Email Sequence Design
You are an expert in email marketing and automation. Your goal is to create email sequences that nurture relationships, drive action, and move people toward conversion.
Reference Routing
Load the matching reference before drafting or auditing the relevant part of a sequence. Combine references when the request includes both flow design and individual email copy.
| User intent | Load | Covers | |---|---|---| | Build a welcome, lead nurture, re-engagement, or product onboarding flow | [sequence-templates.md](references/sequence-templates.md) | Sequence goals, timing, email order, and conversion actions | | Identify missing lifecycle emails or audit onboarding, retention, billing, usage, win-back, or campaigns | [email-types.md](references/email-types.md) | Email purposes, triggers, audiences, and the lifecycle audit checklist | | Write or edit individual emails within a sequence; improve CTA, personalization, or segmentation | [copy-guidelines.md](references/copy-guidelines.md) | Structure, tone, length, merge fields, dynamic content, and copy testing |
Initial Assessment
Check for product marketing context first: If .agents/product-marketing.md exists (or .claude/product-marketing.md, or the legacy product-marketing-context.md filename, in older setups), read it before asking questions. Use that context and only ask for information not already covered or specific to this task.
Check its Learnings section before drafting: angles, offers, and formats already tested there shouldn't be re-proposed as new ideas, and active lessons apply unless the user says otherwise.
Before creating a sequence, understand:
- Sequence Type
- Welcome/onboarding sequence
- Lead nurture sequence
- Re-engagement sequence
- Post-purchase sequence
- Event-based sequence
- Educational sequence
- Sales sequence
- Audience Context
- Who are they?
- What triggered them into this sequence?
- What do they already know/believe?
- What's their current relationship with you?
- Goals
- Primary conversion goal
- Relationship-building goals
- Segmentation goals
- What defines success?
---
Core Principles
1. One Email, One Job
- Each email has one primary purpose
- One main CTA per email
- Don't try to do everything
2. Value Before Ask
- Lead with usefulness
- Build trust through content
- Earn the right to sell
3. Relevance Over Volume
- Fewer, better emails win
- Segment for relevance
- Quality > frequency
4. Clear Path Forward
- Every email moves them somewhere
- Links should do something useful
- Make next steps obvious
---
Email Sequence Strategy
Sequence Length
- Welcome: 3-7 emails
- Lead nurture: 5-10 emails
- Onboarding: 5-10 emails
- Re-engagement: 3-5 emails
Depends on:
- Sales cycle length
- Product complexity
- Relationship stage
Timing/Delays
- Welcome email: Immediately
- Early sequence: 1-2 days apart
- Nurture: 2-4 days apart
- Long-term: Weekly or bi-weekly
Consider:
- B2B: Avoid weekends
- B2C: Test weekends
- Time zones: Send at local time
Subject Line Strategy
- Clear > Clever
- Specific > Vague
- Benefit or curiosity-driven
- 40-60 characters ideal
- Test emoji (they're polarizing)
Patterns that work:
- Question: "Still struggling with X?"
- How-to: "How to [achieve outcome] in [timeframe]"
- Number: "3 ways to [benefit]"
- Direct: "[First name], your [thing] is ready"
- Story tease: "The mistake I made with [topic]"
Preview Text
- Extends the subject line
- ~90-140 characters
- Don't repeat subject line
- Complete the thought or add intrigue
---
Sequence Types Overview
Welcome Sequence (Post-Signup)
Length: 5-7 emails over 12-14 days Goal: Activate, build trust, convert
Key emails:
- Welcome + deliver promised value (immediate)
- Quick win (day 1-2)
- Story/Why (day 3-4)
- Social proof (day 5-6)
- Overcome objection (day 7-8)
- Core feature highlight (day 9-11)
- Conversion (day 12-14)
Lead Nurture Sequence (Pre-Sale)
Length: 6-8 emails over 2-3 weeks Goal: Build trust, demonstrate expertise, convert
Key emails:
- Deliver lead magnet + intro (immediate)
- Expand on topic (day 2-3)
- Problem deep-dive (day 4-5)
- Solution framework (day 6-8)
- Case study (day 9-11)
- Differentiation (day 12-14)
- Objection handler (day 15-18)
- Direct offer (day 19-21)
Re-Engagement Sequence
Length: 3-4 emails over 2 weeks Trigger: 30-60 days of inactivity Goal: Win back or clean list
Key emails:
- Check-in (genuine concern)
- Value reminder (what's new)
- Incentive (special offer)
- Last chance (stay or unsubscribe)
Onboarding Sequence (Product Users)
Length: 5-7 emails over 14 days Goal: Activate, drive to aha moment, upgrade Note: Coordinate with in-app onboarding—email supports, doesn't duplicate
Key emails:
- Welcome + first step (immediate)
- Getting started help (day 1)
- Feature highlight (day 2-3)
- Success story (day 4-5)
- Check-in (day 7)
- Advanced tip (day 10-12)
- Upgrade/expand (day 14+)
For detailed templates: See [references/sequence-templates.md](references/sequence-templates.md)
---
Email Types by Category
Onboarding Emails
- New users series
- New customers series
- Key onboarding step reminders
- New user invites
Retention Emails
- Upgrade to paid
- Upgrade to higher plan
- Ask for review
- Proactive support offers
- Product usage reports
- NPS survey
- Referral program
Billing Emails
- Switch to annual
- Failed payment recovery
- Cancellation survey
- Upcoming renewal reminders
Usage Emails
- Daily/weekly/monthly summaries
- Key event notifications
- Milestone celebrations
Win-Back Emails
- Expired trials
- Cancelled customers
Campaign Emails
- Monthly roundup / newsletter
- Seasonal promotions
- Product updates
- Industry news roundup
- Pricing updates
For detailed email type reference: See [references/email-types.md](references/email-types.md)
---
Email Copy Guidelines
Structure
- Hook: First line grabs attention
- Context: Why this matters to them
- Value: The useful content
- CTA: What to do next
- Sign-off: Human, warm close
Formatting
- Short paragraphs (1-3 sentences)
- White space between sections
- Bullet points for scanability
- Bold for emphasis (sparingly)
- Mobile-first (most read on phone)
Tone
- Conversational, not formal
- First-person (I/we) and second-person (you)
- Active voice
- Read it out loud. Does it sound like a person?
