Artem Smirnov

    Journal

    Notes on B2B client acquisition, cold outreach, and growing a service business.

    Artem Smirnov in a dark suit against a charcoal studio backdrop, next to the line 'Personas describe people. ICPs filter companies.'

    ICP or Buyer Persona, and Which One Filters a List

    An ICP filters companies. A persona shapes the message. Here is the rule for which one you build first, and where the titles should come from.

    · 4 min read

    Artem Smirnov in a dark suit against a charcoal studio backdrop, next to the line 'Qualified means whatever they say. Unless you define it.'

    What a Qualified Meeting Should Mean in Your Contract

    Qualified meeting means whatever the contract says. Six things the definition needs, sample clause wording, and an audit of the deal you already signed.

    · 5 min read

    Artem Smirnov in a dark suit against a charcoal studio backdrop, next to the line 'They open or they scroll. You get four words.'

    The Cold Email Subject Lines That Actually Get Opened

    Copied subject lines stop working the week they get popular. Here is what the open-rate studies actually disagree about, and how to find your own.

    · 6 min read

    Artem Smirnov in a dark suit against a charcoal studio backdrop, next to the line 'Nothing changed in the copy. The list ran out.'

    Why Your Outbound Stopped Working After a Good Start

    Your cold email worked, then stopped, and nothing in the copy changed. The three real causes of a dying outbound campaign and how to tell them apart.

    · 5 min read

    Artem Smirnov in a dark suit against a charcoal studio backdrop, next to the line 'Old leads are not dead. They were just early.'

    How to Bring Old Leads Back Without Burning the List

    Old B2B leads go cold for reasons that expire. Here is how to sort a stale list into four groups and reopen each one without wrecking your domain.

    · 4 min read

    Artem Smirnov in a dark suit against a charcoal studio backdrop, next to the line 'Month two is too early. Month six is late.'

    When to Switch Outbound Agencies and When to Wait It Out

    Month two is too early to fire a lead gen agency and month six is late. A month by month read on what should be true, and the handover question to ask first.

    · 5 min read

    Artem Smirnov in a dark suit against a charcoal studio backdrop, next to the line 'Spam is not bad luck. It is a setup problem.'

    Why Your Cold Emails Are Landing in the Spam Folder

    Cold email lands in spam for six reasons, and copy is not one of them. Here is the order I check them in, and what each one actually takes to fix.

    · 6 min read

    Artem Smirnov in a dark suit against a charcoal studio backdrop, next to the line 'Two percent is the ceiling. Bad data is the cause.'

    What a Good Bounce Rate Is and What Causes Bounces

    Under 2% is the standard answer for cold email bounce rate. Here is why I work to under 0.5%, what bounces really tell you, and how to fix the cause.

    · 3 min read

    Artem Smirnov in a dark suit against a charcoal studio backdrop, next to the line 'Every call has a cost. Filter before the calendar.'

    How to Qualify a Lead Before You Put It on the Calendar

    A six point filter to run in the reply thread before you send a calendar link, plus an audit of your last twenty booked calls to see what slipped through.

    · 5 min read

    Artem Smirnov in a dark suit against a charcoal studio backdrop, next to the line 'The pilot always looks fine. Month four does not.'

    Why Most Outsourced SDR Programs Quietly Stop Working

    Outsourced SDR programs rarely blow up. They fade. Here are the five reasons a program stops producing by month four, and the checks that catch it.

    · 7 min read