Cold Outbound Optimizer skill

Design, analyze, and optimize cold outbound email campaigns for Instantly.

by ericosiu·MIT license·★ 3,615 Stars on the repo·GitHub ↗

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Files of Cold Outbound Optimizer

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SKILL.md
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Preamble (runs on skill start)

# Version check (silent if up to date)
python3 telemetry/version_check.py 2>/dev/null || true

# Telemetry opt-in (first run only, then remembers your choice)
python3 telemetry/telemetry_init.py 2>/dev/null || true

Privacy: This skill logs usage locally to ~/.ai-marketing-skills/analytics/. Remote telemetry is opt-in only. No code, file paths, or repo content is ever collected. See telemetry/README.md.


Cold Outbound Optimizer


Startup: Determine Mode

Ask the user:

  1. Do you have an existing Instantly account with campaigns to audit, or are you starting from scratch?
  2. Do you have an Instantly API key? (Required for audit mode.)

If API key provided → run scripts/instantly-audit.py to pull campaigns, account inventory, and warmup scores before proceeding.


Phase 1: Discovery & Audit

1A — Infrastructure Check (if API key available)

Run python3 scripts/instantly-audit.py --api-key <KEY> and report:

  • Active campaigns (name, status, reply rate, open rate)
  • Sending accounts (count, warmup score, daily limit)
  • Domain inventory
  • Warmup gaps: any account with score <80 or <14 days warmup → flag as NOT ready
1B — Performance Data
  • Pull campaign analytics from Instantly
  • Ask: "Do you have a spreadsheet with historical outbound data?" If yes, request link.
1C — ICP Definition

If no ICP defined, collect:

  • Titles: Who are you targeting? (e.g., VP Marketing, Head of Growth)
  • Industries: Which verticals?
  • Company size: Employee count or revenue range?
  • Revenue floor: Minimum ARR/revenue to qualify?
  • Anti-ICP: Who to explicitly exclude?

Use references/icp-template.md as the collection template.

1D — Business Context

Collect:

  • What do you sell? (One sentence, no jargon)
  • What's the primary offer? (Free trial, audit, demo, consultation)
  • Real URLs to reference (pricing page, case studies, relevant content)
  • Any proof points? (Client results, stats, social proof)
1E — Expert Panel Config

Default: 10 experts (see references/expert-panel.md). Ask: "Any industry-specific experts to add, or panelists to swap?" Confirm roster before scoring.


Phase 2: Expert Panel Recursive Scoring

Target: 90/100. Non-negotiable. Iterate until reached.

Round Structure

Each round produces:

  1. Score table — all 10 panelists, individual score (0-100), one-line rationale
  2. Aggregate score — average of all 10
  3. Top weaknesses — ranked list of what's holding the copy back
  4. Changes made — specific edits addressing each weakness
  5. Updated copy — full revised sequence after changes
Scoring Criteria (per panelist's lens — see references/expert-panel.md)
  • Subject line curiosity / open rate potential
  • First sentence pattern interrupt
  • Body clarity and brevity
  • CTA softness and specificity
  • Sequence flow and follow-up logic
  • Deliverability risk signals (spam words, link density)
  • Personalization believability
Rules
  • Scores must be brutally honest. No padding to 90 without earning it.
  • If round score < 90: identify top 3 weaknesses, revise copy, run next round.
  • If round score ≥ 90: finalize copy and proceed to deliverables.
  • Show every round in the final doc — the iteration trail is part of the value.

Phase 3: Deliverables

Strategy Doc

Create a document (Google Doc, Notion, or markdown) with:

  1. Pre-Analysis / Brutal Truth — what the existing campaigns are doing wrong (or baseline if starting from scratch)
  2. ICP Summary — confirmed targeting parameters
  3. Infrastructure Status — account inventory, warmup readiness, capacity math
  4. Scoring Rounds — full panel vote tables for every round
  5. Final Email Copy — all steps for all campaigns, Instantly-ready format
  6. Implementation Plan — step-by-step setup instructions
  7. Capacity Math — accounts × daily send rate = pipeline projections
  8. Weekly Metrics Targets — open rate, reply rate, positive reply rate, meetings booked
  9. STOP List — what to kill immediately
  10. START List — what to launch first
Format Rules for Final Copy

Follow all rules in references/instantly-rules.md and references/copy-rules.md.

Human Review Gate

Do NOT push anything to Instantly automatically. The doc is for human review. Get explicit approval before any API writes.

Iteration

After review, collect feedback and re-run scoring on revised copy if needed.


