> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.salestools.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Automation Builder: Build Custom Outreach Cadences

> Build any outreach cadence step by step — emails, LinkedIn, calls, research, and condition branches — with per-step prompts, delays, and exit rules.

The Automation Builder gives you complete, step-by-step control over your outreach cadence. You decide who enters, exactly what happens at each step and when, how Sally writes each message for each persona, when a lead exits, and what happens to other contacts at the same account. Unlike the AI SDR Builder's guided wizard, the Automation Builder is a blank canvas — build anything from a simple three-step email sequence to a complex multi-channel, branch-driven cadence. When you're done, activate it as a live agent.

<Note>
  The Automation Builder and the AI SDR Builder are two views of the same underlying page. The AI SDR Builder walks you through a guided wizard; the Automation Builder puts the full cadence editor in your hands. Switch between them using the tabs at the top of the builder page.
</Note>

## How to build and launch an automation

Open **AI Agents**, click **+ New agent**, and select **Automation**. The builder opens in Flow mode by default.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Choose your view: Plain English or Flow">
    The builder header shows two view modes. Select the one that suits your current task:

    <Tabs>
      <Tab title="Plain English">
        Plain English renders your cadence as readable, numbered "When / And / Then / Wait / If…" sentences. Use this view to read back your cadence at a glance, share it with a colleague for review, or get a quick sanity check on the overall logic — without navigating individual step cards.

        Plain English is a **read-only overview**. To make changes, switch back to Flow.
      </Tab>

      <Tab title="Flow">
        Flow is the full cadence editor — a vertical list of step cards you add, configure, reorder, and delete one by one. Every setting (delays, prompts, personas, rules, conditions) lives inside the step cards here.

        Build and edit in **Flow mode**.
      </Tab>
    </Tabs>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set who enters the cadence (Audience)">
    At the top of the Flow sits the **Enter when** card. Click **Configure** to open the trigger inspector and select an audience source:

    | Source                | What it enrolls                                                                                                           |
    | --------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
    | **Find Leads**        | New prospects matched by job title, industry, location, company size, technologies, and your saved ICP / persona profiles |
    | **My Leads**          | Existing leads from your Salestools account, filtered by tag                                                              |
    | **My Companies**      | Contacts at companies already on your account list                                                                        |
    | **Website visitors**  | People identified by the Visitor Tracker, filtered by industry and company size                                           |
    | **Intent signals**    | Companies surging on research topics, hiring for specific roles, or using specific technologies                           |
    | **LinkedIn URL list** | A direct list of LinkedIn profile URLs you paste in to enroll immediately                                                 |

    For Find Leads, My Leads, My Companies, and Intent signals sources, the **Audience** tab previews the real matching people grouped into four personas — Decision Maker, Champion, Influencer, End User — with a live match count. Leave everyone selected to enroll all matches, or check specific people to enroll only them. Other sources (Website visitors, LinkedIn URL list) resolve their audience at run time.

    <Tip>
      Both the **Enter when** card and the **Cadence summary** rail show a live audience line — for example, "120 prospects match · all enrolled." If it reads "0 prospects match," widen your filters before activating.
    </Tip>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add and order your steps">
    Click **Add a step** (or the **+** between any two rows) to insert a new touch. Choose from the following step types:

    **Outreach steps:**

    * **LinkedIn invite** — sends a connection request with an optional note
    * **LinkedIn message** — sends a direct message to a 1st-degree connection
    * **LinkedIn InMail** — sends a paid InMail to any LinkedIn member
    * **LinkedIn auto-visit** — automatically views a prospect's profile (triggers their visibility notification)
    * **Email** — AI-drafted message sent from your connected mailbox
    * **Call** — queues a call task in your power dialer
    * **WhatsApp** — sends a WhatsApp message
    * **SMS** — sends an SMS

    **Intelligence steps:**

    * **Company Deep Research** — Sally researches the prospect's company and uses the findings to personalize later steps. Can be added once.
    * **Persona Deep Research** — Sally researches the individual contact. Can be added once.

    **Logic steps:**

    * **Condition** — creates a branch in the cadence based on whether the lead replied, connected on LinkedIn, didn't connect, visited your site, opened an email, or clicked a link.

    Reorder any step at any time using the **↑ / ↓** arrows on its card.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set the delay for each step">
    Every step has its own delay before it fires. Open a step and set the wait time as a number plus a unit: **minutes**, **hours**, or **days**. Set the delay to **0** to fire the step immediately after the previous one completes.

