Lemlist Sequence Setup

Lemlist is a cold outbound sequencing tool built for personalized email at scale. Its core strengths: built-in email warmup (Lemwarm), multichannel sequences (email + LinkedIn + phone), native personalization features (custom variables, dynamic images, dynamic landing pages), and strong deliverability controls. It's the go-to tool for teams that prioritize personalization and deliverability over enterprise-grade analytics.

The principle: Lemlist is strongest when you use its personalization and deliverability features. Running Lemlist like a generic email sender wastes its best capabilities. Set up Lemwarm, use custom variables, and configure sending limits properly. That's where the value is.

Lemlist vs Other Sequencing Tools

Setting Up Lemlist

Step 1: Connect your email provider

Lemlist → Settings → Email Providers
  → Connect Gmail (OAuth) or SMTP (for custom domains)
  → Verify connection (send test email)

Email connection options:

Connection rules:

• Connect a personal email address, not a shared inbox. Cold email should come from a named person
• If using a sending subdomain (jane@mail.company.com), configure SMTP for that specific subdomain
• Verify SPF, DKIM, DMARC before connecting (per domain-setup-spf-dkim-dmarc skill)

Step 2: Configure sending limits

Lemlist → Settings → Email Providers → [Your provider]
  → Sending limits:
    - Max emails per day: [set based on warmup status]
    - Min delay between emails: 60-180 seconds
    - Sending window: Mon-Fri, 8am-6pm
    - Timezone: recipient timezone (or your timezone)

Sending limit guidelines:

Step 3: Enable Lemwarm

Lemlist → Lemwarm (left sidebar)
  → Enable for each connected email
  → Set warmup intensity: "Smart" (recommended)
  → Lemwarm starts sending warmup emails automatically

Lemwarm rules:

• Enable Lemwarm on Day 1 of account setup. Don't wait until deliverability problems appear
• Keep Lemwarm running permanently, even after warmup is complete. Maintenance-level warmup (5-10/day) maintains deliverability
• "Smart" intensity mode adjusts warmup volume based on your sending reputation. Use it instead of manual settings
• Lemwarm is included in all Lemlist paid plans. No additional cost

Step 4: Set up custom tracking domain

Lemlist → Settings → Custom tracking domain
  → Add a CNAME record: track.yourdomain.com → [Lemlist tracking URL]
  → Verify in Lemlist

Custom tracking domain rules:

• A custom tracking domain improves deliverability. Lemlist's default tracking domain is shared across all users. Custom domains are unique to you
• Use a subdomain of your sending domain: track.mail.company.com if sending from mail.company.com
• Without a custom tracking domain, tracked links use Lemlist's shared domain, which may trigger spam filters if other users have sent spam through it

Creating a Campaign

Lemlist campaign structure

Campaign
├── Settings (sending email, schedule, limits)
├── Leads (imported contacts with variables)
├── Steps (the sequence of emails, LinkedIn actions, tasks)
└── Analytics (per-step performance)

Step 1: Create the campaign

Lemlist → Campaigns → Create Campaign
  → Name: "[Persona] - [Angle] - [Date]"
    Example: "VP Sales - Funding Signal - May 2026"
  → Select sending email
  → Configure schedule (Mon-Fri, 8am-6pm)

Step 2: Import leads

CSV import columns:

Import rules:

• Verify emails before importing. Lemlist has built-in email verification, but pre-verifying with NeverBounce/ZeroBounce catches more invalids
• Include custom variables in the CSV. Lemlist's power is in variables. Pre-populate personalization fields in the CSV so they render automatically in the email
• Deduplicate against previous campaigns. Lemlist prevents enrolling the same email in two active campaigns, but check manually for contacts from completed campaigns

Step 3: Build the sequence steps

A 3-step cold email sequence:

Step 1: Email (Day 1)
  Subject: {{signal}}
  Body:
    {{firstName}}, {{personalizationLine}}

    {{templateBody}}

    Worth a 15-minute look?

    {{senderFirstName}}

  Delay: 3 business days
  ↓
Step 2: Email (Day 4)
  Subject: {{proofTopic}}
  Body:
    {{firstName}}, {{proofPoint}}

    {{proofBody}}

    Happy to share how they did it.

    {{senderFirstName}}

  Delay: 5 business days
  ↓
Step 3: Email (Day 9)
  Subject: closing the loop
  Body:
    {{firstName}}, sounds like timing's off.
    Should I close the loop?

    {{senderFirstName}}

Step types in Lemlist

Multichannel sequence example (email + LinkedIn):

Step 1: LinkedIn Visit (Day 1) — auto, 0 effort
Step 2: Email 1 (Day 2) — signal + ask
Step 3: LinkedIn Connect (Day 3) — personalized note
Step 4: Email 2 (Day 6) — proof angle
Step 5: LinkedIn Message (Day 8) — if connected, share resource
Step 6: Email 3 (Day 11) — breakup

Lemlist Variables and Personalization

Built-in variables

Custom variables

Add any custom variable by including the column in your CSV import.