Capacity Math Formula

Accounts ready (score ≥80, ≥14 days warmup) × 30 emails/day = conservative daily volume
Accounts ready × 50 emails/day = aggressive daily volume
Daily volume × 22 working days = monthly send capacity
Monthly sends × expected reply rate = expected replies
Expected replies × qualification rate = pipeline opportunities

Weekly Metrics Targets (Baselines)

Metric Good Great
Open rate 40%+ 60%+
Reply rate 3%+ 7%+
Positive reply rate 1%+ 3%+
Meeting rate 0.5%+ 1.5%+

Adjust targets based on niche and offer. Cold traffic to a free audit converts differently than a paid trial.


Add-On Recommendations (mention but don't build)

  • LinkedIn automation: HeyReach or similar for multi-channel sequences. Separate workflow.
  • Lead enrichment: Clay or Apollo for personalization data before upload.
  • Lead pipeline: Use scripts/lead-pipeline.py for Apollo → LeadMagic → Instantly automation.

Reference Files

File Purpose
references/instantly-rules.md Variable syntax, sequence structure, deliverability rules
references/expert-panel.md Default 10-expert roster with scoring lenses
references/copy-rules.md Email copy rules (first sentence, CTA, stats framing)
references/icp-template.md ICP data collection template
scripts/instantly-audit.py Pulls campaigns, accounts, warmup scores via Instantly v2 API
scripts/lead-pipeline.py End-to-end lead sourcing pipeline
scripts/competitive-monitor.py Competitor tracking and intelligence
scripts/cross-signal-detector.py Multi-source signal detection
scripts/cold-outbound-sender.py Send approved outbound emails
1---
2name: cold-outbound-optimizer
3description: Design, analyze, and optimize cold outbound email campaigns for Instantly. Handles end-to-end ICP definition, expert panel scoring (recursive to 90+), sequence copywriting, infrastructure audit, capacity planning, and implementation docs. Use when asked to build cold outbound sequences, optimize cold email, analyze outbound campaigns, build sales sequences, build Instantly sequences, create cold outbound strategies, or design email campaigns. Supports both "start from scratch" and "optimize existing" modes.
4---
5 
6 
7## Preamble (runs on skill start)
8 
9```bash
10# Version check (silent if up to date)
11python3 telemetry/version_check.py 2>/dev/null || true
12 
13# Telemetry opt-in (first run only, then remembers your choice)
14python3 telemetry/telemetry_init.py 2>/dev/null || true
15```
16 
17> **Privacy:** This skill logs usage locally to `~/.ai-marketing-skills/analytics/`. Remote telemetry is opt-in only. No code, file paths, or repo content is ever collected. See `telemetry/README.md`.
18 
19---
20 
21# Cold Outbound Optimizer
22 
23---
24 
25## Startup: Determine Mode
26 
27Ask the user:
281. Do you have an **existing Instantly account** with campaigns to audit, or are you **starting from scratch**?
292. Do you have an **Instantly API key**? (Required for audit mode.)
30 
31If API key provided → run `scripts/instantly-audit.py` to pull campaigns, account inventory, and warmup scores before proceeding.
32 
33---
34 
35## Phase 1: Discovery & Audit
36 
37### 1A — Infrastructure Check (if API key available)
38Run `python3 scripts/instantly-audit.py --api-key <KEY>` and report:
39- Active campaigns (name, status, reply rate, open rate)
40- Sending accounts (count, warmup score, daily limit)
41- Domain inventory
42- Warmup gaps: any account with score <80 or <14 days warmup → flag as NOT ready
43 
44### 1B — Performance Data
45- Pull campaign analytics from Instantly
46- Ask: "Do you have a spreadsheet with historical outbound data?" If yes, request link.
47 
48### 1C — ICP Definition
49If no ICP defined, collect:
50- **Titles:** Who are you targeting? (e.g., VP Marketing, Head of Growth)
51- **Industries:** Which verticals?
52- **Company size:** Employee count or revenue range?
53- **Revenue floor:** Minimum ARR/revenue to qualify?
54- **Anti-ICP:** Who to explicitly exclude?
55 
56Use `references/icp-template.md` as the collection template.
57 
58### 1D — Business Context
59Collect:
60- What do you sell? (One sentence, no jargon)
61- What's the primary offer? (Free trial, audit, demo, consultation)
62- Real URLs to reference (pricing page, case studies, relevant content)
63- Any proof points? (Client results, stats, social proof)
64 
65### 1E — Expert Panel Config
66Default: 10 experts (see `references/expert-panel.md`).
67Ask: "Any industry-specific experts to add, or panelists to swap?" Confirm roster before scoring.
