I Created A Lead List And Email Sequence For Black Metal Apparel To Contact Zoos

People love to buy apparel from their favorite breweries, ski resorts, amusement parks, and just plain cool shirts from local shops. I have a massive collection of brewery tees and Michigan shirts (I have a totally biased love of the Great Lakes State). But, recently I noticed a gap in apparel from my favorite brewery, they didn’t have their new seasonal tees. This was an oddity considering they always had new apparel to push, this inspired me to look into where companies are buying their apparel. 

Black Metal Apparel is the distributor for multiple breweries in my area, but they also service many other businesses such as local stores and tourist attractions. They serviced all my favorite local apparel and have been growing at a rapid rate for the past few years. 

The more I dug through their past and current partnerships, I noticed one area of business that they have yet to tap into on a large scale— Zoos! The Zoo industry stuck out to me as a promising partnership sector due to the typical tourist shop purchasing that Zoos run.

BMA has worked with four Zoos from its home state (Michigan), but there are over 23 Zoos in Michigan alone. Over 181 million people visit U.S. zoos and aquariums each year, which is more people than go to NFL, NHL, NBA, and MLB games combined, making this market have massive potential. BMA has products all across the country as well, so the sky’s truly the limit for them. So, armed with this new information I set out to create a lead list and cold email sequence for BMA to contact local and country-wide Zoos.

Prospecting Emails

Hearing about a company is one thing, but actually seeing it is a whole new ball game. I used MailChimp to create all the emails in the sequence, so I could insert products from past successful zoo lines, as well as links to the website where they can view additional content. Simply seeing this company’s work is enough to make you want to purchase, so combining images with strong written copy is a winning duo. 

Lead List

To create a strong leads list I found contacts for all the Zoos in Michigan they hadn’t worked with that had a gift shop of some kind. Then I expanded the search to a few large Zoos in the surrounding states that would make big purchases. Using Hunter.io and LinkedIn I was able to get the appropriate contacts for each Zoo. Larger Zoos have a dedicated “Gift Shop Sales Manager” whereas smaller Zoos with limited staff have a general “Manager of Sales” and some really small locations have one general contact for any and all prospects.  LinkedIn helped me find the correct individual for the process, and Hunter.io got me their email addresses.

Taking the size of the zoo and its staff into account, some had specific email addresses for gift shop sales, and some wanted you to contact them through general email that all prospects get sent to. Example being “info@blankZoo.org. Given that my email might get sent to a very large inbox, I wanted to have attention-grabbing subject lines.

First Contact Email

Subject Line: Who doesn’t love graphic tees?

Hi Beverly,

I’m Grace with Black Metal Apparel, and we sell cool t-shirts.

Every single visitor of the Toledo Zoo & Aquarium needs something to remind them of their visit (and make them a walking billboard) for your zoo. Your gift shop has a loveable and interesting selection, but we have a bank of fresh and unparalleled designs for you to select from at Black Metal Apparel. After all, t-shirt sales are increasing by 5.53% annually.

Could I have ten minutes of your time next week to show you some of the 2022 collection? Sneak preview of past collections below.

I look forward to hearing from you,

Grace 

Black Metal Apparel

Breakdown

Using Sujan’s 3-Sentence Format, I created a short and eye-catching email. For initial contact, you don’t want to overwhelm them with too much content. Stating the needed facts and letting the brand’s designs speak for themselves will grant them less wasted time on emails. 

I personalized the email by using the Gift Shop Sales Managers’ name and inserting the Zoos name in the copy of the email. This personal touch will keep their attention and show that you are familiar with their existing merchandise.

Of course, always ending emails with a call to action.

Follow Up Email 1

Subject Line: Don’t Buy Lame Shirts, Read This First

Hey Beverly, 

Hope you had an amazing and busy weekend. 

Have you had a chance to look at our 2022 Zoo Merchandise designs… I’d be happy to answer any questions you have!

All the best,

Grace

Black Metal Apparel

Breakdown

This short and sweet follow-up email is a subtle reminder of the initial cold email I sent. As a general note, if my first email isn’t replied to in 24hrs, it won’t generate a reply. So, sending a follow-up in three business days would be effective.

Follow Up Email 2

Subject Line: Free Booklet of Tees

Howdy, Beverly

I know the Gift Shop is a beloved aspect of the Toledo Zoo, so I want you to have the best possible merchandise.

Black Metal Apparel can work with you to create new tee shirts designs that every little kid will be begging their parents to buy. 

I’d love to send you a booklet of designs to consider or I’d be happy to set up a meeting to show you all our fun new designs.

Cheers!

Grace

Black Metal Apparel

Breakdown

“Free” anything, is something that would catch my eye. I’m being persistent but clear with my pursuit of Toledo Zoo & Aquarium.

Follow Up Email 3

Subject Line: Hey – Question

Hey Beverly,

I’m more persistent than an Eagle stalking its target.

I won’t be flying away too quickly. Stocking new merchandise for Summer 2022 that your Zoo regulars haven’t seen will push your product and give you free publicity.

Cool shirts are worth it. Visitors love souvenirs, you love a walking advertisement – it’s a total win-win situation.

I’m excited to show you our 2022 collection, does next week work for you?

Cheers!

Grace

Black Metal Apparel

Breakdown

Who said follow-up emails can’t be funny? By the third follow-up email, I’m just trying to get their attention. Getting a little silly with it and making an animal comparison isn’t a bad way to go, just wouldn’t have been the first email in the sequence.

Response Email

Subject Line: One Step Away 

Hey Beverly,

It’s great to hear from you.

Let’s set a meeting to review the products you loved and place your order. Here’s a link to my calendar {Calendly link}

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns please email me!

Cheers,

Grace

Black Metal Apparel

Breakdown

Short. Simple. Sweet. They replied and wanted to meet, I’d just be sure to make that meeting happen asap.

Key Takeaways

Gaining new clients through cold emails is all about being persistent. You can’t give up after one or two tries. If you have solid leads to follow, pursue them hard. Finding leads was a lot easier than I thought it would be originally, using Hunter.io to speed up the process a lot. One quick LinkedIn search would give me the appropriate individuals to contact, and Hunter.io enabled me to reach them. Using tech tools for basic tasks like building a leads list and creating an email sequence is life-changing.

Mindset changes this process taught me:

• Persistence, Persistence, Persistence.
• Every problem had multiple solutions. If I couldn’t find a lead email with Hunter.io or directly on their website, there are other platforms to explore. There are multiple ways to cut a cake.
• Seeing truly is believing. This project would be weak without visuals of the product. The tshirts speak for themselves. 

Moving forward, I think it would be cool for BMA to contact all 355 US Zoos along with ski resorts in all the snow receiving states. Both are massive markets for the US they have yet to tap into on a large scale. While I was creating a mini lead list for this project, I also went ahead and made a list with the names of over 1,600 Zoos internationally (gotta dream big, right). Ultimately, I want to be the one to track these leads. Making this project gave me half a million ideas to implement for this company.