List Swap Email Copy

This drill produces a ready-to-send standalone email that a partner sends to their subscriber list on your behalf. Unlike a newsletter blurb (embedded inside the partner's email), a swap email is a dedicated message — the entire email is about your product/offer. In exchange, you send a similar email to your list on the partner's behalf.

Input

• Partner company record from Attio (from partner-prospect-research drill)
• Partner newsletter audit data (tone, format, audience, subscriber count)
• Your landing page URL for this campaign
• Agreement from partner on swap terms (date, format, constraints)
• Partner's swap email to you (so you can send it to your list in return)

Steps

1. Prepare tracking infrastructure

Before writing the email, set up measurement:

• Build the UTM-tagged landing page URL: {base_url}?utm_source={partner_slug}&utm_medium=list-swap&utm_campaign=list-swaps-adjacent-startups&utm_content={variant_id}

• Use the posthog-custom-events fundamental to verify PostHog captures:

  • pageview events with UTM parameters from the swap URL
  • list_swap_click event — fires when a visitor from this UTM source takes the primary CTA (signup, demo request, meeting booking)
  • list_swap_meeting_booked event — fires when a swap-sourced lead books a meeting

• Set PostHog person properties on swap-sourced visitors: first_touch_source = list-swap, partner_source = {partner_slug}

2. Write the swap email

Run the list-swap-email-authoring fundamental. Generate 3 email variants (curiosity, data-driven, story-driven). Each variant includes: subject line, preview text, HTML body, and plain-text body.

Key differences from a blurb:

• This is a full email (200-400 words), not a 60-100 word blurb
• It needs a subject line and preview text (the partner sends it, not embeds it)
• It should feel like a personal recommendation from the partner to their audience
• One CTA only — every link in the email points to the same tracked URL

3. Select the best variant

Review all 3 variants against the partner's newsletter style and audience. Choose the variant that:

• Reads most naturally as if the partner wrote it
• Leads with a pain point the audience immediately recognizes
• Has the clearest, most specific CTA (not "learn more" — instead "see the 2-minute walkthrough")

If this is a repeat swap with the same partner, check past swap performance in PostHog. Use the highest-performing angle as the starting template.

4. Prepare the reciprocal email

In a list swap, you must also send the partner's email to YOUR list. Coordinate:

• Receive the partner's swap email copy and CTA link
• Review it for quality (reject if it's irrelevant to your audience — protect your list)
• Schedule it in your email tool (Loops broadcast or Instantly one-off)
• Use your own UTM tags to track how your audience responds to the partner's content

5. Deliver the email to the partner

Send your approved swap email to the partner contact. Include:

• Subject line and preview text
• Plain-text version
• HTML version (if requested)
• The UTM-tracked CTA link — non-negotiable, must not be modified
• Any image/logo assets (2x resolution PNG)
• Preferred send date and time (Tuesday-Thursday, 9-11am in their audience timezone)
• Note: "Feel free to adjust wording for your voice. The CTA link must stay exactly as-is."

6. Coordinate simultaneous send

Both emails should send within the same week (ideally same day) so neither partner feels they gave more than they got. Agree on:

• Exact send date and time for both emails
• Confirmation protocol: both partners confirm "sent" after their email goes out
• Log both send timestamps in Attio

7. Monitor results

On send day and for 7 days after:

• Watch PostHog for pageview events with utm_medium=list-swap and utm_source={partner_slug}
• Track click velocity: burst arrival (engaged list) vs. trickle (low engagement)
• Monitor list_swap_click events for landing page conversions
• Monitor list_swap_meeting_booked events for meetings generated
• Also track how the partner's email to YOUR list performed (for reciprocity scoring)

8. Log results in CRM

After 7 days, pull from PostHog and record in Attio on the partner record:

• Outbound swap: clicks received, leads generated, meetings booked, click-to-meeting rate
• Inbound swap: how your list responded to the partner's email (opens, clicks, unsubscribes)
• Net swap value: did you give more value or receive more?
• Swap quality score: partner responsiveness, email quality, audience fit

This data feeds the threshold-engine drill for pass/fail evaluation.

Output

• One approved, tracked swap email delivered to the partner for sending
• One reciprocal email from the partner scheduled to your list
• PostHog tracking capturing clicks, leads, and meetings with partner attribution
• Bidirectional performance data logged in Attio

Triggers

Run this drill for each swap. At Smoke level, run once with one partner. At Baseline, run 3-5 times across partners. At Scalable, templatize and run 10+ per month with automated scheduling.