🚀
L = Launch
The moment you've been preparing for. Execute your first campaign with confidence, monitor the first 48 hours closely, manage replies effectively, and avoid common mistakes that derail launches.
This Is It. Launch Day. 🚀
You've done the work. You've built your strategy, researched your prospects, set up your infrastructure, and crafted compelling copy. Now it's time to press send and watch the replies roll in.
But here's the truth: most founders rush this moment. They skip critical checks, blast 1,000 contacts on Day 1, and wonder why their campaigns flop. They don't have a reply management system. They panic when someone says "not interested." They ghost prospects who show interest.
You won't make those mistakes. This module covers everything from pre-launch validation to handling objections, from booking meetings to managing your CRM. By the end, you'll have a battle-tested launch playbook that turns cold prospects into qualified meetings.
The first 48 hours after launch will tell you everything. You'll see if your messaging resonates, if your deliverability holds up, and if your ICP targeting was accurate. This is where theory meets reality—and where most startups either win big or learn expensive lessons.
Let's make sure you're in the winning camp. 💪
Pre-Launch Checklist: Don't Skip This
Before hitting send, run through this checklist. Most startup cold email failures happen because something was missed in setup.
✅ The SPACLE Pre-Launch Checklist
- Strategize: Clear campaign goal defined? ICP documented? Target list size 50-100 for test batch?
- Prospect: Emails verified (95%+ accuracy)? Bounce rate prediction under 3%? ICP segmentation complete?
- Automate: Domains warmed up 2-3 weeks? SPF/DKIM/DMARC configured? Test email landed in primary inbox? Cold email platform connected and tracking configured?
- Copywrite: Email copy written following SPACLE email formula? Subject line personalized? Opening line Tier 2-3 quality? 3-4 follow-up emails written with timing set (Day 3, 7, 14)?
- Launch: Sent test to yourself? Checked mobile display? Links working? No typos? Reply management workflow ready?
The Smart Launch Strategy for Startups
Don't launch with 1,000 contacts on Day 1. Start small, learn fast, scale what works.
Phase 1: Test Batch
Size: 50-100 contacts
Duration: 1 week
Goal: Validate messaging & deliverability
Success criteria: 40%+ open rate, 3%+ reply rate, no spam complaints
Phase 2: Iteration
Size: 200-300 contacts
Duration: 2 weeks
Goal: Test variations, optimize
Success criteria: 50%+ open rate, 5%+ reply rate, 1-2% meeting rate
Phase 3: Scale
Size: 500-1,000+ contacts
Duration: Ongoing
Goal: Predictable pipeline generation
Success criteria: Consistent 10-20 meetings/month, sustainable volume
Phase 4: Optimize, Rinse & Repeat
Focus: Continuous improvement
Duration: Ongoing cycles
Goal: Maximize ROI through constant optimization
Key activities: A/B test variations, analyze winner patterns, apply learnings to new campaigns, expand to new ICPs
What Happens After You Hit Send?
Congratulations! You've launched your first campaign. Now what? The first 48 hours after launch are critical for catching issues early and understanding initial performance.
🚨 First 24 Hours: Red Flags
- High bounce rate (>5%): Stop immediately
- Spam complaints (>1%): Pause campaign
- Zero opens after 24h: Check spam placement
- Delivery failures: Verify DNS records
Goal: Catch critical issues before they burn your domain reputation
📊 Day 1-2: Monitor Deliverability
- Check bounce rate hourly
- Monitor spam complaints
- Verify inbox placement (seed test)
- Watch for delivery errors
Goal: Confirm emails are reaching inboxes safely
💬 Day 3-5: Track Engagement
- Monitor open rates (expect 40-50%)
- Track reply rates (expect 2-5%)
- Read and categorize replies
- Respond promptly to interested leads
Goal: Understand baseline performance and start conversations
📈 Week 1-2: Gather Data
- Let full sequence run (all follow-ups)
- Don't make changes yet
- Document patterns in replies
- Track meeting booking rate
Goal: Establish baseline before optimizing (covered in Module 7)
Managing Replies: Your First Conversations
Getting replies is exciting! But how you handle them determines whether they convert to meetings. Speed and relevance matter.
The Reply Categorization System
✅ Positive Replies (30-50% of replies)
"Interested", "Tell me more", "Let's chat", "Can you send more info?"
