AAJ Marketing SkillsSkills

// execute

Cold Email Sequence

Use when the user wants to write a cold outbound email sequence — the multi-touch cadence that opens conversations with target accounts. Also use when the user mentions cold email, outbound sequence, email cadence, prospecting emails, sales outreach, follow-up emails, break-up email, or "emails that get replies." Produces a 4–6 touch cold email sequence with subject lines, send timing, and one clear ask per email, grounded in the prospect's pain.

ExecuteStarter
bash
$npx skills add sarojkjha/aaj-marketing-skills --skill cold-email-sequence

// when to use it

Use when the user wants to write a cold outbound email sequence — the multi-touch cadence that opens conversations with target accounts. Also use when the user mentions cold email, outbound sequence, email cadence, prospecting emails, sales outreach, follow-up emails, break-up email, or "emails that get replies." Produces a 4–6 touch cold email sequence with subject lines, send timing, and one clear ask per email, grounded in the prospect's pain.

// what you give

The ICP's sharpest pain, the differentiator and one proof point, the role being emailed, and the relevance hook.

// what you get

A 4–6 touch cold email sequence with subject lines, send timing, the angle per touch, and alternate first-touch subjects.

Cold Email Sequence

Write a short outbound sequence that earns a reply by leading with the prospect's problem — not your product.

When to use

When opening conversations with a target account list, when current outreach gets ignored, or when launching a new outbound motion.

Before you start

  1. Read the brand/product context first. Pull the ICP and its single sharpest pain, plus the differentiator and one piece of proof, from .agents/product-marketing.md. If none exists, ask the user.
  2. Gather inputs: who's being emailed (the role) and the relevance hook that triggered the outreach (a signal, an event, a shared context). If the account list / ICP isn't set, run target-account-list and brand-product-context first.
  3. Confirm the objective: opening a conversation. (For nurturing existing leads, that's a lifecycle sequence — a different intent.)

Method

Anchor every email on one specific pain the role feels, and open in their world rather than with your company. One email, one idea, one low-friction ask. Keep each under ~90 words, plain text, written like a person — and vary the angle across touches instead of just bumping the thread.

Workflow

  1. Anchor each email on one specific pain the role feels.
  2. Give each one ask — low-friction (a question, a small yes), not "book a 30-minute demo" on touch one.
  3. Keep it short — 50–90 words, plain text, no jargon.
  4. Use proof sparingly — one concrete outcome or number beats adjectives.
  5. Vary the angle across touches (pain → proof → a different pain → break-up).
  6. End with a respectful break-up, then present the full sequence.

Reference

This skill bundles no data files. Pull the pain, differentiator, proof, and voice from .agents/product-marketing.md; write in the brand's voice.

Present the result

  • 4–6 emails, each with: a subject line (short, lowercase, relevance or curiosity — no clickbait), the body, and the single ask.
  • Send timing (e.g., day 1, 3, 6, 10, 14).
  • The pain/angle each touch uses.
  • 2–3 alternate first-touch subject lines to test.

Guardrails & common mistakes

  • Lead with them, not you. If an email is about your company instead of the prospect's problem, rewrite it.
  • One ask per email. Multiple asks (or a hard demo ask on touch one) kill reply rates.
  • Keep it under ~90 words. Long cold emails don't get read.
  • Back every claim. Make no outcome claim that isn't supported by real proof from context — invented numbers destroy trust and deliverability reputation.

Related AAJ resources

Related skills

target-account-list · discovery-call-framework · objection-handling · brand-product-context

Credits

Original AAJ skill. The Agent Skills format and the marketing-skills catalog by Corey Haines (coreyhaines31/marketingskills, MIT) were references for structure and coverage; this skill is independently written. See the repository README for the full reference list.

// faq

// install

$npx skills add sarojkjha/aaj-marketing-skills --skill cold-email-sequence

// worked example

Get the worked example for cold-email-sequence

One email. The filled-in config, the output, and how to read it.

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// sprint

GTM & Pipeline Launch — from $9,500, 4–8 weeks

This skill is one of the engines behind the GTM & Pipeline Launch — from $9,500, four to eight weeks.

A segment plan, launch sequence, and pipeline model — go to market with the metrics baked in.

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