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Automation Club
  • MailExample output

    Picking up the subscriptions idea

    Acme Studio

    to Northwind Coffee

    Hi [ask: contact's first name],

    Your bean shop has been live for almost a year now. Last year you suggested we talk about subscriptions after Christmas, and that conversation never happened.

    With Christmas coming round again, it feels like the right moment to pick it up. We can sketch how subscriptions could work in the shop you already have, so you can see what is involved before deciding anything.

    Are subscriptions still something you want for the shop?

    Acme Studio

    Made with Claude Code · Playbook

    Mail · Email

    Step 3: a past client. A real run for Acme Studio, a made-up web studio. Every fact comes from its rough list; the name is left for you to fill.

  • Google SheetsPipelineExample output

    Pipeline

    90

    Total total

    ContactTypeNext stepNext dateStatusTotalRecencyFitWarmthWhat they might need nowLast contactHow it ended
    Northwind CoffeePast clientPast client email16 Oct 2026To send8233Subscriptions on the bean shop (guess)late 2025Online bean shop went live Nov 2025. Very happy. Suggested talking about subscriptions after Christmas, then never came back to it. Also a referral source: introduced us to the bakery.
    Bakery (two shops)Past clientPast client email15 Oct 2026To send8233Online cake preorders for both shops (guess)Mar 2026New website spring 2024. Good client, paid on time. In Mar 2026 mentioned wanting online cake preorders one day. Introduced to us by Northwind Coffee.
    Local gymPast client4211Unclear, maybe updates to the landing page (guess)unknownLanding page Jan 2025. Paid two months late after three reminders. Not keen.
    Dental clinicQuiet proposalProposal follow-up14 Oct 2026To send7313The booking page as proposed (guess)21 Sep 2026Proposal for a new booking page sent 21 Sep 2026, $3,200. They said it looked good, then nothing.
    Brightpath ConsultingQuiet proposalProposal follow-up13 Oct 2026To send7313The site refresh, once the October budget is in place (guess)Aug 2026Proposal for a site refresh sent Aug 2026, $4,500. They replied: not until Q4, budget resets in October.
    Wine barAsked but did not hireEnquiry follow-up19 Oct 2026To send8332Menu page and events calendar, starting with the ideas we promised (guess)Jun 2026Enquired Jun 2026 about a new menu page and events calendar. Had a call. We said we would send ideas and probably never did.
    FloristPast clientPast client email23 Oct 2026To send8233A refresh of the 2023 site (guess)Dec 2025Small site in 2023. Lovely to work with. Sends us a message every Christmas.
    Food truckAsked but did not hireEnquiry follow-up26 Oct 2026To send9333The one-page site, around $900, in 2027 (guess)Aug 2026Met at the Saturday market Aug 2026. Asked what a simple one-page site would cost; we said around $900. They said next year probably.
    Tea shopPast client6132Probably nothing while the site is in-house (guess)unknownClient in 2022. They hired someone in-house in 2024 and moved the site.
    Juice barAsked but did not hireProposal follow-up20 Oct 2026To send9333Help with online ordering if the template builder falls short (guess)Jul 2026Proposal for a site with online ordering sent Jul 2026, $3,800. They chose a cheaper template builder. Parted on good terms.
    Cooking schoolAsked but did not hireEnquiry follow-up21 Oct 2026To send8332A booking page, which we now build (guess)May 2026Asked about a booking system May 2026. We said it was not something we do.
    Brewery taproomPast clientReferral ask22 Oct 2026To send8233More event pages or updates for tasting nights (guess)unknownEvents page in 2025. Great results: they said bookings for tasting nights went up. Owner is very connected with other bars in town.
    Made with Claude Code · Playbook

    Google Sheets · Spreadsheet

    Step 2: the scored pipeline. Twelve warm contacts scored on recency, fit and warmth. Ten picks spread over two weeks; the two left out are highlighted.

  • MailExample output

    Your menu page and events calendar

    Acme Studio

    to A wine bar

    Hi [ask: contact's first name],

    In June you asked us about a new menu page and an events calendar, and we talked it through on a call. We said we would send you some ideas afterwards.

    An easy first step would be for us to send those ideas now, so you can see the direction before committing to anything.

    Reply with whichever fits:

    1. Yes, let's talk
    2. Not now, try me in [month]
    3. No, thanks

    No is a perfectly fine answer, and we will close the file.

    Acme Studio

    Made with Claude Code · Playbook

    Mail · Email

    Step 4: an enquiry that went quiet. One of six follow-ups. This one is for an enquiry that never got a proposal, so it names what was asked about and when.

  • MailExample output

    Your tasting nights, and a quick question

    Acme Studio

    to A brewery taproom

    Hi [ask: owner's first name],

    Thank you for telling us that bookings for your tasting nights went up after we built your events page.

