Let’s be honest: most sales cadences get messy fast. You set up a plan, but by week two, you’re already behind, chasing reminders, and praying nothing slips through the cracks. If you’re running outreach with a small team—or just trying to keep your sanity—automation isn’t just a nice-to-have. It’s survival.
This guide is for anyone managing outbound sales who wants to get more replies without babysitting every follow-up. We’re going to walk through how to use Sendtrumpet to automate the grunt work, keep your cadence on track, and—most importantly—avoid turning your outreach into spam.
Why bother with sales cadence automation?
Here’s the reality: You can have the best email script in the world, but if your timing is off or you forget to follow up, you’re not getting replies. Sales is a numbers game, but it’s also about consistency. Automation helps with both—but only if you set it up right.
- Humans forget. Bots don’t. The less you have to remember, the more you can focus on actual conversations.
- You can’t personalize at scale without shortcuts. Automation lets you save time without sounding like a robot—if you do it right.
- Good automation helps you track what’s working. You’ll see patterns (and mistakes) you’d never catch manually.
But let’s be real: automation isn’t magic. It won’t fix bad messaging or a dead list. Think of it as a tool—useful, but only as good as your setup.
Step 1: Map out your ideal sales cadence (before you touch Sendtrumpet)
Don’t start with the software. Start with your process. If you automate chaos, you just get faster chaos.
What to do: - Write out your touchpoints: How many emails? Any calls? LinkedIn messages? - Decide on timing: How many days between each step? - Pick your triggers: When do you move someone to “not interested” or “won”? - Keep it simple: 4–7 steps is plenty. More = more to manage, and more chance you’ll annoy people.
Pro tip: Sketch your cadence on paper, a spreadsheet, or a whiteboard. If it looks overwhelming, it’ll be a nightmare to automate.
Step 2: Build your sequence in Sendtrumpet
Now you’ve got your plan, Sendtrumpet can actually help you stick to it. Their automation features are flexible, but don’t get lost in the bells and whistles.
Here’s what works:
- Templates for every step. Build out your emails, LinkedIn scripts, or call reminders as templates. You can add personalization fields (like name, company, etc.) so it doesn’t sound like spam.
- Set delays, not fixed dates. Use delays (e.g., “Wait 3 days”) instead of calendar dates. This way, every lead gets the right timing, no matter when you add them.
- Branching logic. If someone replies, automate the removal from the sequence. If they click but don’t reply, maybe send a different follow-up. Don’t overcomplicate it; two or three branches is enough for most cases.
- Pause or reschedule easily. Life happens. If someone asks you to “circle back in June,” Sendtrumpet lets you pause or reschedule a sequence with a click. Don’t just keep sending if someone’s asked for space—it’s a fast way to tank your reputation.
What to skip: - Overly complex workflows with dozens of branches. You’ll never keep track of them, and it’s probably overkill for most sales teams. - Full automation of phone calls. Reminders are good, but you still have to actually make the call (sorry).
Step 3: Personalize without drowning in busywork
The line between “efficient” and “robotic” is thin. Sendtrumpet’s merge fields and snippets are good—but use them wisely.
Tips: - Add one real, custom line to each email. Even if everything else is templated, a single “I saw you just launched X” makes a difference. - Use Sendtrumpet’s variables for the basics: first name, company, job title, etc. But don’t rely on them for your whole message. - Batch your personalization. Block off 30 minutes to tweak messages for a batch of leads, then let automation do the rest.
What doesn’t work: - Blind “FirstName, I see you’re at CompanyName” intros. People can spot mail-merge a mile away. - Over-automating LinkedIn messages. These get flagged and ignored fast if they’re generic.
Step 4: Set up triggers and stop conditions
A good cadence knows when to quit. Nothing’s worse than the “Are you getting my emails?” message after someone’s already said no.
In Sendtrumpet: - Set triggers to remove prospects from the sequence if they reply, book a meeting, or unsubscribe. - Add manual stop buttons. If you get a “not interested” reply, you can stop future steps in one click. - Use click/open tracking—cautiously. Opens are unreliable (thanks, Apple Mail). Clicks are better, but don’t read too much into them. Someone clicking doesn’t mean they want five more emails.
Don’t bother with: - Endless “breakup” emails. If someone hasn’t responded after 5–7 touches, they’re not interested right now. Move on.
Step 5: Monitor, tweak, and don’t get lazy
Automation is never “set it and forget it.” Watch your results, tweak your timing, and don’t let sequences run wild.
What to look for: - Reply rates: If you’re not getting responses by step 3 or 4, your messaging or timing is off. - Opt-outs or spam reports: A spike here means you’re coming on too strong. - Manual feedback: If people complain about your emails, listen. Adjust your cadence or content.
Pro tip: Schedule a quick review every two weeks. Look at your numbers, tweak subject lines or timing, and swap out anything that’s stale.
What actually works (and what doesn’t)
Let’s cut through the hype. Here’s what’s worth your time:
Worth it: - Automating follow-ups and reminders. - Using templates to save time, with a dash of real personalization. - Simple branching—e.g., stop sequence on reply, or move to a new list on click.
Not worth it: - Overly complicated, multi-channel sequences you can’t keep up with. - Relying on open rates to decide your next move. - Sending more than 7 touches. You’re not winning anyone over at that point.
Keep it simple. Iterate.
Sales automation should make your life easier, not just busier. Start with a basic cadence, automate the tedious parts, and keep an eye on what’s actually working. Tweak as you go. If you’re spending more time fiddling with your workflows than actually talking to prospects, you’ve missed the point.
Stick to what works, don’t spam your list, and remember: the goal is more conversations, not just more emails sent.