68 
69---
70 
71## Phase 2: Expert Panel Recursive Scoring
72 
73**Target: 90/100. Non-negotiable. Iterate until reached.**
74 
75### Round Structure
76Each round produces:
771. **Score table** — all 10 panelists, individual score (0-100), one-line rationale
782. **Aggregate score** — average of all 10
793. **Top weaknesses** — ranked list of what's holding the copy back
804. **Changes made** — specific edits addressing each weakness
815. **Updated copy** — full revised sequence after changes
82 
83### Scoring Criteria (per panelist's lens — see `references/expert-panel.md`)
84- Subject line curiosity / open rate potential
85- First sentence pattern interrupt
86- Body clarity and brevity
87- CTA softness and specificity
88- Sequence flow and follow-up logic
89- Deliverability risk signals (spam words, link density)
90- Personalization believability
91 
92### Rules
93- Scores must be brutally honest. No padding to 90 without earning it.
94- If round score < 90: identify top 3 weaknesses, revise copy, run next round.
95- If round score ≥ 90: finalize copy and proceed to deliverables.
96- Show every round in the final doc — the iteration trail is part of the value.
97 
98---
99 
100## Phase 3: Deliverables
101 
102### Strategy Doc
103Create a document (Google Doc, Notion, or markdown) with:
104 
1051. **Pre-Analysis / Brutal Truth** — what the existing campaigns are doing wrong (or baseline if starting from scratch)
1062. **ICP Summary** — confirmed targeting parameters
1073. **Infrastructure Status** — account inventory, warmup readiness, capacity math
1084. **Scoring Rounds** — full panel vote tables for every round
1095. **Final Email Copy** — all steps for all campaigns, Instantly-ready format
1106. **Implementation Plan** — step-by-step setup instructions
1117. **Capacity Math** — accounts × daily send rate = pipeline projections
1128. **Weekly Metrics Targets** — open rate, reply rate, positive reply rate, meetings booked
1139. **STOP List** — what to kill immediately
11410. **START List** — what to launch first
115 
116### Format Rules for Final Copy
117Follow all rules in `references/instantly-rules.md` and `references/copy-rules.md`.
118 
119### Human Review Gate
120**Do NOT push anything to Instantly automatically.** The doc is for human review. Get explicit approval before any API writes.
121 
122### Iteration
123After review, collect feedback and re-run scoring on revised copy if needed.
124 
125---
126 
127## Capacity Math Formula
128 
129```
130Accounts ready (score ≥80, ≥14 days warmup) × 30 emails/day = conservative daily volume
131Accounts ready × 50 emails/day = aggressive daily volume
132Daily volume × 22 working days = monthly send capacity
133Monthly sends × expected reply rate = expected replies
134Expected replies × qualification rate = pipeline opportunities
135```
136 
137---
138 
139## Weekly Metrics Targets (Baselines)
140 
141| Metric | Good | Great |
142|--------|------|-------|
143| Open rate | 40%+ | 60%+ |
144| Reply rate | 3%+ | 7%+ |
145| Positive reply rate | 1%+ | 3%+ |
146| Meeting rate | 0.5%+ | 1.5%+ |
147 
148Adjust targets based on niche and offer. Cold traffic to a free audit converts differently than a paid trial.
149 
150---
151 
152## Add-On Recommendations (mention but don't build)
153 
154- **LinkedIn automation:** HeyReach or similar for multi-channel sequences. Separate workflow.
155- **Lead enrichment:** Clay or Apollo for personalization data before upload.
156- **Lead pipeline:** Use `scripts/lead-pipeline.py` for Apollo → LeadMagic → Instantly automation.
157 
158---
159 
160## Reference Files
161 
162| File | Purpose |
163|------|---------|
164| `references/instantly-rules.md` | Variable syntax, sequence structure, deliverability rules |
165| `references/expert-panel.md` | Default 10-expert roster with scoring lenses |
166| `references/copy-rules.md` | Email copy rules (first sentence, CTA, stats framing) |
167| `references/icp-template.md` | ICP data collection template |
168| `scripts/instantly-audit.py` | Pulls campaigns, accounts, warmup scores via Instantly v2 API |
169| `scripts/lead-pipeline.py` | End-to-end lead sourcing pipeline |
170| `scripts/competitive-monitor.py` | Competitor tracking and intelligence |
171| `scripts/cross-signal-detector.py` | Multi-source signal detection |
172| `scripts/cold-outbound-sender.py` | Send approved outbound emails |
173 

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