Design a Multi-Channel Outbound Cadence

Help the user design a complete outbound cadence for Salesloft, Mailshake, Smartlead, Lemlist, or Yesware — from architecture and timing through full content for every step, A/B testing, and optimization benchmarks.

Step 1 — Gather context

Ask the user:

What's the campaign goal?
- A) Cold outbound — net-new prospects, no prior relationship
- B) Inbound follow-up — responding to a lead that came in
- C) Trigger-based — responding to a signal (job change, funding round, tech install, intent data)
- D) Re-engagement — reviving a cold or stalled conversation
- E) Expansion — reaching new contacts at existing customer accounts
- F) Other — describe it
Who is the target persona? (title, seniority, industry, company size)
What channels are available?
- A) Email only
- B) Email + phone
- C) Email + phone + LinkedIn
- D) Email + phone + LinkedIn + video
- E) Other combination — describe
What constraints should I know about?
- Total duration (e.g., 14 days, 21 days, 30 days)
- Max touches per week
- Existing messaging or value props to incorporate
- Compliance requirements (GDPR, CAN-SPAM, industry-specific)
- Any channels to avoid or emphasize

If the user's request already provides most of this context, skip directly to the relevant step. Lead with your best-effort answer using reasonable assumptions (stated explicitly), then ask only the most critical 1-2 clarifying questions at the end — don't gate your response behind gathering complete context.

Step 2 — Cadence architecture

Design the cadence structure as a table:

Day	Step	Channel	Action	Notes
1	1	Email	Intro email (A/B subject lines)	Personalization Level 3+
1	2	LinkedIn	Profile view + connection request	Same day as email
3	3	Phone	Call attempt #1 + voicemail	Reference email
4	4	Email	Follow-up email (value-add)	Different angle from Step 1
...	...	...	...	...

Design principles

Channel mixing: Never send 3+ touches in the same channel consecutively. Alternate between email, phone, and LinkedIn.
Spacing:
- Days 1-7: Higher intensity (touch every 1-2 days) — this is when engagement peaks
- Days 8-14: Medium intensity (every 2-3 days)
- Days 15+: Lower intensity (every 3-4 days) — don't burn the prospect
Touch count by persona (typical ranges — adjust based on persona, sales cycle, and industry norms):
- C-suite / VP: 8-12 touches over 21-28 days (less aggressive, more spaced)
- Director / Manager: 12-16 touches over 21-30 days (standard)
- Individual contributor / practitioner: 10-14 touches over 14-21 days (shorter cycle)
Phone placement: Always within 24 hours after an email so you can reference it ("I just sent you a note about...")
LinkedIn: Use early for connection + later for social proof or content sharing. Don't be repetitive with email.
Final touch: Always a "breakup" email — creates urgency without being pushy

Step 3 — Write content for every step

For each step in the cadence, write the actual content:

Email templates

For each email:

Subject line: Provide A/B variants (Variant A and Variant B)
Body: Full email text with personalization tokens in
```
{{brackets}}
```
CTA: Specific ask (meeting, reply, resource)
Keep emails under 125 words for cold outbound, under 200 for warm follow-up

Call scripts

For each call step:

Opening (first 10 seconds — must earn the right to continue)
Reason for calling (one sentence connecting to their world)
Key questions (2-3 if they engage)
Ask (meeting request with specific time)
Voicemail script (under 30 seconds, always leave one)

LinkedIn messages

Connection request note: Under 300 characters, no selling
Follow-up InMail or message: Reference a specific post, mutual connection, or insight about their company
Keep LinkedIn casual and conversational — it's a social platform, not email

Video guidance (if applicable)

When to use: Steps 5+ when email hasn't gotten a response
Duration: 60-90 seconds max
Structure: Say their name, show you did research, one key insight, soft CTA

In Mailshake

Mailshake campaigns = cadences — a campaign has an initial message plus follow-ups
Follow-up types: time-based (drip), reply-based, click-based (on-click message)
Channel limitation: email-first; phone/LinkedIn steps tracked manually or via another tool
A/B testing: available on higher plans — test subject lines and body content
Recipient management: add via CSV or API; only email is required

