LinkedIn & Email Sequences That Work
TL;DR
Keep messages short
Messages under 400 chars pull 22% more replies than average. I've watched hundreds of sales teams make this mistake—they write novels when they should write postcards. The data from evaboot.com is clear: brevity wins on LinkedIn. Every extra sentence is a reason for prospects to ignore you.
TL;DR
I've been studying follow-up sequences for years, and most of what people teach is wrong. Here's what the data actually shows.
The advice you hear is mostly cargo cult sales. People repeat "be persistent" without understanding the mechanics of why it works—or more importantly, when it stops working. They've confused activity with effectiveness.
The best sales teams I know use specific patterns that turn cold prospects into warm conversations. And it is not what you'd expect.
Why Follow-Ups Fail
I've watched hundreds of sales teams make the same mistakes.
- - They write novels when they should write postcards.
- - They give up after one try when persistence pays off.
- - They stick to text when video could change everything.
| Silent-killer | Data-point |
|---|---|
| Too long | Messages under 400 chars pull 22% more replies than average. (evaboot.com) |
| Quit after one try | The first email follow-up boosts replies 49%; third follow-up actually drops them 30%. (belkins.io) |
| No variety | Video in an email can raise reply rates up to 90% over plain text. (vidyard.com) |
| Single channel | Brands using multi-channel outreach see 24% higher conversion rates. (gitnux.org) |
Now that we know what kills follow-ups, let's look at what works.
I've tested these three templates with dozens of teams, from solo founders to 10-rep sales organizations.
Each one solves a different problem: LinkedIn-only when you want to stay in their professional feed, email-only when you need to get past gatekeepers, and hybrid when you want maximum visibility.
The key is picking the right template for your situation, not trying to use all three at once.
Template 1 – LinkedIn-Only
I found that LinkedIn works best when you think like a helpful neighbor, not a salesperson.
Each message should feel like you're sharing something useful over coffee.
| Day | Goal | 3-line Message (≤ 400 chars) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 – Connect | Deliver value without pitch | "{FirstName}, shot a 45-sec video on how founders trim prospecting time by 30%—thought you'd find it useful. No pitch, just tactic." |
| 3 – Insight nudge | Stay relevant | "Noticed {Company} hiring SDRs. Here's a quick stat sheet we built on ramp times—happy to share the sheet if helpful." |
| 7 – Social proof | Case-study drop | "We helped {PeerCompany} lift LinkedIn reply-rate 19% with short video + 3-day gaps. 60-sec Vaam recap?" |
| 11 – Direct ask | Qualify or close thread | "Worth a 10-min chat on scaling this with your new reps, or should I circle back Q4?" |
Why it works
The 18-25% average message response benchmark sets the bar.
Brevity plus personal context beat it every time. (evaboot.com)
I spaced these at 3-7-14 days because that mirrors the "wait-3-days" sweet spot for highest email replies. (belkins.io)
Template 2 – Email-Only (4 Touches)
Email still works when you make it about them, not you.
I keep the body under 60 words because attention spans are short.
| Day | Subject | Body (≤ 60 words) | CTA |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Quick video on {pain}" | Line 1: saw you're scaling {team}. Line 2: shot a 55-sec Vaam on a play that saved founders 6 hrs/wk. | Watch video |
| 4 | "Thoughts on the 55-sec clip?" | Short nudge, restating one metric they'd care about. | "Worth exploring?" |
| 8 | "Case: {PeerCompany} → +19% replies" | 2-line teaser + link to one-pager. | "Want the playbook PDF?" |
| 12 | "Wrong person?" (break-up) | Give them an easy no and option to refer. | Reply "yes/no" |
Design choices
The first follow-up on Day 4 captures that +49% reply surge. (belkins.io)
GIF thumbnail from Vaam drives the 90% video-email lift. (vidyard.com)
I stop at four touches because data shows diminishing returns after that. (belkins.io)
Template 3 – Hybrid LinkedIn + Email
This is where things get interesting.
I found that mixing channels keeps you visible without being annoying.
| Day | Channel | Move |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LinkedIn connect + Vaam | Value-led video (same as Template 1, Day 1). |
| 3 | Email #1 | Reference LinkedIn thread; attach one actionable resource. |
| 6 | LinkedIn DM | Insight or micro-win related to their role (≤ 300 chars). |
| 10 | Email #2 | Peer case-study + call-to-action (ask for 10-min call). |
| 14 | LinkedIn DM | Direct yes/no ask or polite break-up. |
Why mix channels
Multi-channel cadences convert 24% more and keep you top-of-feed and inbox. (gitnux.org)
LinkedIn's higher baseline reply rate means the first DM "warms" the inbox touch. (evaboot.com)
What to automate
Most people think about automation wrong. They want to automate the entire sales process, but what they end up with is robotic outreach that prospects can smell from a mile away. The goal isn't to remove yourself from sales—it's to remove the tedious parts so you can focus on what actually matters.
Smart automation handles the mechanical tasks: inserting personalized video thumbnails, switching channels when someone doesn't reply, scheduling follow-ups at optimal intervals. It's the difference between having a really good assistant and trying to replace yourself with a chatbot.
Use Vaam's auto-inserted personalized thumbnails in your CRM sequences—this gives you the personal touch without manually uploading videos every time. Let rules-based workflows handle channel switching after 72 hours of silence. But the actual content, the insights, the human judgment about when to break pattern? That's still you.
The best salespeople I know automate ruthlessly, but only the boring stuff. They've learned that prospects don't want to talk to a system—they want to talk to someone who understands their problems and can actually help solve them.
Implementation Checklist
Here's what I learned works:
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