    You know a lot of the bars in town. The places we help most are easy to spot: a bar or cafe in town that puts on good nights but could fill more seats, where the only way to find out what is on is to ask at the bar.

    Does anyone come to mind?

    If so, here is a line you can forward as is:

    "Acme Studio built our events page, and bookings for our tasting nights went up. Worth a chat: [ask: Acme Studio's email or website]"

    Acme Studio

    Made with Claude Code · Playbook

    Mail · Email

    Step 5: a referral ask. To the client whose events page worked, with a line they can forward as it is.

  • Google SheetsLeadsExample output

    Leads

    2,917

    Total reviews

    BusinessAreaWebsiteRatingReviewsWhy it looks like your best clients
    ROCOnot listedrococoffee.co.uk5.0134A coffee shop, the same trade as Northwind Coffee, rated 5.0 from 134 reviews, with its own website.
    Coffee Clubnot listedcoffeeclubbristol.co.uk5.0103Listed as a cafe, the food and drink trade your best clients are in, rated 5.0 from 103 reviews, with a website.
    Triple Co RoastMontpeliertriplecoroast.com5.090A coffee shop in Montpelier rated 5.0 from 90 reviews, with its own website.
    Malago CoffeeBedminsternone5.036A coffee shop in Bedminster rated 5.0 from 36 reviews. The listing shows no website.
    Community Jam Cafenot listednone5.021Listed as a cafe and rated 5.0, though from 21 reviews. No website listed.
    One B Coffee House {Cotham Hill}CothamInstagram page only4.9211A coffee shop in Cotham rated 4.9 from 211 reviews. The listing links to Instagram, not a website.
    Two Ways Caffè-Barnot listedtwowayscafe.com4.9190Listed as a coffee shop, rated 4.9 from 190 reviews, with a website.
    Can't Dance CoffeeCliftoncantdancecoffee.co.uk4.9166A coffee shop in Clifton rated 4.9 from 166 reviews, with a website.
    Interlude Coffeenot listedinterludecoffee.co.uk4.9116A coffee shop rated 4.9 from 116 reviews, with a website.
    Mocha Mocha College Squarenot listednone4.998A coffee shop rated 4.9 from 98 reviews. No website listed.
    Boona Boona Coffee RoastersBedminsterboonaboona.co.uk4.990Listed as a cafe in Bedminster, rated 4.9 from 90 reviews, with a website.
    Motmot Coffee & BarBedminsternone4.965A coffee shop in Bedminster rated 4.9 from 65 reviews. No website listed.
    Hatter House Cafe- Park Streetnot listedhatterhousecafe.co.uk4.928A coffee shop rated 4.9 from 28 reviews, with a website. A second Hatter House listing also came up (see below).
    Full Court Pressnot listedfcp.coffee4.8872A coffee shop rated 4.8 from 872 reviews, the most of anyone in this table, with a website.
    Small Street Espressonot listedsmallstreetespresso.co.uk4.8697A coffee shop rated 4.8 from 697 reviews, with a website.
    Made with Claude Code · Playbook

    Google Sheets · Spreadsheet

    Step 6: businesses like your best clients. One paid Apify run on 12 October ($0.20, 50 Bristol listings), then the 15 picks. Six places named like people were left out. The reply's notes are not shown.

Works with

  • Claude
  • Claude Code
  • ChatGPT
  • +24 more

Not affiliated with or endorsed by the companies shown.

Clients and salesPlaybookMembers

Fill next month's pipeline without cold pitching

Find the warm leads you already have, pick ten for this month and get a drafted email for each one.

Version 1.0Updated 12 Oct 2026

Needs access to
The web
Permissions
Browses the web
Time to result (our estimate)
15 minutes to set up, 45 minutes a run

Example

Example session

  1. Step 1: Build your warm list
  2. You

    Pasted the step 1 prompt with my rough notes on twelve past clients, quiet proposals and people who asked about our work.

  3. Your AI

    Here is your list as one table, in the order you gave it.

  4. Step 2: Pick this month's ten
  5. You

    Pasted the step 2 prompt.

  6. Your AI

    Here are your ten, scored by your rules. The table keeps your sheet's row order, and the two contacts left out have no next step.

  7. Steps 3 to 5: Write the emails
  8. You

    Pasted the step 3, 4 and 5 prompts, one at a time.

  9. Your AI

    Six picks get a follow-up: three proposals and three enquiries. Here they are in send order.

  10. Step 6 (optional, paid): Find businesses like your best clients
  11. You

    Pasted the step 6 prompt for independent coffee shops in Bristol, up to 50 places.

  12. Your AI

    I've looked up the current price of the Google Maps scraper (compass/crawler-google-places). Nothing has run yet. Should I run it? It will cost about $0.20.

  13. You

    Yes, go ahead. Rank them the same.

