In short
DACH is the one European market where the usual cold email playbook is a legal problem rather than a deliverability problem. That changes the channel order, not the whole approach.
What is included
Start with the legal position, because it is different here
Most of Europe treats business to business cold email as defensible under legitimate interest, with a clear opt out. Germany does not work that way. Section 7 of the UWG, the law against unfair competition, requires prior consent for commercial email, and it applies to business recipients too. Austria takes a similar line.
This is not a reason to avoid the market. It is a reason to change the order of channels. I am telling you this before you spend money because most agencies will happily sell you a German cold email campaign and let you find out later. This is how I run it, and it is not legal advice.
What to run instead
LinkedIn first, and phone where the segment supports it. Connection requests and messages sit outside the email rule, and DACH buyers are well represented on the platform in software, industrial and professional services. Email then becomes a follow up channel to someone who has already engaged, which is a different legal position and a much better conversation.
Switzerland sits outside the EU and has its own regime under the UWG equivalent, which in practice is closer to the German position than to the Nordic one.
Language, and the Sie problem
English works in software and startup segments and almost nowhere else. For industrial, Mittelstand and operational buyers, German is not a nice to have, and a German message with a single wrong register choice reads worse than an English one.
The formal Sie is the default for a first message. Getting that wrong is the fastest way to be dismissed as someone who did not bother, which is also the thing the Mittelstand buyer is most alert to.
Why the cycle is longer, and what that does to the numbers
Expect more people in the decision and a slower first reply. That changes what a good campaign looks like: fewer accounts, more thread depth per account, and a longer measurement window before you decide anything. Judging a DACH campaign on the same 30 day window you would use for the UK will tell you it failed when it has not started.
How the engagement runs
Week one defines the ICP and the offer. Weeks one and two build the list, verify the data and warm the sending infrastructure. Campaigns go live in week two or three, and from there replies get handled and the angles that work get more volume. You get weekly reporting and the interested replies. I have booked 2000+ meetings for B2B clients running this way.
There are two ways to run it. Done for you means I build and run the engine. Fractional GTM means I plug in as your GTM lead and we build it with your team, so you keep the system afterwards.
Frequently asked
Is cold email actually illegal in Germany?
For commercial email to a business recipient without prior consent, Germany requires opt in under the UWG, which is stricter than the legitimate interest basis most of the EU relies on. That is why I open with LinkedIn and phone in this market rather than email. This is how I run it, not legal advice, and you should take your own.
Do the messages have to be in German?
In software and startup segments English is usually fine. For Mittelstand, industrial and operational buyers, German, and written properly rather than translated. The formal Sie is the default for a first approach.
Is Austria the same as Germany?
Close enough to run the same way. Switzerland is outside the EU with its own regime, and in practice it behaves more like Germany than like the Nordics.
How long before I can judge a DACH campaign?
Longer than you want. More stakeholders and a slower first reply mean a 30 day read is usually a false negative. Plan on a longer window and judge on thread depth before you judge on meetings.