In Lemlist

Lemlist sequences = multichannel campaigns — email, LinkedIn, phone, and WhatsApp steps on automated schedules
True multichannel: LinkedIn steps (profile visit, connection request, message), in-app calling, WhatsApp (paid add-on $20/seat/month)
LinkedIn steps require Multichannel Expert plan ($99/user/month) — Email Pro is email-only
A/B testing: test subject lines, email body, and entire step variants
AI personalization: AI-generated custom variables that research each lead (LinkedIn, website, news) for Level 3-4 personalization at scale
LinkedIn safety: limit connection requests to 20-30/day, profile visits to 50-80/day to avoid account restrictions
Inbox rotation: connect multiple email accounts and Lemlist distributes sends (5 accounts per user on top plan, $9 per additional)

In Yesware

Yesware campaigns = multi-channel sequences — email, phone call reminders, LinkedIn InMail, and custom tasks on automated schedules
Sends from your inbox (Gmail/Outlook) — no third-party server, better deliverability
Personalization: dynamic fields (merge variables) for automated personalization, individual email customization
Recipient limits: 10/month (Free), 20/month (Pro), unlimited (Premium+)
A/B testing: not natively supported in campaigns — test manually by creating variant campaigns
Auto-removal: recipients who reply or book meetings are automatically removed from the campaign
Templates: shared team templates (Premium+) for consistent messaging across reps
Tracking: real-time open/click/attachment notifications to time follow-ups — see
```
/sales-email-tracking
```

In Smartlead

Smartlead campaigns = sequences — a campaign has email steps with time delays between them
Email-only by default; phone steps require SmartDialer, LinkedIn touchpoints via external tools
A/B testing: built-in variant testing (up to 26 variants A-Z) for subject lines and email body
SmartAgents: AI-powered personalization at scale — research prospects and generate custom email content per lead. Best for Level 3-4 personalization when sending to 100+ prospects.
Lead management: leads tracked by interest status within campaigns (interested, not interested, not contacted, do not contact, wrong person, completed)

In Mixmax

Where: Sequences tab in Gmail sidebar or app.mixmax.com/dashboard/sequences
Channel support: Email, phone (built-in dialer), LinkedIn (Sales Navigator InMail + connection requests), tasks
AI builder: AI Compose generates sequence emails and subject lines; Smart Send picks optimal delivery times per recipient
Personalization: Snippets (reusable templates), Salesforce/HubSpot dynamic fields, polls & surveys embedded in emails
A/B testing: Test subject lines, body content, and send times within sequences
Stages: Each sequence has ordered stages (email, call, LinkedIn, task); configure delay between stages
Recipient management: Add recipients individually, from CSV, from Salesforce/HubSpot lists, or via API (
```
POST /sequences/:id/recipients
```
)
Delegated sending: Send sequences on behalf of colleagues
Exit rules: Auto-exit on reply, meeting booked, or custom rule trigger
Limits: Recipient limits vary by plan; sequences are Gmail-native (subject to Gmail sending limits)
Reporting: Opens, clicks, replies, bounces per stage and per recipient; team-level sequence analytics
Best practice: Use Mixmax rules engine to auto-enroll contacts in sequences based on Salesforce triggers (e.g., new lead assigned → auto-enroll in introductory sequence)

In Reply.io

Where: Sequences tab in Reply.io dashboard (app.reply.io)
Channel support: Email, LinkedIn (InMail, connection requests, profile views — $69/account add-on), calls ($29/account add-on), SMS ($29/account add-on), WhatsApp
Conditional sequences: Unique feature — set up branching logic based on prospect actions (opened, clicked, replied) or data (title, industry). Different prospects can follow different paths within the same sequence.
AI sequence builder: Jason AI can generate entire sequences based on your ICP and value prop
A/B testing: Test subject lines, body content, and step variations within sequences
Stages: Ordered steps with configurable delays; mix channels freely (e.g., email → LinkedIn → call → email)
Contact management: Add contacts individually, from CSV, from Reply.io B2B database (1B+ contacts), from Salesforce/HubSpot, or via API
Exit rules: Auto-pause on reply, meeting booked, or custom trigger; manual pause/resume per contact
Sending limits: Per-mailbox daily limits; 10 mailboxes per user on Multichannel plan; respects provider sending limits (Gmail/Outlook)
Reporting: Opens, clicks, replies, bounces per step and per contact; channel efficiency dashboard; team-level analytics
Best practice: Use conditional branching to create a single sequence that handles multiple scenarios (e.g., if prospect opens but doesn't reply → add LinkedIn step; if prospect clicks → fast-track to call step)

