SecondPen.aiDouble opt-in intro request & forwardable email template
Origin: Venture-capital and startup networking norm: ask the connector first, and give them a short blurb they can forward unchanged.
Structure
- Ask to connector
- Why this person
- Forwardable blurb
How a tough reader scores it
When you score a draft against this format, the Critic evaluates this intro request. The weights add up to 100; the fixes for the weakest criteria arrive as cards in the editor.
| Criterion | Weight |
|---|---|
| Connector is asked before the target is contacted | 15 |
| Reason for this specific person is clear | 20 |
| Forwardable blurb stands alone and needs no editing | 25 |
| Ask of the target is specific and small | 20 |
| Gives an easy out | 10 |
| Short | 10 |
How it works in SecondPen.ai
Open the template and the editor writes the blank once, with a line of guidance under each heading that you delete as you fill it in. Write your abstract and the editor names the format it reads like. Ask for a document with a slash command and it offers to start from the matching format. When the draft is ready, the Critic scores it against the criteria above, the way this format's toughest reader would, and the three highest-leverage fixes become Editor cards.
More in Email templates
- Cold outreach (Problem–Agitate–Solve)PAS copywriting formula (Dan Kennedy and direct-response tradition); short-form cold email norms
- Follow-up / gentle nudgeSales and professional-networking practice
- Networking coffee / advice requestInformational-interview practice (Richard Bolles, What Color Is Your Parachute?)
- Post-interview thank-youRecruiting norm; sent within 24 hours
- Saying no gracefully (Yes–No–Yes)William Ury, The Power of a Positive No (2007)
- Apology / service recovery emailService-recovery practice (e.g., Ritz-Carlton LEAP / HEARD models) and research on effective apologies
- Meeting request with agendaEffective-meetings practice (Amazon narrative pre-reads; Patrick Lencioni, Death by Meeting)
- Meeting recap / follow-upProject-management norm; sent within 24 hours