Conditional logic (Liquid syntax)

Lemlist supports Liquid syntax for conditional content:

{% if companySize > 200 %}
At your scale, most teams run into [enterprise problem].
{% else %}
At your stage, the biggest challenge is usually [startup problem].
{% endif %}

Personalization rules:

• Set fallback values for every variable. {{firstName | default: "there"}} prevents "Hi ," if the name is blank
• Test variables with 3-5 leads before launching. Click "Preview" in Lemlist to see how each email renders for specific leads
• Keep custom variables to 3-5 per campaign. More than 5 creates data management complexity and increases the chance of blank fields
• The {{personalizationLine}} variable is the key Tier 2 personalization technique. Pre-populate it per lead (manually or via AI) for per-contact openers at scale

A/B Testing in Lemlist

Lemlist supports up to 4 email variants per step.

Setting up an A/B test

Step 1: Email
  → Variant A: Subject "{{signal}}" / Body: signal angle
  → Variant B: Subject "{{proofTopic}}" / Body: question angle
  → Split: 50/50
  → Measure: reply rate (primary), open rate (secondary)

What to test

A/B testing rules

• Test one variable at a time. Different subject AND different body = you can't tell which change drove the result
• Minimum 100 leads per variant. Below 100, the results aren't statistically meaningful. One extra reply swings the rate by 1%+
• Run for the full campaign duration. Don't declare a winner after 2 days. Wait until all leads have received the email and had time to reply (7-10 days)
• Use reply rate as the primary metric, not open rate. Open rate is inflated by Apple privacy. Reply rate tells you what actually resonated

Deliverability Settings

Lemlist deliverability features

Deliverability rules

• Run Lemwarm before and during campaigns. Not just during the warmup phase. Permanent Lemwarm keeps deliverability healthy alongside cold volume
• Set custom tracking domain. Shared tracking domains are the #1 deliverability risk in any sequencing tool. Custom domain is 10 minutes of DNS setup for permanent improvement
• Don't disable the delay between emails. Sending 50 emails in 2 minutes looks like a bot. 50 emails spread over 50-90 minutes looks like a human. Keep the delay at 60+ seconds
• Include an unsubscribe link. Required by CAN-SPAM and GDPR. Lemlist can add it as a small text link at the bottom. It slightly reduces deliverability risk by making opt-out easy

CRM Integration

HubSpot integration

Lemlist → Settings → Integrations → HubSpot
  → Connect HubSpot account
  → Configure sync:
    - Sync new leads to HubSpot as contacts
    - Sync email activities (sent, opened, clicked, replied)
    - Sync lead status changes

Salesforce integration

Lemlist → Settings → Integrations → Salesforce
  → Connect Salesforce account
  → Map Lemlist fields to Salesforce fields
  → Configure activity logging

Integration rules

• Sync activities to CRM. Every email sent, opened, clicked, and replied to should appear on the contact's CRM timeline. Without this, CRM records are incomplete
• Map Lemlist "Interested" status to CRM lead status. When a lead replies positively and you mark them "Interested" in Lemlist, this should update HubSpot/Salesforce lead status
• Don't create duplicate contacts. Configure the integration to match on email. If the contact already exists in CRM, update the record. Don't create a new one
• Tag the campaign in CRM. Set a "Campaign" or "Sequence" property on synced contacts so you can attribute pipeline to specific Lemlist campaigns

Campaign Management

Pre-launch checklist

• [ ] Email provider connected and authorized
• [ ] Lemwarm enabled and running (at least 2 weeks before first cold send)
• [ ] Custom tracking domain configured
• [ ] Sending limits set (matching warmup status)
• [ ] Sending window: Mon-Fri, 8am-6pm
• [ ] Delay between emails: 60-180 seconds
• [ ] Campaign named descriptively: "[Persona] - [Angle] - [Date]"
• [ ] Leads imported with custom variables populated
• [ ] Leads email-verified before import
• [ ] Customer and competitor emails excluded
• [ ] Email templates follow cold-outbound-email-writing rules
• [ ] Variables tested with preview on 3-5 leads
• [ ] Fallback values set for all variables
• [ ] Unsubscribe link configured
• [ ] CRM integration active and sync tested
• [ ] A/B test set up (if testing)
• [ ] Campaign set to "Paused" for final review before launching

Ongoing management

Measurement

Anti-Pattern Check

• Lemwarm disabled. Lemlist's biggest advantage is built-in warmup. Disabling it and sending cold email from an unwarmed inbox guarantees spam folder placement. Enable Lemwarm on Day 1. Keep it running permanently
• No custom tracking domain. Shared tracking domains are a deliverability risk. 10 minutes of DNS setup permanently improves inbox placement. Do it before sending the first campaign
• Variables with no fallback values. {{firstName}} is blank for 5% of leads. The email reads "Hi , I saw..." Set fallbacks: {{firstName | default: "there"}}
• Launching without previewing. Lemlist's preview feature shows how each email renders for specific leads. Not using it = discovering broken variables on 200 live emails
• 200 leads imported on Day 1 with no warmup. A brand-new inbox sending 200 emails on Day 1 goes straight to spam. Warmup for 2-4 weeks first. Then import and send at warmed limits
• Same subject line for all 3 steps. Each step should have a different subject line reflecting a different angle. Same subject = same email in the prospect's mind. See cold-email-subject-lines skill
• Not marking leads as "Interested" or "Not Interested." Lemlist's lead status tracking only works if reps update it. "Interested" leads should be synced to CRM. "Not Interested" should be excluded from future campaigns. Update after every reply
• Running 10 campaigns simultaneously from one inbox. Each campaign adds to the daily send volume. 10 campaigns x 20 leads each = 200 emails/day from one inbox. This exceeds safe sending limits. Cap total volume across all campaigns at 50-60/day per inbox