In Woodpecker

Where: Campaigns tab in Woodpecker dashboard (app.woodpecker.co)
Channel support: Email (native), LinkedIn (add-on at €29/account — connection requests, messages, profile visits), manual tasks
Condition-based campaigns: If/then branching based on prospect behavior (opened, clicked, replied) or data — different prospects follow different paths
Campaign depth: Up to 16 steps per campaign — significantly more than most competitors (typically 7-10)
A/B testing: Up to 5 variants per step — test subject lines, body copy, and send times simultaneously
Personalization: Custom fields, snippets, dynamic content based on prospect data
Auto-stop: Automatically stops sequence when prospect replies or is marked as interested
Inbox rotation: Distributes sending across multiple connected email accounts automatically — maintains per-account limits while increasing volume
Adaptive Sending: Automatically adjusts send pace based on provider limits and engagement signals
Manual tasks: Insert non-email tasks (calls, LinkedIn messages, research) as campaign steps
Reporting: Opens, clicks, replies, bounces, interested rate per step and per campaign
Best practice: Use condition-based branching to create a single campaign that handles multiple engagement scenarios. Leverage the 16-step depth for longer nurture sequences that most tools can't support.

Personalization framework

Level 1 (Minimum): First name, company name, title — the bare minimum
Level 2 (Standard): Industry reference, company-size-specific pain point
Level 3 (Strong): Something specific about their company (recent news, tech stack, job posting, quarterly results)
Level 4 (Elite): Personal insight (their LinkedIn post, podcast appearance, conference talk, published article)

Recommend Level 3+ for all touches in a cold outbound cadence. Level 2 is acceptable for re-engagement at scale.

For Level 3+ at scale (100+ prospects), consider AI personalization: Smartlead SmartAgents, Clay, or custom GPT workflows to research each prospect and generate personalized snippets for {{custom_field}} merge variables. This automates the research step that makes Level 3-4 feasible at volume.

Step 4 — A/B testing plan

Design an A/B testing strategy:

Test #	What to test	Variant A	Variant B	Metric	Min sample size
1	Subject line (Step 1)	Pain-focused	Curiosity-based	Open rate	100 sends each
2	CTA style (Step 1)	Specific time ask	Open-ended question	Reply rate	100 sends each
3	Email length (Step 4)	Short (75 words)	Medium (125 words)	Reply rate	100 sends each

A/B testing rules

Test one variable at a time
Run each test for at least 100 sends per variant (200+ preferred) before drawing conclusions
Primary metric: positive reply rate (not just open rate)
Wait at least 5 business days before evaluating results
Roll the winner into the cadence and start the next test
Always be testing something — cadences decay over time as messaging gets stale

Step 5 — Metrics and optimization

Provide a benchmarks table:

Metric	Good	Great	If below "Good"...
Open rate	40-50%	50%+	Fix subject lines, check deliverability, verify email addresses
Reply rate (total)	8-12%	15%+	Improve personalization, test different angles, check targeting
Positive reply rate	3-5%	7%+	Revisit value prop, check ICP fit, strengthen the ask
Meeting booked rate	2-4%	5%+	Improve CTA clarity, offer more flexibility, add social proof
Bounce rate	<3%	<1%	Clean your list, use email verification tools, check domain health
Unsubscribe rate	<1%	<0.5%	Reduce frequency, improve relevance, check compliance
Call connect rate	5-10%	12%+	Try different times of day, use local presence dialing, vary call days

Optimization cadence

Week 1-2: Let the cadence run, gather baseline data
Week 3-4: Analyze first A/B test results, implement winners
Monthly: Review full-funnel metrics, retire underperforming steps, test new angles
Quarterly: Major refresh — new messaging, updated case studies, seasonal angles

