If you’re working in demand generation, you already know that manual outreach is a grind. You’re constantly juggling lists, sending follow-ups, and trying not to sound like a robot. This guide is for anyone who wants to get real results from automating outreach in Leanlayer—without drowning in options, hype, or sales pitches.
Let’s get your outreach running on autopilot, so you can spend less time wrestling with tools and more time talking to people who actually want to hear from you.
1. Get Clear on What to Automate (and What Not To)
Before you even touch Leanlayer, figure out what parts of your outreach can be automated without making your emails sound like they were written by a toaster. Automation is great for repetitive tasks—think follow-ups, reminders, personalized templates. But if you automate everything, you’ll end up sending bland, ignorable messages.
What to automate: - Routine follow-up sequences (after webinars, downloads, events) - Initial outreach based on clear triggers (e.g., someone visits your pricing page) - Lead qualification (basic data enrichment, tagging) - Hand-offs between sales and marketing
What not to automate: - Highly personalized, high-stakes emails (e.g., to your dream accounts) - Responses to nuanced replies (don’t let a bot step in here) - Anything requiring actual human judgment
Pro tip: If you cringe at a message you’d get from a stranger, don’t automate sending it to someone else.
2. Map Out Your Outreach Workflow
Don’t just start clicking around in Leanlayer. Take 10 minutes to sketch out the flow you want. It doesn’t have to be pretty—a napkin sketch or a bullet list is fine.
Basic workflow checklist: - Where are your leads coming from? (e.g., website, inbound, purchased lists) - What action triggers outreach? (e.g., form fill, content download) - How many touches? (initial email, 2-3 follow-ups, maybe a LinkedIn touch) - When do you stop or hand off? (e.g., after no response, positive reply)
Here’s a simple example:
- Lead fills out a “Contact Us” form
- Immediate thank-you email
- If no reply in 2 days, send follow-up #1
- If still no reply after 5 days, send follow-up #2
- If after all this, no response—move to dormant or hand to SDR
Having this flow mapped out makes the next steps way easier.
3. Set Up Your Data Sources in Leanlayer
Now, log into Leanlayer and get your data in order. Garbage in, garbage out—if your contacts are a mess, your workflow will be too.
Options for bringing in leads: - CSV Upload: Easiest for test runs or small lists. Make sure to clean your data; Leanlayer won’t magically fix typos or missing fields. - CRM Integration: If you’re using Salesforce, HubSpot, or another CRM, connect that first. Double-check what data is syncing—don’t assume it’s automatic. - Form Integrations: Connect your website forms so new leads flow straight into Leanlayer.
What to watch out for: - Duplicates. Leanlayer can help, but it’s not perfect—run a dedupe before you import. - Missing fields. If your outreach depends on, say, job title or industry, make sure that data is actually there.
Pro tip: Start with a small batch of leads to test your workflow. Fix problems on 20 records, not 2,000.
4. Build a Sequence in Leanlayer
This is where you turn your mapped-out workflow into something Leanlayer can actually run.
Step-by-step:
- Create a new sequence: Name it something obvious (e.g., “Webinar Follow-up Q3 2024”).
- Set entry conditions: Choose who enters the sequence (e.g., leads from a specific campaign, or those tagged as “MQL”).
- Add steps: For each touchpoint, pick the channel (email, LinkedIn, task for a rep) and timing (e.g., wait 2 days, then send).
- Write your messages: Don’t use the default boilerplate. Short, natural, and relevant beats “Hi {FirstName}, I hope this email finds you well.”
- Personalization: Leanlayer supports variables (like first name, company, recent webinar attended). Use these, but sanity-check them. Nothing says “automation fail” like an email that reads “Hi , hope you enjoyed .”
- Branching logic: If you want, set up rules—e.g., if someone replies, exit the sequence. If they click a link, send a different follow-up.
Stuff to skip: - Overcomplicating sequences with a dozen steps “just in case.” Keep it tight—3-5 touches is plenty for most use cases. - Trying to automate cold outreach to purchased lists. Deliverability will tank, and you’ll annoy people.
5. Set Up Triggers and Rules
Automation is about timing and relevance. Leanlayer lets you trigger outreach based on actions or lead properties.
Common triggers: - Lead added to a specific list - Lead fills out a form or downloads content - Lead reaches a certain score (if you use lead scoring)
Rules to consider: - Exit on reply: If someone replies, pull them out of the sequence. Nothing screams “I’m a bot” like ignoring a human response. - Pause for weekends/holidays: Don’t send outreach on Saturday at 2 a.m. unless your audience loves that. - Cap daily sends: Avoid tripping spam filters and burning out your domain.
Honest take: More triggers aren’t always better. Don’t set up so many exceptions that you need a flowchart to figure out what’s running. Start simple.
6. Test Everything (Seriously)
Before you push real leads through your workflow, test every step. Send emails to yourself and a few colleagues.
What to check: - Are all variables filling in correctly? (No “Dear {FirstName}” fails) - Do emails land in the inbox, not spam? - Do links work? - Are the timings between steps what you expect? - Does the sequence stop when someone replies?
Don’t skip this. It’s a lot easier to fix problems now than to apologize later for sending “Hi {CompanyName}” to 500 people.
7. Monitor, Measure, and Tweak
Automation isn’t “set and forget.” Leanlayer gives you stats on opens, clicks, replies, and unsubscribes. Use them.
What actually matters: - Reply rate: Are people talking back? If not, your messaging might be off. - Bounce/unsubscribe rate: High numbers here mean your targeting or content is off. - Conversions: Are you getting demos booked, meetings set, or whatever your goal is?
Don’t obsess over open rates. They’re easy to game and don’t mean much. Focus on replies and real engagement.
Tweak based on real data: - If a step gets no engagement, rewrite it or cut it. - If people reply “I’m not the right person,” your targeting is off. Fix your data. - If you’re hitting spam filters, dial back the automation and check your sending domain.
8. Keep the Human Touch
It’s tempting to automate everything, but real demand gen still relies on actual conversations.
Ways to keep it human: - Personalize the first line of your email for key accounts (even if the rest is automated) - Use tasks/reminders for 1:1 follow-up after someone replies - Review replies yourself—don’t let a bot take over here
Ignore the hype: No tool will “10x your pipeline on autopilot.” Automation is only as good as your data, your message, and your willingness to tweak things.
Wrapping Up: Start Simple, Iterate Fast
Automating outreach in Leanlayer can save you hours, but only if you keep things simple and focus on what actually works. Start with a tight, targeted workflow. Test it, watch the results, and tweak as you go. Ignore the bells and whistles until you’ve nailed the basics.
The goal isn’t to send more emails—it’s to have more real conversations with people who care. Automation is just a (very helpful) shortcut to get there.