If you’re selling to enterprise clients, you know the old “spray-and-pray” sales tactics don’t cut it. A generic email blast won’t get your foot in the door with a Fortune 500 company. You need a thoughtful approach—customized sequences, careful timing, and clear messaging that actually matters to the people you’re targeting.
This guide is for anyone who needs to create genuinely effective sales sequences for big accounts, using Hook—a sales engagement tool that promises to help you do just that. I’ll walk you through the process, flag the pitfalls, and tell you what’s actually worth your time.
Step 1: Understand the Enterprise Sales Reality
Before you open Hook or start crafting emails, pause and get clear on what makes enterprise sales unique. Here’s the deal:
- Multiple stakeholders: You’re rarely selling to just one person. Expect long chains of approvals and different priorities.
- Longer sales cycles: Buying decisions can take months, not days.
- High expectations: These folks can spot a template a mile away.
Pro tip: Don’t waste time with mass personalization tricks (“Hi {{first_name}}!”). If you’re serious about winning enterprise deals, do the real homework.
Step 2: Map Out the Buying Committee
Hook can help you automate outreach, but it can’t tell you who matters inside the account. You need to map the buying committee first:
- Identify key roles: Who’s the economic buyer? Who’s the technical gatekeeper? Who’s just a roadblock?
- Research real people: Use LinkedIn, company websites, and your own network.
- Build a contact list: Drop them in a spreadsheet or CRM. Don’t rely on Hook’s data enrichment alone—double-check for accuracy.
What to skip: Don’t bother reaching out to every VP or C-level at the company. Focus on the people who actually care about your solution.
Step 3: Create a Sequence Blueprint
Before you touch Hook’s sequence builder, sketch out your plan on paper (or a doc):
- Touchpoints: How many emails, calls, and LinkedIn messages will you send? (Hint: For enterprise, fewer, higher-quality touches beat a barrage.)
- Timing: What’s the right cadence? Weekly is often better than daily—respect their time.
- Messaging themes: What unique problems does this company face? How does your solution help, specifically?
What works: A sequence that starts with a personalized email, follows up with a relevant LinkedIn message, and adds a well-timed call.
What doesn’t: Sending five emails in five days. Enterprise buyers don’t move that fast, and you’ll just end up on their block list.
Step 4: Build the Sequence in Hook
Now it’s time to use Hook. Here’s how to set up a custom sequence without getting lost in the weeds:
- Create a new sequence: Give it a clear, account-specific name (e.g., “Acme Corp Q2 Outreach”).
- Add steps:
- Email steps: Write from scratch—don’t use generic templates. Reference something real (a recent press release, a shared connection, a business priority).
- LinkedIn steps: Hook lets you schedule these, but you still have to do the manual work. Use LinkedIn to reinforce your email message, not just repeat it.
- Call steps: Block time on your calendar to actually make these calls. Hook will remind you, but it can’t dial for you (unless you integrate with another tool).
- Set delays: For enterprise, space out steps (3-7 days apart). Give people time to respond.
- Assign owners: If you’re working with a team, make it clear who owns each step.
Watch out for: Hook’s automation features are handy, but avoid the temptation to over-automate. If something looks or feels like a bot, enterprise buyers will ignore it.
Step 5: Personalize, But Don’t Overthink It
Personalization doesn’t mean writing a novel for every contact. Here’s what matters:
- Reference something specific: A project, a pain point, or a change at the company.
- Keep it short: Two short paragraphs is enough. Don’t bury your point.
- Be honest: If you don’t know them, don’t pretend you do.
What’s a waste: Overly clever subject lines or forced jokes. Just be direct and relevant.
Step 6: Test, Launch, and Monitor
Don’t obsess over getting everything perfect out of the gate. Hook makes it easy to tweak as you go:
- Test with a small group: Pick one or two accounts, run the sequence, and see what lands.
- Track replies: Hook’s reporting is decent for email opens and replies, but don’t get hung up on vanity metrics. Actual conversations matter.
- Adjust timing and content: If step 2 gets no response, try a different approach in step 3 next time.
Ignore: Open rates as your only metric. If you’re getting meetings, you’re doing it right—even if the open rate is low.
Step 7: Follow Up Like a Human
Enterprise deals are won on persistence—with respect. Here’s how to follow up without being a pest:
- Give space: If you said you’d follow up in a week, actually wait a week.
- Add value: Every touchpoint should offer something—an insight, a resource, a relevant question.
- Know when to stop: If you get a clear “not interested,” take them off your list for now.
Pro tip: Set up a “nudge” step in Hook to remind yourself to check in three months later. Sometimes, timing is everything.
Step 8: Keep Your Data Clean
Nothing kills credibility faster than sending the wrong message to the wrong person. Hook can pull in data, but it’s not infallible:
- Double-check contacts: Especially titles and responsibilities.
- Update status: Mark replies, out-of-office, and wrong contacts immediately in Hook.
- Remove clutter: Archive old sequences so you don’t accidentally hit the wrong list.
What’s not worth it: Trying to sync five different CRMs. Pick one source of truth and stick with it.
Step 9: Iterate, Don’t Overhaul
The best sales sequences aren’t built in a day. Use Hook to make small tweaks:
- A/B test subject lines or opening sentences.
- Try new call-to-actions.
- Review what actually leads to meetings, not just clicks.
Don’t scrap the whole thing if response is slow. Enterprise deals take time, and tiny adjustments usually beat wholesale changes.
Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Stay Real
Creating custom sales sequences for enterprise clients isn’t rocket science, but it does take discipline. Hook is a solid tool, but it won’t magically make people care—you have to do the work. Focus on real personalization, thoughtful timing, and clear messaging. Skip the hype, avoid over-automation, and keep refining as you learn.
Most importantly, don’t get paralyzed by perfection. Start small, pay attention to what works, and iterate. That’s how you actually win enterprise deals.