How to respond:
- Respond within 1 hour if possible (speed matters)
- Provide specific value based on their question
- Include calendar link for easy booking
- Keep it concise (3-4 lines max)
⏰ "Not Now" Replies (20-30% of replies)
"Busy right now", "Circle back in Q2", "Maybe in a few months"
How to respond:
- Acknowledge and thank them
- Ask when would be better
- Set reminder to follow up
- Move to nurture sequence
❌ Negative Replies (20-30% of replies)
"Not interested", "Remove me", "Wrong person", "We use competitor"
How to respond:
- Apologize and confirm removal immediately
- For "wrong person" → ask who's right person
- For competitor mentions → add to CRM for future
- Never argue or push back
❓ Questions / Objections (10-20% of replies)
"How much does it cost?", "What's the ROI?", "Do you integrate with X?"
How to respond:
- Answer question directly and concisely
- Provide social proof if relevant
- Suggest quick call to discuss specifics
- Make booking frictionless (calendar link)
5 Common Launch Mistakes (And How to Avoid Them)
Mistake #1: Launching to 1,000+ contacts on Day 1
Why it's bad: If something is wrong (bad list, spam trigger words, deliverability issue), you've burned 1,000 leads and possibly your domain.
Solution: Always start with 50-100 test batch. Validate messaging and deliverability before scaling.
Mistake #2: Making changes too quickly
Why it's bad: You need at least 100-200 sends to have meaningful data. Changing after 20 sends is just guessing.
Solution: Run initial campaign for minimum 1 week before making optimization decisions.
Mistake #3: Ignoring negative replies
Why it's bad: If 50%+ replies are negative, your ICP or messaging is wrong. This gets worse at scale.
Solution: If >30% negative replies, pause and revisit ICP definition before continuing.
Mistake #4: Slow reply response times
Why it's bad: Interested prospects who get fast responses are 3-5x more likely to book meetings. Waiting 2 days loses momentum.
Solution: Check replies 3x daily minimum (morning, afternoon, end of day). Set up mobile notifications.
Mistake #5: Not documenting learnings
Why it's bad: You'll forget what worked and repeat mistakes. Your knowledge doesn't compound.
Solution: Keep a launch log: dates, batch sizes, changes made, results observed. Review weekly.
Converting Replies to Results: Next Steps After Engagement
Getting replies is just the beginning. What you do AFTER the reply determines your success. Here are 4 proven conversion paths to move prospects from interested to committed—whether you're seeking investment, media coverage, podcast bookings, sales, or partnerships.
📥 Option 1: Value-First Offer
Best for: Building trust, nurturing prospects not ready to commit, demonstrating expertise upfront
What to offer:
- Free strategy session (30-min consultation)
- Complimentary audit (website, SEO, marketing, etc.)
- Exclusive report/guide (industry insights)
- Free tool/calculator (immediate utility)
- Template/checklist (actionable resource)
- Case study (social proof + blueprint)
Example: "I've helped 50+ B2B SaaS startups with this exact challenge. Want a free 30-min strategy session where I'll audit your current approach and share 3 quick wins? No pitch, just value—here's my calendar: [link]"
📅 Option 2: Booked Meeting
Best for: Complex discussions, high-value opportunities, consultative conversations, relationship building
How to book effectively:
- Send calendar link in first reply (reduce friction)
- Offer 2-3 specific time slots (anchoring)
- Keep meeting short (15-20 min intro call)
- Set clear agenda in booking confirmation
Example: "Love to chat! I have Tuesday 2pm or Thursday 10am open this week—just 15 minutes to learn about your goals and see if we're a fit. Here's my calendar: [link]"
🎯 Option 3: Direct Ask
Best for: Clear, simple requests where the value is obvious and no demo needed
When to make the direct ask:
- Podcast booking: "Would you be open to having me on your show to discuss [topic]?"
- Media placement: "Can I send you a guest post on [topic] for your publication?"
- Investment ask: "We're raising our seed round—would you be interested in reviewing our deck?"
- Partnership/collaboration: "Would you be open to a partnership where we [specific value exchange]?"
- Product sale: "It's $299/month—I can get you started today with 20% off. Here's the link: [checkout]"
Example: "I'd love to be a guest on [Podcast Name]. I can share our journey from 0 to $1M ARR in 8 months and actionable growth tactics your audience would love. Would that be a fit? Happy to send topic ideas + past episodes."
