# How do I research a company in a few minutes before cold emailing it?

Canonical: https://growfast.sh/solutions/research-a-company-before-cold-emailing | Last updated: 2026-11-13 | Published by GrowFast

Read three pages of the company's own site: the homepage for what it sells, the about or team page for who runs it, and the careers or blog page for what it is working on now. Put one specific, true sentence from them in the email's first line. GrowFast's draft_outreach_emails does this for up to ten companies per call.

## Why it happens

Generic cold emails get ignored because the reader can tell nothing was read. A first line that shows you looked, such as a recent launch or a role they are hiring for, is the cheapest way to look like a person rather than a template.

The mistake in the other direction is over-research: twenty minutes per company on LinkedIn does not scale and rarely changes the email. Three public pages and five minutes is enough, and keeps every claim checkable.

## The fix that works without GrowFast

1. **Homepage (one minute).** What do they sell, and to whom? Copy the phrase they use for their customer; you will reuse their words.
2. **About or team page (one minute).** Who is the founder or the head of the function you sell to? Note the full name exactly as written. If no person is named, say so; do not invent one.
3. **Careers, blog or changelog (two minutes).** What have they launched or hired for in the last few months? A new sales role, a new integration or a funding post is a reason to write now.
4. **Pricing or customers page (one minute).** Rough size and who they already sell to. It tells you whether your offer fits at all; skip the company if it does not.
5. **Find a published address.** Check the team, contact and press pages for an address that belongs to the person or function. Keep the page URL beside it.
6. **Write the first line from one fact.** One specific, true sentence: "I saw you are hiring your first sales rep". Then one sentence on what you do for companies like theirs, and one easy question.

**What each page gives you and what it changes in the email**

| Page | Look for | Use it to |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Homepage | What they sell, who to, their own words | Match their vocabulary and check fit |
| About or team | Named founder or function head | Address a real person or say nothing rather than guess |
| Careers | Roles they are hiring | Open with a timely, checkable fact |
| Blog or changelog | Recent launches, topics | Reference one specific recent thing |
| Contact page | Published addresses | Pick an address that has a source |

## When to use GrowFast

draft_outreach_emails takes up to 10 companies per call, each with a company name and a contact address the company publishes, reads each company's own site, names the founder or owner only if the site names them, and writes a short first email from what the site says. It takes 10 to 60 seconds, and nothing is sent or saved, so you read and edit every draft.

It uses the site's own words and never guesses an address, which is the same standard as the manual routine above.

**When it is not the right tool:** It reads public websites only. If the useful signal about a company lives on LinkedIn, in an earnings call or in a customer interview, a person has to do that research.

## Ask your AI assistant

Paste this into an assistant that has the GrowFast MCP server connected:

> Assign to GrowFast: draft first emails for globex.com and initech.com, using the contact address each company publishes on its own site. Name the decision-maker only if the site names one. Don't send anything. Show me each draft and what it drew on so I can approve.

Tools used: `draft_outreach_emails`. These exist on the ChatGPT and Claude connectors, which research and draft but cannot send.

## FAQ

### How long should research take per company?

About five minutes by hand. If you need more than ten to find a reason to write, the company is probably not a fit.

### Should I mention something personal about the founder?

Only what they published for a business audience. Anything that makes the reader wonder how you know it works against you.

### What if the site names nobody?

Write to the function and say so honestly, or skip it. Do not guess a name or an address.

### Can the agent research companies I give it?

Yes. draft_outreach_emails accepts up to 10 companies you choose, as well as those found by a scan.

## Related

- [How do I find the right person's email at a company without guessing the address?](https://growfast.sh/solutions/find-decision-maker-email-without-guessing)
- [How do I write a cold email that gets replies without sounding like a template?](https://growfast.sh/solutions/write-a-cold-email-that-gets-replies)
- [How can I get Claude or ChatGPT to find B2B leads and draft cold emails for me?](https://growfast.sh/solutions/ai-agent-find-leads-and-draft-cold-emails)
- [All problems and solutions](https://growfast.sh/solutions)