Adam Goldfarb on why most cold email is a nuisance (and what to do to not be)
James Milsom
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Updated
As 2026 arrives, episode five of Outfoxed is a reminder that “good outreach” isn’t about clever lines or bigger volume. It’s about doing the work most people skip: research, specificity, and respect for the recipient.
If you’re a founder, marketer, or salesperson who wants better replies without feeling spammy, this one will hit.
Here’s what I learned and how to outfox your competitors with it.
Please note: These thoughts are a reflection of the author and do not represent those of Adam Goldfarb, Transcendence Audio, Hunter.io, Matt Tharp, or any employees or partners of the aforementioned.
What you need to know about Adam Goldfarb
- Guest: Adam Goldfarb, founder of Transcendence Audio.
- What he does: Consulting for high-end audio manufacturers (speakers, amplifiers, etc.).
- Core problem: Most outreach fails because it’s generic, assumption-heavy, and optimized for scale instead of relevance.
- The stakes: If your emails feel like a nuisance, you’re training your market to ignore you.
- His results: Adam gets a ~20% positive response rate by going smaller, not bigger—hyper-targeted lists, deep research, and short, human emails.
TL;DR summary of Outfoxed, episode 5
In Episode 5 of Outfoxed, Adam shares an approach which is the closest thing I’ve heard to a 2026 definition of doing cold email well: be an anti–cold emailer. (Translation: don’t spam, use AI for research, and stop worshipping scale:)
- Redefine spam. Spam is “nuisance,” not “cold email.”
- Go 80/20. Spend 80% on your research and 20% on writing.
- Lead with credibility. One sentence should prove you “get it.”
- Keep it short. 3–4 sentences beats “perfect” copy.
- Use AI as a research assistant. Keep your writing unmistakably human.
Here are my biggest takeaways from this episode of Outfoxed, and why having more Adam Goldfarbs sending cold email is the way 2026 needs to unfold.
1. Cold email doesn't have to mean spam
The Challenge:
It’s been said before, but cold email has a reputation problem. It is indeed the elephant in the room that we ignore, but Adam's words cut straight to the bone:
“If it’s just part of a campaign that’s just sent out en masse… then that categorically is spam. If you’re sending an email and the result is that email is a nuisance… that… should be viewed as spam.”
What That Means
We need to be thinking about cold email as a disruptor. To do that, you need to use the Nuisance Test.
How to Outfox Your Competitors
As January 2026 unfolds, use Adam's blunt words as a reminder to review your emails before you send them, and score them on a scale of 1-5 on:
- Would this feel obviously relevant to the recipient’s world?
- Did you earn the right to interrupt them?
- Is the ask reasonable for a stranger?
Only send emails that score 4+ across the board. Start with 30– 50total emails (not 3,000).
2. Go 80/20: research first, writing second
The Challenge
When we asked Adam about his approach to writing cold email, he didn't hesitate to reveal the obvious:
“I spend 20% of my time on writing and 80% on finding and researching the right leads for my message.”
What That Means
This is the anti-cold-emailer mindset: the email is the output. Research is the input.
You need to build lists of leads based on fit - that means going back to basics with looking at location, funding, hiring signals, and technologies, paired with presence at events or webinars.
Put the time into finding the right leads and less time on the perfect combination of words.
How to Outfox Your Competitors
This January, run a micro-list sprint.
Pick 50 accounts. For each:
- Spend 15 minutes learning their “story” page, positioning, recent proof (reviews, posts, customer language).
- Write one email (no email sequences yet).
Track: reply rate (target 5%), positive replies, and quality of replies.
3. Lead with credibility: one sentence that proves you “get it”
The Challenge:
Cold email isn’t won by cleverness. It’s won by credible specificity.
Adam described the goal as writing in a way that signals deep understanding:
“I understand you and your industry.”
What That Means
Your first line should prove you understand their world—not your tool.
How to Outfox Your Competitors
In the first month of 2026, it's all about new beginnings. That's why you should build a credibility bank. How?
Test a “Credibility Hook” framework in your emails:
- Line 1: one specific, correct industry detail (not scraped trivia).
- Line 2: a short observation (not a diagnosis).
- Line 3: what you help with—kept broad enough to avoid “unfounded assumptions.”
A/B test 2 opener styles across 40 sends. Keep everything else identical. Look at what gets the most replies.
4. Short emails outperform “convincing” emails
The Challenge
Founders and sellers constantly try to “home run” the first message. But, as Adam admits:
“If I’m going to write a very extensive email, my chances… is minimized.”
What That Means
Never forget that cold email's number one goal is to find permission to continue, it's no the close.
How to Outfox Your Competitors
Test varying lengths of cold email, keeping subject lines and CTAs consistent. Simply test small sends of different emails of varying lengths.
Measure "tell me more" replies, not opens.
5. Use AI to research—don’t outsource your voice
The Challenge
AI makes it easy to sound like everyone else. Much like cold email templates shot up in popularity in the 2020s, the more AI you use, the more you sound like the rest, and the more the effectiveness of those emails are weakened.
“People are losing their creative voice by relying on AI…”
What That Means
You don't need to lose your voice because of AI.
As we've covered before with our tell-tale signs of AI in cold email, if your recipient suspects it’s machine-written, you’ve lost trust before you’ve earned attention.
How to Outfox Your Competitors
Run an AI vs. human experiment to see which approach is more effective:
- Use AI to summarize public info and extract patterns (positioning, customers, themes).
- Ban AI from writing your final copy.
- Add one “human tell” (a sharp opinion, a specific reference, a real sentence rhythm).
Final Takeaways
Cold email in 2026 doesn’t need more volume.
It needs more taste: better judgment, better relevance, and a writing style that reads like a real person took the time.
Adam's episode of Outfoxed reminds us that it is possible to get real success from cold email, but it's going to take a mindset change.
That’s the anti-cold-emailer playbook for January: slow down, get specific, stay human, and send to smaller lists.
🎧 Listen to Adam's episode of Outfoxed wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Want More from Outfoxed?
If you enjoyed Adam's episode, check out the stories in our archives:
- 🎙️ Mattias Liivak on the value of having blunt feedback when it comes to trying to grow
- 🎙️Rand Fishkin on doing more of what you love to grow your business, and avoiding the AI hype
- 🎙️ Spike Johnson on creativity, storytelling, and building something meaningful
- 🎙️ Joel Simkins on the reality of growth, from cold calls to leading an investment firm
Each episode of Outfoxed gives the mic to real builders — founders, creators, and operators — sharing the truth of growth.
👉 Subscribe now so you never miss a conversation that keeps you grounded and inspired: https://outfoxed.hunter.io
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