🖥️ Option 4: Self-Serve Experience
Best for: Product-led growth, visual/interactive products, prospects who prefer to explore independently
What to provide:
- Interactive demo (self-guided product tour)
- Sandbox environment (try before buying)
- Video walkthrough (Loom showing key features)
- Trial account with sample data pre-loaded
Then make your ask:
- After demo: "Want to see how this would work for [their use case]? Let's do a quick 15-min call."
- After trial: "How's the trial going? Any questions I can answer? Here's my calendar: [link]"
- After video: "Did the walkthrough make sense? I can customize a version for your team if helpful."
Example: "Rather than me pitching you, here's an interactive demo where you can see exactly how it works: [demo link]. Explore it for 5 minutes—if it looks interesting, let's chat about your specific use case. Sound good?"
Preparing for Sales Meetings: Maximize Show-Up & Close Rates
Booked meetings are worthless if prospects don't show up or aren't prepared. Your job is to increase show rate (70-80%+) and set the stage for productive conversations.
The Pre-Meeting Preparation Playbook
✅ Immediately After Booking (Within 5 Minutes)
- Send calendar invite: Include Zoom/Google Meet link, agenda, your contact info
- Confirmation email: Personalized note thanking them, reiterating value of call
- Add to CRM: Log meeting details, context from cold email thread, ICP fit notes
- Research deeper: LinkedIn, company website, recent news, pain points mentioned
🔔 24 Hours Before Meeting
- Reminder email: "Looking forward to our call tomorrow at 2pm! Quick reminder: we'll be discussing [specific topic they mentioned]."
- Share pre-meeting resource: Optional 1-pager or relevant case study to prep them
- Confirm they have calendar link: Reduce technical issues day-of
⏰ Day of Meeting (2 Hours Before)
- Final reminder: "Hi [Name], we're on for [time] today (in 2 hours). See you then!"
- Review your notes: Re-read cold email thread, their replies, research notes
- Prepare custom deck/demo: If applicable, customize presentation to their use case
Handling No-Shows, Ghosted Prospects & Cold Leads
Not everyone will show up to meetings. Not everyone will reply after initial interest. Here's your system for recovering ghosted prospects and minimizing no-shows.
❌ No-Show Protocol
Follow-up Sequence:
Immediately after missed meeting: "Hey [Name], I was just on our Zoom call but didn't see you. No worries—things come up! Want to reschedule? [2-3 new time slots]"
+24 hours if no reply: "Following up! Still interested in [outcome they want]? Happy to find 15 min this week."
+3 days if no reply: "Last note! If timing isn't right now, totally understand. Mind if I check back in Q2? Or feel free to grab time whenever: [calendar link]"
Pro tip: 30-40% of no-shows will reschedule if you follow up within 1 hour.
👻 Ghosted After Interest
Re-Engagement Sequence:
+3 days after last reply: "Hey [Name]—wanted to follow up on [topic]. Did I lose you? 😅 Let me know if timing changed."
+7 days: "Quick question: is this still a priority? If not, no problem—want to make sure I'm not bugging you!"
+14 days (final breakup email): "Last note! Seems like the timing isn't right. I'll stop reaching out—but if things change, you know where to find me. Good luck with [their goal]!"
Why it works: "Breakup emails" often get 15-30% reply rates as people hate leaving things unresolved.
🧊 Cold Lead Re-Activation
When to re-engage old leads:
- New product feature: "Hey [Name], remember when you mentioned [pain point]? We just launched [feature] that solves exactly this."
- Relevant trigger event: They got funding, hired for relevant role, announced something—use it as reason to reconnect
- Quarterly check-in: "It's been 3 months since we last chatted. Wanted to see if [original goal] is still on your radar?"
- Case study/social proof: "Just helped [similar company] achieve [result]. Reminded me of your situation—worth a quick chat?"
Rule: Always provide NEW value or context when re-engaging. Never just "bump" or "circle back."
Managing Everything in Your CRM: Organization is Revenue
Replies, meetings, follow-ups, and deals will multiply fast. Without a CRM system, you'll lose opportunities in the chaos. Here's how to stay organized and never drop the ball.
