Email permutator tools explained

How do you maximize your chances of reaching your prospect via cold email?

At the risk of stating the obvious, it all starts with ensuring you’re targeting the right email address.

Sometimes this is as simple as looking up an email in a reliable and verified B2B contact database.

But if you don’t have access to the data you need or don’t have full confidence in its accuracy, you might turn to an email permutator tool instead.

This tool essentially bridges the gap between email address finders and verification tools, offering an alternative approach to sourcing prospect contact details. When you're on the hunt for specific contacts - like a CEO’s email or a new hire at your target account - an email permutator can help you guess email address options based on common patterns and then verify those guesses.

In this blog, we’ll dive deeper into what an email permutator is, how you can use it, and whether it’s relevant for your outreach strategy.

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What is an email permutator?

An email permutator is a tool that provides you with likely email address options for your prospects.

Unlike an email finder or verification tool, the permutator cannot typically guarantee the accuracy of the email address options it generates. This is because email permutators do not have a database of contact information to rely on; instead, they are “guessing” potential email address iterations that would make sense for your prospect.

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How to use an email guessing tool

Using an email permutator is pretty straightforward. 

In most cases, you’ll simply need to input the first name, last name, and the company’s domain name of the individual you're trying to reach. 

The tool will then generate a list of possible email combinations. For example, if you're looking for Mark Zuckerberg’s email at Meta.com, the permutator might suggest variants like:

• markzuckerberg@meta.com
• mark@meta.com
• mzuckerberg@meta.com
• mz@meta.com
• markz@meta.com

…and so on. 

These tools can often produce upwards of 30 to 40 different combinations for you to choose from.

From here, you obviously don’t want to send your cold email to every address option in the hope that one lands! (This is a major deliverability no-no.)

Ideally, you’ll run each of your address options through an email verification tool - which may or may not be attached to your email permutator - until you find the one with the best chance of being accurate.

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Why use an email permutation tool?

Whilst not perfect, email permutation tools can support your outreach by generating a multitude of possible contact addresses, especially when your conventional email-finding methods fall short. 

With a permutator, you're no longer limited to a handful of guesses or reliant on often outdated or incomplete databases. The permutations created give you a broader scope to connect with potential leads, prospects, and customers, enhancing your overall sales strategy.

The downside is that you can’t be sure which permutations are most accurate without further verification.

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Benefits of using an email permutator tool

Nevertheless, there are several cases where an email permutator is a useful tool for B2B sales and marketing teams to have in their arsenal.

1. Email permutation means generating multiple contact options, fast:

• Ideal for prospects with common names or in large organizations.
• Expands your range of potential contact details.

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2. The tool can help streamline email discovery:

• When paired with an email verification tool, it helps you quickly identify the most probable email addresses.
• Reduces time spent on trial-and-error methods - like having to manually iterate every address option yourself.

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3. An email permutator tool can boost overall outreach efficiency:

• Saves significant time in the prospecting process.
• Improves the productivity of email campaigns.

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Tips for effective email permutation

Here are some tips on how to get the best results from an email permutator tool in your outreach:

• Combine with email verification: To enhance the effectiveness of a permutator, pair it with an email verification tool. This combination helps you narrow down the list of generated emails to the ones most likely to be accurate and will contribute to safeguarding your deliverability.
• Use for hard-to-find contacts: Email permutators are particularly useful for finding contacts that are not readily available on public platforms or through conventional email finders.
• Integrate into a broader strategy: Don’t rely solely on email permutators. Instead, integrate them into a broader contact acquisition strategy that includes social media outreach, networking, and traditional prospecting methods. More sources of prospect data means better chances of data verification.

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The next level of email permutation and validation

So, what if you could roll email permutation and verification into one convenient tool?

Here’s where Amplemarket comes in.

Amplemarket’s data enrichment gives you access to millions of global contact details worldwide, allowing you to tap into the most up-to-date B2B prospect details, phone numbers, emails, and more.

And in the case that an email can’t be revealed straight away, our AI gets to work on permutating emails automatically. At the same time, our Email Validation tool will check each iteration by sending a virtual ping to verify whether it is attached to a real person and a real mailbox. You’ll have a fully validated address for each prospect ready in seconds!

In the rare instances where Amplemarket’s AI can’t fully verify an email address, you’ll still get visibility over all the permutations we tried and found to be invalid - so you can still make an informed decision about your outreach.

To learn more about Amplemarket’s AI-powered Email Validation, click here!

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FAQ on email permutations

Can you guess someone’s email address?

Yes, you can use an email permutator or email guessing tool to generate potential email addresses for someone based on their name and domain. An email permutator creates various possible permutations of the email address, such as firstname.lastname@domain.com or firstinitial.lastname@domain.com. 

While these tools offer educated guesses, they can't guarantee accuracy. To verify the validity of these guesses, it's essential to use an email verification tool alongside the permutator.