to impress your ideal clients you are cold-emailing with a high-quality and super relevant portfolio.  You want the people and companies you are cold-emailing to go, “Wow, THIS is what I need.” 

If you are new, don’t worry. You can still create an awesome portfolio to find your first clients. Look at brands and companies in your niche or favorite industries. What kind of content and copy are they creating? Use that as inspiration and try to create something similar. Never copy, simply use them as a guide and inspiration and an opportunity to practice.

If you haven’t yet had any clients, you can:

  • Publish on Medium, Linkedin, Substack, the Elephant Journal, Thrive Global, and other platforms

  • Guest blog

  • Do some volunteer/pro-bono work

  • Create some mock-ups and share them as a PDF

To learn more about how to write a great blog post, I recommend this article. To learn how to reference your sources as a freelance writer, check out this article. To learn more about how to create a freelance writing website and how to publish your portfolio, read this article.

Final Thoughts

I hope this guide on how to find companies to cold-email will help your journey to finding clients. If you want to know how to write a cold-email, I recommend reading this article on how to write an effective cold-email to get clients. In that blog, I offer a guide to write an effective cold-email once you find companies to cold-email. Use these tips to find companies to cold-email and book clients through cold-emailing. 

Are you interested in creating a sustainable freelance writing business without the hustle? Check out my freelance writing course with a step-by-step process of exactly what you need.

Have you been using cold-emailing to get clients? What are your biggest wins and struggles? Do you have any tips for newbies on how to write an effective cold-email? Share your experiences in the comments below, I would love to hear from you.