Partner Pipeline Automation

This drill builds the n8n automation layer that manages a portfolio of 20+ newsletter partners: tracking who is due for outreach, scheduling placements, delivering blurb copy, and routing performance data back to your CRM. Without this automation, managing more than 5 partners simultaneously becomes a manual bottleneck.

Input

• Active partner list in Attio (from partner-prospect-research drill, status: "Active")
• n8n instance configured with Attio, PostHog, Loops, and Instantly integrations
• Blurb templates from previous newsletter-shoutout-copy runs

Steps

1. Build the partner outreach sequence

Using the n8n-workflow-basics and n8n-email-integration fundamentals, create an n8n workflow for initial partner outreach:

• Trigger: New partner added to the "Newsletter Partners" list in Attio with status "Prospect"
• Action 1: Enrich partner contact (pull LinkedIn URL, company info from Attio)
• Action 2: Send personalized outreach email via Instantly (template: propose newsletter co-marketing, reference their audience overlap, suggest a low-commitment first test)
• Action 3: If no reply after 5 days, send one follow-up via Instantly
• Action 4: If reply received (Instantly webhook), update Attio status to "In Conversation"
• Action 5: If positive reply detected (Instantly intent classification), create an Attio deal in the "Partnerships" pipeline

2. Build the placement scheduling workflow

Using the n8n-scheduling fundamental, create a recurring workflow that manages placement timing:

• Trigger: Weekly cron (Monday 9am)
• Action 1: Query Attio for active partners where "Next Placement Date" is within the next 14 days
• Action 2: For each upcoming placement, check if a blurb has been approved (Attio field: "Blurb Status")
• Action 3: If no blurb approved, send a Slack/email alert: "Blurb needed for {partner} by {date}"
• Action 4: If blurb approved but not yet sent to partner, auto-send the blurb to the partner contact via email with the tracked CTA link
• Action 5: Update Attio: "Blurb Delivered" with timestamp

3. Build the performance tracking workflow

Using the n8n-triggers and posthog-custom-events fundamentals, create a webhook-triggered workflow:

• Trigger: PostHog webhook fires when a co_marketing_click event occurs with a utm_source matching a partner slug
• Action 1: Look up the partner in Attio by slug
• Action 2: Increment the partner's "Total Leads" counter in Attio
• Action 3: Create a new lead record in Attio linked to the partner (source: co-marketing, partner: {name})
• Action 4: If this is the partner's first lead, send a celebratory Slack notification

4. Build the partner nurture sequence

Using the loops-sequences fundamental, create a Loops sequence for partners (not prospects, but the partners themselves):

• Day 0: Welcome email after first successful placement (thank them, share initial click data)
• Day 7: Share full performance report from first placement
• Day 14: Propose the next placement with an updated blurb
• Day 30: Monthly partnership summary (total clicks, leads, and value generated for both sides)

This keeps partners engaged and increases the likelihood of repeat placements.

5. Build the partner health monitoring workflow

Using the n8n-scheduling fundamental, create a monthly health check:

• Trigger: Monthly cron (1st of month)
• Action 1: Query Attio for all active partners
• Action 2: For each partner, pull PostHog data: clicks and leads in the last 30 days
• Action 3: Calculate: cost per lead (if any budget spent), lead quality (did leads convert?), partner responsiveness (time from blurb sent to placement confirmed)
• Action 4: Flag partners with zero leads in 2+ months as "At Risk"
• Action 5: Flag partners with consistent high performance as "Expand" candidates
• Action 6: Output a monthly partner report to Slack and store in Attio

Output

• Automated partner outreach pipeline (prospect → conversation → active partner)
• Scheduled placement management (never miss a placement window)
• Real-time lead attribution to specific partners
• Partner nurture sequence keeping relationships warm
• Monthly health scoring for portfolio optimization

Triggers

Build these workflows once at the start of Scalable level. They run continuously. Review and tune monthly based on the partner health report.