Think of the process of raising a round of venture capital as similar to other sales processes. You should develop a list of targets and prioritize based on those targets that fit your profile of likely investors. There are some easy ways to build this investor pipeline. Use some of the same filters that VC’s use to quickly filter their deal flow pipeline. For example, identify VC’s that invest in your geography and stage (i.e., pre-seed, seed, Series A, etc). These should be easy to find and will increase your success rate by eliminating spending time on funds that are not focused on funding startups with your general characteristics. The email should be short and highlight the problem you are solving and traction. Given the volume of inquiries, success rates of cold emails are extremely low. Comeback Capital has an alternative to the cold email. Founders can answer a couple of short questions on a form and receive a prompt response.