YourOutreachSUCKS
    Quick reference

    The cheat sheet

    Every rule from the guide, stripped to its core. No prose. No examples. Just the list - for before you hit send.

    Rules by chapter
    I - Research & TargetingR1-R4
    R1
    100-person test. Could this opening be sent unchanged to 100 people with the same title? If yes, rewrite it.
    R2
    Name the thing. A post, a hire, a launch. Something specific. "Your impressive background" is not research.
    R3
    Three-dimension ICP. Industry + stage + role. "Series B SaaS VP of Sales" is an ICP. "Revenue teams" is not.
    R4
    Exclusion test. Your ICP should exclude most companies. If it doesn't, it's too broad.
    II - The Opening LineR5-R7
    R5
    QA your merge fields. Check every variable fires. A visible [First Name] is an auto-fail. Non-negotiable.
    R6
    No compliment pivots. If you open with a compliment and immediately pitch, the reader sees the switch. It kills the warmth.
    R7
    First sentence buys the second. Your opener does one job. Not introduce the company - earn the next sentence.
    III - Value PropositionR8-R10
    R8
    One customer, one number. "Mosaic cut ramp time from 4 hours to 40 minutes" beats every abstract description.
    R9
    Substitution test. Replace your name with a competitor's. If the sentence still works, you haven't said anything specific.
    R10
    No buzzwords as placeholders. Every abstraction is a missed claim. AI-powered, scalable, outcomes-driven - remove them and put something real in their place.
    IV - The AskR11-R13
    R11
    Earn the ask. The calendar request lands only if every prior element has done its job. Ask too early and it poisons the message.
    R12
    Smaller ask than you think. A 2-minute video, a one-pager, a specific question. Not 30 minutes. Not "let's connect."
    R13
    No manufactured urgency. "Before your competitors do" is detectable. Real urgency doesn't announce itself.
    Pre-send checklist
    Final pre-send audit0 / 7 checked
    All offense types at a glance
    OffenseCategorySeverityDefinition (one line)
    FAKE-RESEARCHOpeningCriticalGeneric compliments with zero specifics. No verifiable research.
    MERGE-FAILExecutionAuto-failVisible template variable. Score capped at 2.0.
    AI-WRITINGExecutionAuto-failObviously AI-generated copy. Score capped at 2.0.
    VAGUE-ICPTargetingCritical"Companies like yours." No industry, role, or specificity.
    PREMATURE-ASKCloseCriticalCalendar request before any value is established.
    PAIN-ASSUMPTIONOpeningMajorDeclares a problem the reader has without evidence it applies to them.
    BUZZWORD-LOADExecutionMajorDensity over meaning. Abstractions as placeholders for claims.
    HUMBLE-BRAG-PIVOTOpeningMinorCompliment immediately followed by pitch. Bait-and-switch.
    FOMO-BAITCloseMajor"Before your competitors do." Urgency manufactured without cause.
    WALL-OF-TEXTExecutionMinorNo paragraph breaks, no scannable structure.
    REPLY-ALL-ENERGYCloseMinorOverfamiliar tone or asking the recipient to do discovery for free.