Outbound Sequence Audit Checklist for Managers
The exact checklist to run before a rep's sequence goes live — relevance, cadence spacing, deliverability, brand tone, and sign-off, in one pass.
What's inside
- Relevance & Targeting checks (5 items)
- Cadence & Spacing checks (5 items)
- Deliverability & Spam Risk checks (5 items)
- Brand & Tone checks (5 items)
- Manager Sign-Off checks (3 items)
- A hard go/no-go rule: any unchecked box holds the launch
- Guidance on what 'read all touches end-to-end' actually means
Run this against the sequence as it's actually built in the tool — not the brief, not the rep's description of it. Every box unchecked is a hold, not a "fix it after launch" note.
Relevance & Targeting
- Sequence is scoped to a single defined persona/segment, not "everyone in the CRM"
- First-touch messaging references a real trigger or context specific to the account — not generic industry pain
- List has been scrubbed against do-not-contact, recent unsubscribes, and existing open opportunities
- No overlap with another rep's active sequence on the same account (checked in CRM/Slack, not assumed)
- Value prop language is persona-specific — not one message copy-pasted across job titles
Cadence & Spacing
- Sequence runs 8–12 touches across 3–4 weeks minimum — not front-loaded into 3 days
- At least 1 business day between any two touches in the same channel
- At least 2 channels used (email + LinkedIn, or + call/video)
- No more than 2 touches scheduled on the same calendar day across all channels combined
- Defined exit rule exists (positive reply, hard no, or touch-limit reached) and is configured in the tool, not just understood informally
Deliverability & Spam Risk
- Subject lines avoid spam-trigger patterns (ALL CAPS, "FREE", "$$$", excessive punctuation)
- No more than 1 link in the first-touch email
- Sending domain/mailbox is warmed and within daily volume caps for its age
- Personalization tokens tested in preview — no broken merge fields ("Hi [FirstName]")
- Unsubscribe/opt-out path is present where required (CAN-SPAM, GDPR, or other applicable regime)
Brand & Tone
- Reads like a person wrote it — passes a read-aloud test
- No overpromising claims or unverifiable stats
- Consistent with the company's approved voice/style guide, if one exists
- No disparaging language naming competitors directly
- Would not embarrass the company if forwarded to the prospect's leadership
Manager Sign-Off
- You personally read every touch end-to-end — not just touch #1 — including branches and follow-up variants
- The rep can explain, in one sentence, who this sequence is for and why
- The sequence has a named owner and a review date logged for 2 weeks out
Go/No-Go rule
All boxes checked = approve for "Go Live." Any single box unchecked = hold the launch and fix that item specifically before re-running the audit — don't approve with a verbal caveat to "clean it up after it's live." Sequences that launch with known issues rarely get fixed once they're generating replies to triage.
How to use it
Work through every box against the sequence exactly as it's configured in the tool (not the brief or the intent) before approving 'Go Live,' and hold launch on any unchecked item rather than approving with a note to fix it later.