Related skills

```
/sales-salesloft
```
— General Salesloft platform help (Rhythm, Analytics, Drift, admin)
```
/sales-outreach
```
— General outreach message writing (not cadence-specific)
```
/sales-call-review
```
— Review calls from your cadence to improve scripts
```
/cold-email
```
— Marketing-style cold email campaigns (not Salesloft cadences)
```
/email-sequence
```
— Automated email flows and drip campaigns
```
/sales-deliverability
```
— Email deliverability — SPF/DKIM/DMARC, warmup, inbox placement
```
/sales-mailshake
```
— Mailshake platform help (campaigns, Lead Catcher, settings)
```
/sales-smartlead
```
— Smartlead platform help (campaigns, SmartSenders, SmartAgents, API)
```
/sales-lemlist
```
— Lemlist platform help (sequences, Lemwarm, LinkedIn automation, enrichment, API)
```
/sales-yesware
```
— Yesware platform help (campaigns, templates, Prospector, Meeting Scheduler)
```
/sales-mixmax
```
— Mixmax platform help (for Mixmax-specific setup)
```
/sales-reply
```
— Reply.io platform help (for Reply.io-specific setup)
```
/sales-woodpecker
```
— Woodpecker platform help (for Woodpecker-specific setup)
```
/sales-email-tracking
```
— Email engagement tracking — open/click/attachment signals for follow-up timing
```
/sales-do
```
— Not sure which skill to use? The router matches any sales objective to the right skill. Install:
```
npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skills sales-do
```

Gotchas

Don't make all touches email-only. Claude defaults to generating email-heavy cadences. A real cadence needs channel mixing — if the user has phone and LinkedIn available, use them from the start, not as afterthoughts.
Don't space touches too close together. Avoid scheduling touches less than 2 business days apart (except same-day email + LinkedIn on Day 1). Prospects need time to engage before you follow up.
Don't write generic "just checking in" follow-ups. Every touch must add new value or a new angle. If you catch yourself writing "I wanted to follow up on my last email," rewrite it with a new hook.
Don't ignore timezone for call steps. Phone calls placed outside business hours are wasted touches. If you know the prospect's timezone, note the best call windows (typically 8-10am and 4-6pm local time).
Don't generate a cadence without confirming channel availability first. If the user didn't specify channels, ask — don't assume they have LinkedIn Sales Navigator or a phone dialer.

Examples

Example 1: Cold outbound cadence

User says: "Build a 21-day cold outbound cadence for VP Engineering at Series B SaaS companies. We have email, phone, and LinkedIn." Skill does:

Designs a 14-step cadence architecture table with channel mixing
Writes full email copy with A/B subject lines, call scripts with voicemail, LinkedIn messages
Provides an A/B testing plan and benchmark metrics Result: Complete cadence ready to import into Salesloft with content for every step

Example 2: Cadence optimization

User says: "My cadence has 35% open rate but only 2% reply rate. What's wrong?" Skill does:

Diagnoses the gap (subject lines work, body/CTA needs fixing)
Recommends specific changes to email body, personalization, and CTA
Designs an A/B test plan to validate improvements Result: Prioritized optimization plan with testable hypotheses

Troubleshooting

Low open rates (<30%)

Cause: Subject lines aren't compelling, or deliverability issues Solution: Test pain-focused vs. curiosity-based subject lines. Check domain reputation, SPF/DKIM records, and bounce rate. If bounce rate >3%, clean your list first.

High open rate but low reply rate

Cause: Email body doesn't deliver on the subject line promise, CTA is weak or unclear, or personalization is too generic Solution: Ensure the first sentence connects to the prospect's world. Make the CTA specific ("15 minutes Thursday?") not vague ("let me know if interested"). Increase personalization to Level 3+.

Prospects engaging but not booking meetings

Cause: Too many touchpoints before the ask, or the ask is buried Solution: Include a clear meeting CTA by Step 3. Use the phone step within 24 hours of an email open. Offer a specific time, not an open question.

sales-cadence

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content