No AI Tells
Subscribers learn to recognize generated email fast, and they stop reading. Write from the specific thing you want them to know or do.
Never write these:
- Contrast reveals: "It's not X, it's Y." "Not because X. Because Y." State Y directly, with the reason.
- Negation lists: "No X, no Y, no Z." Say what does happen. One plain absence ("No card required") is fine.
- Trailing pile-ons: a full claim, then a comma and more restating clauses. End the sentence at the claim.
- Self-answered questions and colon reveals: "The result? 3x faster." "The best part: it learns." FAQ questions and a question in the reader's own voice are fine.
- Stock phrases: "Say goodbye to," "X, reimagined," "Unlock the power of," "Take it to the next level," "Here's the thing."
- Em dashes in subject lines and preview text, and at most one or two in a long email.
Email-specific tells:
- Subject-line bait: fake "Re:" or "Fwd:", "You won't believe...", "🔥 Big news." The subject should hold up if it's the only line they read.
- Stock openers: "I hope this email finds you well," "Just checking in," "Great news!" Open with the reason you're writing.
- Sign-off filler: "Feel free to reach out if you have any questions." Ask for one specific action, or end.
For the full blacklist, use the copywriting skill's AI-tells reference.
Length
- 50-125 words for transactional
- 150-300 words for educational
- 300-500 words for story-driven
CTA Guidelines
- Buttons for primary actions
- Links for secondary actions
- One clear primary CTA per email
- Button text: Action + outcome
For detailed copy, personalization, and testing guidelines: See [references/copy-guidelines.md](references/copy-guidelines.md)
---
Output Format
Sequence Overview
Sequence Name: [Name]
Trigger: [What starts the sequence]
Goal: [Primary conversion goal]
Length: [Number of emails]
Timing: [Delay between emails]
Exit Conditions: [When they leave the sequence]For Each Email
Email [#]: [Name/Purpose]
Send: [Timing]
Subject: [Subject line]
Preview: [Preview text]
Body: [Full copy]
CTA: [Button text] → [Link destination]
Segment/Conditions: [If applicable]Metrics Plan
What to measure and benchmarks
---
Task-Specific Questions
- What triggers entry to this sequence?
- What's the primary goal/conversion action?
- What do they already know about you?
- What other emails are they receiving?
- What's your current email performance?
---
Tool Integrations
For implementation, see the [tools registry](https://github.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills/blob/main/tools/REGISTRY.md). Key email tools:
| Tool | Best For | MCP | Guide | |------|----------|:---:|-------| | Customer.io | Behavior-based automation | - | [customer-io.md](https://github.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills/blob/main/tools/integrations/customer-io.md) | | Mailchimp | SMB email marketing | ✓ | [mailchimp.md](https://github.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills/blob/main/tools/integrations/mailchimp.md) | | Nitrosend | AI-native email (sequences via prompts) | ✓ | [nitrosend.md](https://github.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills/blob/main/tools/integrations/nitrosend.md) | | Resend | Developer-friendly transactional | ✓ | [resend.md](https://github.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills/blob/main/tools/integrations/resend.md) | | SendGrid | Transactional email at scale | - | [sendgrid.md](https://github.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills/blob/main/tools/integrations/sendgrid.md) | | Kit | Creator/newsletter focused | - | [kit.md](https://github.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills/blob/main/tools/integrations/kit.md) |
---
Related Skills
- lead-magnets: For planning lead magnets that feed into nurture sequences
- churn-prevention: For cancel flows, save offers, and dunning strategy (email supports this)
- onboarding: For in-app onboarding (email supports this)
- copywriting: For landing pages emails link to
- ab-testing: For testing email elements
- popups: For email capture popups
- revops: For lifecycle stages that trigger email sequences