Your CRM Options
Option 1: Built-In CRM (Instantly, Smartlead, Lemlist)
Pros: All-in-one (email sending + tracking + simple CRM), no setup needed, affordable
Cons: Limited features, not great for complex sales cycles, hard to scale beyond cold email
Best for: Simple deals, early-stage startups, low-volume campaigns
Option 2: Dedicated CRM (HubSpot, Pipedrive, Attio, folk)
Pros: Powerful automation, better reporting, scales with team, integrates with everything
Cons: More expensive, requires setup time, learning curve
Best for: Growing startups, complex sales processes, multi-channel outreach (email + LinkedIn + calls)
Essential CRM Workflow for Cold Email
📋 Pipeline Stages (Minimum Setup)
- Cold Outreach: Prospects you've emailed but haven't replied yet
- Replied: Any response received (positive, neutral, or negative)
- Qualified: Interested replies that fit ICP and have budget/authority
- Meeting Scheduled: Call booked on calendar
- Proposal Sent: Pricing shared, demo completed, next steps defined
- Closed Won: Deal signed! 🎉
- Closed Lost: Not a fit, lost to competitor, or no budget
🏷️ Tags to Use
- Reply type: Positive, Not Now, Negative, Question
- Campaign source: Which cold email campaign they came from
- ICP segment: Series A SaaS, Bootstrapped Agency, etc.
- Interest level: Hot (ready to buy), Warm (exploring), Cold (just browsing)
- Follow-up date: When to re-engage (Q2 Check-in, Post-Funding, etc.)
⚡ Daily CRM Habits
- Morning: Review today's follow-ups and scheduled meetings
- After each reply: Log in CRM immediately with notes, next steps, and due date
- After each meeting: Update deal stage, add meeting notes, set follow-up task
- End of day: Review open deals, update pipeline, plan tomorrow's outreach
- Friday: Weekly review—move stale deals to "Closed Lost" or create re-engagement plan
⚠️ Common CRM Mistakes That Kill Deals
- Not logging every interaction: You'll forget context, miss follow-ups, and look unprofessional
- No follow-up tasks set: If you don't schedule the next step, it won't happen
- Letting deals go stale: If a deal hasn't moved in 14+ days, either re-engage or close it
- No notes on conversations: Your future self (or team) won't remember what was discussed
- Treating all leads equally: Prioritize hot leads, nurture warm ones, don't waste time on cold
🎯 Key Takeaways from Module 6
- Follow SPACLE checklist before launch: Strategize (goal/ICP), Prospect (verified list), Automate (warmed domains), Copywrite (tested emails), Launch (final checks). Skip one = campaign fails.
- Start small, scale smart: 50-100 test batch → validate deliverability → iterate messaging → scale to 500+. Never launch 1,000+ on Day 1 or you'll burn leads and domain reputation.
- First 48 hours determine success: Monitor bounce rate, spam complaints, and inbox placement hourly. High bounces (>5%) or spam (>1%) = stop immediately and troubleshoot.
- Convert replies with the right strategy: Lead magnets for trust-building, meetings for high-ticket ($5K+), direct sales for low-ticket ($50-$500). Use CRM to track every interaction and have protocols for no-shows (3-touch: immediate, +24h, +3d) and ghosted leads (breakup emails get 15-30% replies).
- Week 1 is for data gathering, not optimization: Let full sequence run, document patterns, establish baseline metrics. Optimization comes in Module 7 with enough data to make informed decisions.
✅ Action Items: Your First Week Post-Launch
- Monitor deliverability (Day 1-2): Check bounce rate, spam complaints, and inbox placement hourly. Respond to all replies within 2-4 hours throughout the week.
- Create reply templates: Draft responses for common reply types (positive, not now, questions, objections) so you can respond fast and consistently.
- Set up CRM pipeline: Create stages (Cold → Replied → Qualified → Meeting → Proposal → Closed) and essential tags (reply type, campaign source, interest level).
- Prepare conversion assets: Set up calendar link, meeting reminder templates (booking confirmation, 24h reminder, 2h reminder), and no-show/ghost follow-up sequences.
- Build tracking dashboard: Google Sheet or simple dashboard tracking opens, replies, meetings booked, show rate, and conversion rate. Document observations in launch log.
- Schedule Week 2 review: Block 1 hour in calendar to analyze full week of data and plan optimizations (covered in Module 7).
Ready to Optimize Your Campaign?
You've launched successfully! Now learn how to evaluate performance, run A/B tests, and scale what works.
Continue to Module 7 →