  14. Your AI

    The run finished. It scraped 50 places and Apify charged $0.2002, the same as the estimate.

What comes out
MailExample output

Picking up the subscriptions idea

Acme Studio

to Northwind Coffee

Hi [ask: contact's first name],

Your bean shop has been live for almost a year now. Last year you suggested we talk about subscriptions after Christmas, and that conversation never happened.

With Christmas coming round again, it feels like the right moment to pick it up. We can sketch how subscriptions could work in the shop you already have, so you can see what is involved before deciding anything.

Are subscriptions still something you want for the shop?

Acme Studio

Made with Claude Code · Playbook

Fit

About this item

Your next client may already be in your contacts: a past client who said "maybe in the spring", a proposal that went quiet, a happy client who knows ten people like them. This playbook puts them in one sheet, picks the ten worth writing to this month and drafts every email.

No cold lists and no sequences. You send each email yourself, and a ten minute routine each Monday keeps the follow-ups moving. The example is a real run for a made-up web design studio, including one paid run of the optional Google Maps step on real coffee shop listings.

What you get

  • One pipeline sheet of every warm contact you have
  • Ten scored picks for this month with a reason for each
  • A drafted email for each pick, from reactivation to referral ask
  • A ten minute Monday routine for follow-ups

Good fit

  • Freelancers and small studios with a few years of past clients and a patchy pipeline
  • Anyone who hates cold outreach

Not for

  • Brand new businesses with no past clients or contacts yet
  • High volume sales teams with a CRM

Who it is for

Skill level: Use AI weekly

How to use

The steps

  1. Step 1: Build your warm list

    Turns your rough list of past clients, quiet proposals and contacts into one pipeline table.

    Runs in Claude

  2. Step 2: Pick this month's ten

    Scores everyone on recency, fit and warmth, picks ten and spreads them over two weeks.

    Runs in Claude

  3. Step 3: Write to past clients

    Drafts an email for each past client with one specific reason to talk again.

    Runs in Claude

  4. Step 4: Close the loop on quiet proposals and enquiries

    Drafts a follow-up for each quiet proposal or enquiry that makes yes, not now or no easy to say.

    Runs in Claude

  5. Step 5: Ask for referrals

    Drafts a referral ask that describes exactly who you help, with a line they can forward.

    Runs in Claude

  6. Step 6: Find businesses like your best clientsOptional

    Searches Google Maps through Apify's connector for local businesses like your best clients, after showing the cost.

    Runs in Claude

How to use it

Download the playbook and open README.md. Each step says which tool it runs in.

Trust

What's inside

  • 01-warm-list.md1.1 KB
  • 02-pick-ten.md970 B
  • 03-past-clients.md809 B
  • 04-quiet-proposals.md919 B
  • 05-referrals.md750 B
  • 06-google-maps-leads.md2.6 KB
  • pipeline.csv185 B
  • README.md2.5 KB

File names and sizes only. The files come with membership.

Needs access to

  • The webReads

    Optional step 6 only. Reads public Google Maps listings through Apify's connector

Permissions required

  • Browses the web

    ThroughThe web

Requirements

You bring

  • A rough list of past clients, quiet proposals and people who asked about your work
  • A spreadsheet app for the pipeline sheet
  • Optional step 6: an Apify account and its hosted connector (source: github.com/apify/apify-mcp-server, MIT)

Outside costs

  • Optional step 6: Apify Google Maps runs (price on 12 October 2026): $0.004 a place plus a small run fee

Tested on

VerifiedTested in the last 90 days
  • Claude Code · Claude Opus 5.512 Oct 2026 · Steps 1 to 5, and the optional Apify step 6 run once on 12 October for $0.20 (50 places).

Known limitations

  • It drafts every email. You read and send each one yourself.
  • It only knows what you put in your list, so a thin list gives fewer picks.
  • The optional Google Maps step costs money per run, charged by Apify, and finds businesses you still need to get to know.

More

Questions

Does it send anything?
No. It drafts every email in the chat for you to read, change and send from your own inbox. Nothing connects to your email.
Why not cold emails?
An email to someone who already knows your work can start from something real you share, so it is easier to write well and easier to answer. This playbook starts with those people and only reaches for new names if your list is short.
What does the Google Maps step cost?
It uses Apify. When we checked on 12 October 2026, its Google Maps scraper charged $0.004 per place ($4 per 1,000) on Apify's free plan, less on paid plans, plus a small fee each time a run starts and more for extra details. Our 50 place test run cost $0.20. The step asks Claude to show the current price and wait for your yes before each run. You can skip the step entirely.
Is Apify part of the playbook?
No. You connect Apify's own hosted server to Claude yourself. It is built on Apify's open-source project at https://github.com/apify/apify-mcp-server, and we never bundle or resell it.