--- name: "Cold email & outreach" repo: https://github.com/thatrebeccarae/claude-marketing source: https://github.com/thatrebeccarae/claude-marketing/blob/HEAD/skills/cold-email-outreach/SKILL.md license: "MIT" install: "npx skills add thatrebeccarae/claude-marketing --skill cold-email-outreach" page: https://100xlab.com/resources/agent-skills/thatrebeccarae-claude-marketing--cold-email-outreach--1p9m5x6 --- # Cold Email & Outreach Design, optimize, and scale cold email outreach with high deliverability and compliance. ## Install ```bash git clone https://github.com/thatrebeccarae/claude-marketing.git && cp -r claude-marketing/skills/cold-email-outreach ~/.claude/skills/ ``` ## Deliverability Fundamentals ### Authentication (Required) | Record | Purpose | Check | |--------|---------|-------| | SPF | Authorizes sending servers | `dig TXT domain.com` | | DKIM | Cryptographic message signing | DKIM selector lookup | | DMARC | Policy for failed auth | `dig TXT _dmarc.domain.com` | ### Domain Warming New domains or IPs need gradual volume ramp: | Week | Daily Volume | Notes | |------|-------------|-------| | 1 | 5-10 | Known contacts only | | 2 | 15-25 | Mix of known and new | | 3 | 30-50 | Monitor bounce/spam rates | | 4 | 50-100 | Scale if rates healthy | | 5+ | 100-200 | Max per domain/day | **Dedicated sending domain:** Use a subdomain (outreach.company.com) to protect your primary domain reputation. ### Health Benchmarks | Metric | Healthy | Warning | Critical | |--------|---------|---------|----------| | Bounce rate | <2% | 2-5% | >5% | | Spam complaint | <0.1% | 0.1-0.3% | >0.3% | | Open rate | >40% | 20-40% | <20% | | Reply rate | >5% | 2-5% | <2% | ## Sequence Design ### Optimal Sequence Structure ``` Email 1 (Day 0) — Value-first introduction Email 2 (Day 3) — Follow-up with new angle Email 3 (Day 7) — Social proof / case study Email 4 (Day 14) — Breakup email (last attempt) ``` ### Timing - **Best send days:** Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday - **Best send times:** 8-10am recipient timezone - **Avoid:** Monday morning, Friday afternoon, weekends - **Follow-up spacing:** 3-5 days between emails (never daily) ### Subject Line Formulas | Formula | Example | Open Rate | |---------|---------|-----------| | Question | "Quick question about [company] growth?" | High | | Mutual connection | "Saw your talk at [event]" | Very high | | Specific result | "[Company] could save $40K/year on [X]" | High | | Curiosity | "Idea for [specific initiative]" | Medium-high | | Direct | "15-min call about [pain point]?" | Medium | **Rules:** Under 50 characters. No ALL CAPS. No spam triggers (free, guarantee, act now). Personalized > generic. ### Email Body Framework ``` Line 1: Personalized opener (research-based, NOT "I hope this finds you well") Line 2-3: Pain point or observation specific to them Line 4-5: How you solve it (one sentence, with social proof) Line 6: Low-friction CTA (question, not demand) ``` **Length:** 50-125 words. 3-5 sentences max. Mobile-readable. ### Personalization Tiers | Tier | Effort | When | Example | |------|--------|------|---------| | **Researched** | High (5+ min/email) | Top 50 accounts | Reference specific blog post, recent funding, or LinkedIn activity | | **Templated** | Medium (1 min) | Mid-tier prospects | Company name, industry pain point, role-specific angle | | **Dynamic** | Low (automated) | Scale outreach | First name, company name, industry via merge fields | ## Compliance ### CAN-SPAM (US) - Clear sender identity (real name and company) - Accurate subject line (not misleading) - Physical mailing address in footer - Unsubscribe mechanism (honor within 10 days) - Mark as advertisement if applicable ### GDPR (EU/UK) - Legitimate interest basis for B2B cold email (document it) - Clear identity and purpose in first email - Easy opt-out mechanism - Do not email personal email addresses without consent - Data retention policy for prospect data ### Best Practices - Always include unsubscribe link - Respect opt-outs immediately (automated) - Never buy email lists - Verify emails before sending (reduce bounces) - Keep records of consent and opt-outs ## Anti-Patterns 1. **Mass blasting** — sending same email to 1000+ at once kills deliverability 2. **No personalization** — "Dear Sir/Madam" or obviously templated 3. **Feature dumping** — listing product features instead of addressing pain 4. **Aggressive follow-ups** — daily follow-ups = spam reports 5. **No unsubscribe** — illegal under CAN-SPAM and GDPR 6. **Misleading subjects** — "Re:" or "Fwd:" on first contact 7. **Too many links/images** — triggers spam filters 8. **No domain warming** — sending 500 emails day 1 from new domain ## Integration with Other Skills - **copywriting-frameworks** — Apply PAS, BAB, QUEST to cold email copy - **icp-research** — Define ideal customer profile before building prospect lists - **email-composer** — General email writing (cold-email-outreach is specifically for outbound sequences) - **klaviyo-analyst** — For marketing automation email (different from cold outreach) --- ## Supporting file: EXAMPLES.md # Cold Email & Outreach — Examples ## Example 1: Design Outreach Sequence ### Prompt > Design a 4-email cold outreach sequence for our CRO agency targeting VP Marketing at e-commerce companies doing $5M-50M revenue. Goal: book a 15-minute audit call. ### What the skill does 1. Defines ICP targeting criteria and personalization tier (templated with company-specific hooks) 2. Writes 4-email sequence: value-first intro (Day 0), case study follow-up (Day 3), social proof (Day 7), breakup (Day 14) 3. Generates 3 subject line variants per email 4. Includes compliance footer and unsubscribe link 5. Sets send timing: Tuesday/Wednesday 9am recipient timezone --- ## Example 2: Diagnose Low Performance ### Prompt > Our cold outreach has 12% open rate and 0.5% reply rate. What is wrong? ### What the skill does 1. Diagnoses open rate issue: checks subject lines, sender reputation, send timing, list quality 2. Diagnoses reply rate: reviews email length (finds 280 words — too long), CTA (finds "schedule a demo" — too high friction), personalization (finds zero personalization) 3. Prescribes fixes: shorten to 75 words, add one personalized line, change CTA to low-friction question, verify email list, check SPF/DKIM/DMARC --- ## Example 3: Compliance Review ### Prompt > Review our outreach campaign for GDPR and CAN-SPAM compliance before we launch in the US and UK. ### What the skill does 1. Checks CAN-SPAM: sender identity present, subject lines accurate, physical address in footer, unsubscribe mechanism working 2. Checks GDPR: legitimate interest documented, clear sender identity, opt-out mechanism, no personal email addresses, data retention policy 3. Flags 2 issues: missing physical address, no documented legitimate interest basis for UK prospects 4. Provides remediation steps for each issue --- ## Supporting file: REFERENCE.md # Cold Email Outreach Reference Reference data, benchmarks, and platform-specific details for the Cold Email Outreach skill.