    <Tip>
      Always set an explicit delay on each step — even if it's 0 for "send now" — so the cadence runs at the exact pace you intend and there are no surprises.
    </Tip>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Configure each step's message and prompts">
    Click any messaging step to open its **inspector panel**. Across the top is a persona row — **Decision Maker**, **Champion**, **Influencer**, **End User** — above four tabs:

    * **Preview** — generates the real AI message for the selected persona using a sample or researched lead. Use this to confirm how your prompt actually reads before launch.
    * **Prompt** — write a free-text AI direction. Type **/** to insert dynamic variables (lead first name, company name, title, and more). Alternatively, select a saved prompt from your AI Library.
    * **Personas** — write a distinct prompt for a specific persona. Click a persona in the row above to switch to it and write its prompt. A dot appears on any persona that already has its own prompt. Personas without a custom prompt fall back to the step's base prompt automatically.
    * **Rules** — set the subject line (for email steps), fine-tune the delay, add an optional internal note, and configure runtime guards.

    Research steps (**Company Deep Research**, **Persona Deep Research**) show a **Research** tab instead, where you set the research prompt, depth, and breadth.

    <Note>
      If you leave a step without any prompt, Sally writes the message per lead with no template — that's valid and often works well. Use the **Preview** tab to confirm what will actually be sent before you activate.
    </Note>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set exit rules, account focus, and CRM sync">
    Configure global behavior in the **right rail** of the builder:

    **Exit rules** — control when a lead automatically leaves the cadence:

    * On email reply (within N days)
    * On LinkedIn reply
    * On meeting booked
    * On no reply after N days
    * When already enrolled in another active cadence

    <Note>
      **Unsubscribe is always honored**, regardless of your exit rule configuration. Any lead who unsubscribes is immediately removed from the cadence and will never receive further outreach. This cannot be disabled.
    </Note>

    **Account focus** — when one contact at a company replies positively, automatically pause all other contacts at that account. Set the sentiment threshold, behavior, and pause window to match your sales motion. This prevents your team from emailing a deal that's already in motion.

    **CRM sync** — push the agent's activity to your connected integrations: **HubSpot**, **Salesforce**, or **Slack**. Activity syncs automatically once you activate if the integration is connected.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Test the cadence before activating">
    Click **Test run** in the builder header to open a dry preview. Pick a lead from your audience and the builder renders every step with real variables filled in, exactly as Sally would execute them.

    From the test run panel, click **Send a real test to your email address** to deliver the first step's actual message to yourself via a connected mailbox. This lets you see the full rendered email — including formatting, variables, and subject line — before any prospect sees it.

    <Warning>
      "Send a real test to your email address" only ever emails the signed-in user. It never sends to a prospect. Use it freely to validate your output before activating.
    </Warning>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Activate the agent">
    Click **🚀 Activate** to deploy. The builder creates the agent, enrolls your selected audience, and navigates you to the agent's detail page. From there, Sally begins working the cadence for every enrolled lead.

    <Warning>
      Activating deploys a live agent that sends real outreach immediately. Double-check your audience count, all step prompts, and delays in the **Test run** before clicking Activate.
    </Warning>
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Audience sources at a glance

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Find Leads — prospect for new contacts">
    Search for net-new prospects by job title, industry, location, company size, and technologies, with optional ICP and persona filters from your AI Library. The Audience tab shows a live count of matching people grouped by persona. Widen or narrow filters until the count looks right, then enroll all or pin specific individuals.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="My Leads and My Companies — use existing data">
    Pull from contacts and accounts already in your Salestools workspace. Filter by tag to target a specific segment — for example, "Cold Q3 pipeline" or "Conference attendees." These sources are ideal for re-engagement or follow-up cadences.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Website visitors — enroll engaged visitors">
    Enroll people identified by the Salestools Visitor Tracker as they arrive on your site. Apply industry and company-size filters to focus on your ICP. The audience resolves at run time as new visitors are identified.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Intent signals — reach accounts showing buying signals">
    Target companies surging on research topics relevant to your product, actively hiring for roles that indicate a buying need, or using specific technologies. Intent-based enrollment means every prospect enters the cadence when they're most likely to be receptive.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="LinkedIn URL list — enroll a specific list">
    Paste a list of LinkedIn profile URLs to enroll those exact people. Use this for event follow-up, targeted account lists, or any scenario where you've already identified the exact individuals you want to reach.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Related

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