cold-outreach-sequence

Generate complete multi-touch cold outreach sequences. Not one email — a full campaign where each touch has a different angle, a specific send day, and a clear job to do. Use /cold-email for single emails. Use this when one email isn't enough.

Before Writing Anything

Gather this information — ask for anything missing:

1. Target — Role, company type, industry. The more specific, the better the hook.
2. Offer — What you're proposing. One sentence.
3. Credibility — Social proof. Numbers, notable clients, results. Be specific.
4. Goal — Meeting, demo, partnership, intro, advice?
5. Unique asset — Demo link, one-pager, case study, free tool? (goes in Email 3)
6. Sequence length — 3 touches (light, 7 days) or 5 touches (standard, 12 days)?

If the user says "make it for [target] offering [thing]", extract the rest from context before asking.

The Two Sequence Structures

5-Touch Standard (12 days)

Touch	Day	Job	Max Length
Email 1	1	Problem + Credibility + Ask	4 sentences
Email 2	3	Bump — low pressure	2 sentences
Email 3	5	Give value, ask nothing	3 sentences
Email 4	8	Social proof — name-drop a real result	3 sentences
Email 5	12	Breakup — clean exit	2 sentences

3-Touch Light (7 days)

Touch	Day	Job	Max Length
Email 1	1	Problem + Credibility + Ask	4 sentences
Email 2	3	Value-add with asset	3 sentences
Email 3	7	Breakup	2 sentences

The Rules That Don't Move

Subject lines:

• Email 1: Short, specific. References something real about them.
• Emails 2-5: Always "Re: [original subject]" — stay in the same thread. Do not break the thread.
• Never use: "Following up", "Checking in", "Touching base", "Just wanted to"

Length:

• No email exceeds 60 words in the body
• Emails 2 and 5 should be under 30 words
• If you can remove a word, remove it

Tone escalation:

Touch	Tone
1	Confident, direct, problem-aware
2	Casual, brief, zero pressure
3	Generous — give something, ask nothing
4	Social proof — "others are doing this"
5	Clean exit — door stays open

What each touch must NOT do:

• Email 1: Must not be generic. If you removed the recipient's name, it should fall apart.
• Email 2: Must not re-pitch. Just nudge.
• Email 3: Must not ask for a call, meeting, or response. Only give.
• Email 4: Must not fabricate social proof. Real clients or skip this touch entirely.
• Email 5: Must not guilt-trip. Clean, warm, final.

The Templates

Email 1

Subject: [specific observation — recent post, job change, company news, product launch]

Hey [Name],

[One sentence: something specific you noticed about them. This sentence must be about them, not you.]

[One sentence: what you do + your strongest proof point.]

[One sentence: specific ask with a time — "15 minutes this week?"]

[Your name]

Email 2

Subject: Re: [original subject]

Hey [Name],

Bumping this in case it got buried.

[Your name]

Email 3

Subject: Re: [original subject]

Hey [Name],

[One sentence: share something genuinely useful — demo, relevant case study, insight about their industry, or a tool they'd care about.]

No pressure on a call — thought this might be relevant.

[Your name]

Email 4

Subject: Re: [original subject]

Hey [Name],

[One sentence: name a real client or result — be specific.] [One sentence: why that's relevant to their situation.]

Happy to show you how — [specific time ask].

[Your name]

Email 5

Subject: Re: [original subject]

Hey [Name],

Last note on this. If the timing's off, completely understand — happy to revisit whenever it makes sense.

[Your name]

Research First

Before drafting Email 1, find a hook. A generic opener makes the whole sequence waste of time. Spend 3 minutes looking at:

• Their LinkedIn: recent post, new role, company milestone
• Their Twitter/X: recent tweet about a problem your offer solves
• Their company: recent funding, launch, press mention
• Job postings: what they're hiring tells you what they're building

The hook in Email 1 must be recent (last 30-60 days) and specific. "I love your work" is not a hook.

Workflow

1. Gather target, offer, credibility, goal, asset, sequence length
2. Research one specific hook for Email 1
3. Draft all emails in sequence order
4. Check: is every email under 60 words?
5. Check: does Email 1 only work if you know who the recipient is?
6. Check: does each touch have a distinct job (no "following up" repeats)?
7. Output complete sequence with send days labeled

Verify

[ ] Every email under 60 words
[ ] Email 1 has a specific, researched hook — not generic
[ ] Emails 2-5 thread on same subject line with "Re:"
[ ] Each touch has a different angle — no repeated pitch
[ ] Email 3 gives value with no ask
[ ] Email 4 uses real social proof — or touch is skipped
[ ] Email 5 is clean — no guilt, door stays open
[ ] Send days use business days (no weekends)
[ ] Asset (if exists) is in Email 3, not Email 1

See references/guide.md for full sequence examples across industries and subject line variations.