Here's the truth about cold emails: Most sales reps rush to pitch their solution without building a compelling case for change. But here's what moves decision-makers: a structured narrative that addresses both their business and personal stakes.
Enter the PASTOR framework—developed by Ray Edwards to guide prospects through a complete decision-making journey, from problem recognition to taking action.
Think of PASTOR as a six-step persuasion process that transforms complex solutions into clear, actionable opportunities.
But here's the catch: Weaving together all six elements while keeping emails concise isn't simple.
Most sales reps struggle to balance thoroughness with brevity, often sacrificing crucial elements of the framework or creating lengthy messages that lose impact.
This is where AI steps in.
Tools like ChatGPT can help sales reps create perfectly structured emails that incorporate all PASTOR elements while maintaining brevity and impact.
In this blog, we'll explore the PASTOR framework, provide a ready-to-use ChatGPT prompt for creating cold emails, and share an example email generated using the framework.
What Makes PASTOR Work?
The power of PASTOR lies in its comprehensive approach to persuasion. Rather than just highlighting problems and solutions, it creates a complete narrative that addresses both rational and emotional decision-making factors.
1. Problem: Setting the Stage
The first component focuses on identifying a specific challenge that resonates with your prospect. This isn't about generic pain points—it's about naming the exact issue that's keeping them up at night.
2. Amplify: Creating Urgency
The amplification phase crystallizes why this problem matters now. This section helps prospects understand the full scope of their challenge and its impact on their business.
3. Story: Building Credibility
The story component provides social proof through relatable examples. This isn't about bragging—it's about showing proven paths to success.
4. Transformation: Painting the Picture
Having established the problem's importance, this section shows what's possible. It focuses on the positive changes your solution enables.
5. Offer: The Clear Solution
With context established, your solution becomes the logical choice. This section presents your value proposition clearly and directly.
6. Response: The Next Step
The final component is an easy, low-pressure call to action that feels natural given the case you've built.

💡 ChatGPT Prompt: PASTOR FRAMEWORK
Write a PASTOR Style cold email to {{Fullname}} from {{Company}}.
These are inputs about my company which I'm trying to sell:
Ideal Customer: {ICP}
What does my product do? {Description}
The value we provide for the user: {Value Proposition}
What pain points do we solve? {Painpoints}
Competitor Advantage: {Competitor Advantage}
How we have helped people: {Case Study}
This is the input about the prospect: {Prospect_Research}
Write the subject in the following format:
Keep it simple, stating the main topic of the email. Avoid being overly creative or fancy. Limit it to 3-4 words max.
Write the email in the following format:
Problem: Identify a specific challenge based on prospect research.
Amplify: Highlight the broader impact and consequences.
Story: Share a brief, relevant success story.
Transformation: Show the positive change possible.
Offer: Present your solution clearly and directly.
Response: End with a CTA - Either "Worth a chat?" or "Worth exploring?"
Guidelines:
Keep the email under 80 words.
Use a friendly, direct tone.
Make sure to bring forth all the mentioned elements of formatting.
Avoid vague terms like "streamline," "optimize," "maximize," etc.
Be as specific as possible without making assumptions about the prospect.
Sample Output:

Conclusion
The PASTOR framework and prompt provided are your blueprints for writing persuasive cold emails that drive decisions.
But the real challenge is scaling this comprehensive approach for hundreds of prospects. Even with AI, executing this effectively at scale is a struggle.
That's why we built SDRx—an AI outbound agent that handles everything from in-depth prospect research to perfectly timed follow-ups, creating qualified pipeline without the manual grind.
By analyzing prospect behavior and leveraging 25 copywriting frameworks, SDRx generates highly personalized emails at scale, ensuring every outreach is relevant and impactful.
Want to use AI to create personalized, human-like emails for every prospect?
Book a demo of SDRx today.