Flattery Is Personalization Too — And It's Delivering 25% More Responses

While some teams are relying on generic templates and copy/paste AI-generated outreach, others are leaning into something almost too obvious. Flattery — call it "strategic compliments" in your next stand-up — is delivering higher response rates when done right.

We're definitely not talking about empty praise or manipulation here. After seeing so many cookie-cutter messages, buyers and decision-makers are in their personalization eras. They want sales teams to notice their challenges and accomplishments, especially given the fact that, if they're talking to you, there's a good chance they've already shortlisted your product or services.

Reports from the Martal Group, McKinsey & Co., and other sources have maintained that personalized approaches generate up to 40% higher revenue performance compared to generic outreach. The difference is simple: Authentic appreciation acts as real personalization, proving you did your homework on prospects and their companies — and didn't just toss in their first name.

The psychology behind why flattery actually works in sales

Something strange happens in your brain when someone compliments you, even if you know they want something. A study published in the Journal of Marketing Research uncovered a dual-response mechanism that changes how flattery lands in business.

Even when prospects consciously spot the ulterior motive, their initial positive reaction still shapes their behavior at a deeper level. They discount the compliment with logic, but the good feeling lingers. That implicit attitude often beats conscious skepticism, which is why authentic compliments consistently warm up decision-makers and lower defenses.

The effect isn't limited to sales emails and lead nurturing. Studies from as far back as 1999 have demonstrated that compliments in professional interactions lead to positive outcomes. Job seekers, for example, are more likely to be perceived favorably as better fits for an organization.

Strategic flattery does more than buy 20 seconds of attention. It reframes how people perceive the entire interaction.

HubSpot's case study and what high-converting templates actually look like

In June 2025, HubSpot contributor Mandy Bray highlighted an important case study, wherein one of her partners was struggling to raise email reply rates amid steady open rates. When Bray dug into the team's email templates, she found that most of them made the message about the company, not the prospect.

"Make your customer/reader the hero," is a soapbox I've been standing on for years. But I digress.

Bray challenged the sales team to conduct a little more independent research on their prospects and revise their templates to acknowledge something the prospect was doing and say more about them than the product.

The move from generic pitches to specific compliments changed results fast. Original templates fixated on the sender's company and offerings, and that was the problem. But response rates surged when messages referenced concrete prospect activities and achievements.

Soon after Bray's partners launched the new templates, open rates approached 70%, and click rates neared 50%, mostly to the prospect's own content (we'll circle back on this below). And the initial reply rate came in around 25%.

The winning templates call out specific achievements, industry challenges, or content the prospect shared, then ask smart questions that invite a response instead of forcing a meeting.

The unexpected part of the results was that prospects clicked into their own content at unusual rates. Likely because curiosity kicked in. They wanted to see exactly what the sales reps noticed about their work. It tracks with human nature. People want to know how others see their achievements, especially when they take time to surface something specific.

The strategic advantage that's reshaping sales outreach

Modern sales requires personalization that goes far beyond a mail-merge. According to a report from the Martal Group, detailed segmentation drives 30% higher open rates and 50% higher click rates, and AI-powered personalization tools help scale authentic compliments without losing the human touch.

Meanwhile, multi-touch approaches matter because 80% of sales require five or more follow-ups, and value-led sequences beat repetitive cadences. Companies that invest in comprehensive email personalization strategies earn 40% more revenue than competitors, and marketers increasingly view AI as effective for creating personalized content at scale.

Pair strategic flattery with omnichannel touchpoints, and lead response rates can rise by up to 93%. The case is even clearer when you remember that 77% of B2B buyers prefer email contact, and personalized messages are opened 82% more often than generic ones.

Your next move: Implementing flattery that actually converts

Strategic compliments deliver measurable results when they're backed by research and genuine appreciation. Identify specific achievements, challenges, or content from your prospects, then craft messages that show you understand their world.

Effective flattery needs specificity, relevance, and clarity. Focus on one pain point and communicate value quickly. With current data showing personalized messages get more attention than generic approaches, mastering authentic flattery puts you ahead of competitors who are still sending self-centered pitches.

Stop sending emails about what you do. Start sending emails about what they have accomplished. The 25% response rate isn't magic. It's a smart read on human psychology plus real research into your prospects' achievements and challenges.

While everyone else chases the next shiny automation tool, the best reps are proving that authentic human connection still closes more deals than any algorithm.