Cold Email Sequence

This drill walks you through building a cold email sequence from copy creation through launch and tracking. It produces a multi-step campaign in Instantly that is personalized using Clay enrichment data.

Prerequisites

• Instantly account with warmed-up sending domains
• Clay table with enriched prospect data (run enrich-and-score drill first)
• Attio workspace with prospects loaded
• ICP definition complete

Steps

1. Warm up sending infrastructure

Before sending a single cold email, verify your sending domains are healthy. Use the instantly-warmup fundamental to check domain reputation, SPF/DKIM/DMARC records, and warmup status. Each sending account needs at least 2 weeks of warmup. Aim for 30-50 emails per day per account to start.

2. Write the sequence copy

Using the instantly-campaign fundamental, draft a 3-5 step sequence. Each email has a specific role:

• Email 1 (Day 0): Problem-aware opener. Lead with a pain point specific to their role or industry. No pitching. Under 80 words.
• Email 2 (Day 3): Value angle. Share a relevant insight, data point, or mini case study. Still no hard ask.
• Email 3 (Day 7): Soft CTA. Offer something low-friction: a 15-minute call, a relevant resource, or a quick audit.
• Email 4 (Day 12): Breakup email. Acknowledge you might not be a fit, restate the core value, give a final easy CTA.

Personalize the first line of each email using Clay variables: company name, recent funding, job title, technology stack, or a signal you detected.

3. Build personalization variables in Clay

Open your enriched Clay table and create template columns that map to Instantly merge fields. Use the clay-enrichment-waterfall fundamental to fill any gaps. Common variables: first name, company, one-line personalization (built from signal data), competitor mention, industry-specific pain point.

4. Set up the campaign in Instantly

Using the instantly-campaign fundamental, create a new campaign. Upload your prospect list from Clay. Map merge fields to your email copy variables. Set the sending schedule: weekdays only, 8am-11am in the prospect's timezone. Set daily send limits per account. Enable open and click tracking.

5. Configure reply handling

Set up Instantly to detect positive replies (interested, meeting request), negative replies (not interested, wrong person), and out-of-office responses. Route positive replies to Attio as hot leads with an "Interested" tag. Negative replies get marked in Attio to prevent re-contact.

6. Launch and monitor

Send to a test batch of 20-30 prospects first. Check deliverability, open rates, and that personalization renders correctly. If test metrics look healthy (open rate above 40%, no bounces), launch the full campaign.

7. Track results in PostHog

Using the posthog-custom-events fundamental, log campaign-level events: emails sent, opens, clicks, replies, meetings booked. Track the full funnel from send to meeting to deal. Feed results back to refine your scoring model and copy.