Heey lemlister! 👋
In this guide, we will walk you through the new functionality in sequence building that allows you to mark certain automated steps as manual instead. This feature provides more flexibility and control when managing campaigns and tasks, particularly when you need to send emails or LinkedIn messages manually. Here's how the process works and how it integrates with the overall sequence and tasks flow.
What Steps Can Be Marked as Manual?
This option is available only for the following types of steps in your sequence:
Email
LinkedIn Message
LinkedIn Voice Message
LinkedIn Invitation
Once a step is marked as manual, it allows you to manage and send these steps manually, rather than relying on the automation to send them out. 🤩
How to Mark a Step as Manual in the Sequence Builder
When you're building your sequence, you will see a new toggle option in the step panel to mark a step as manual.
Here’s what happens when you enable it:
Manual Steps Indicator: Once a step is marked as manual, a small indicator will appear below the step in the sequence. This makes it clear which steps require manual intervention, both in the sequence builder and throughout the campaign.
Visual Example: As seen in the image above, the "mark" below the step will indicate that the step is manual, making it easy to identify.
Manual Steps in the Launch Section
After marking steps as manual in the sequence builder, you will see these steps appear in the Launch Section.
Before Launch:
A visual indicator (the "mark") shows which steps are manual in the sequence.
This is displayed in both the "To Launch" and "Launched" sections.
Once Launched:
The same visual cue (the "mark") will show that the step is manual.
Tasks and Inbox: Managing Manual Tasks
When a step is marked as manual, it directly impacts the Tasks and Inbox sections of your campaign. Here’s how it works:
👉 Task Creation
For instance, imagine you have a campaign with 4 emails, and only the 3rd email is marked as manual. Once the second email is sent, a manual task to send the third email will automatically be created for you.
Task Features:
The task will have the same content, subject, and sender as the original email created in the campaign. Any variables will be replaced with the lead’s information (e.g., "Hey {{first_name}}" will appear as "Hey David" if the lead's name is David).
You can edit the content, subject, or other parts of the email before sending it.
If you make changes in the sequence (like altering the email content), these changes will be reflected in the tasks that haven’t been edited.
When you’re ready to send a manual email, follow these steps:
Task Completion: The task will be marked as done as soon as the email is scheduled. No need to mark the task as "done" manually.
Queueing the Email: When you schedule the email to be sent, it will be queued just like it would be if it were part of an automated sequence. The button for scheduling the email will read "Schedule & mark as done" or "Queue email & mark as done".
Sending Limits: Just like automated emails, manual emails will count toward your sending limits.
What Happens When an Email is Sent Manually?
When a manual email is sent through the task system, a special activity is logged, which will be visible in the activity list.
However, these activities are not included in the reports at the moment, as the system does not differentiate between manual and automated sends in the reports.
👉 Integration with CRM (HubSpot and Salesforce)
For users who have connected their CRM (e.g., HubSpot or Salesforce) with lemlist, any manual email tasks created in lemlist will also generate a task in the CRM. Here's the process flow:
You create a manual email step in lemlist.
The task is created in both lemlist and the CRM.
The CRM user can view the task and click the link to complete the task in lemlist.
Once completed in lemlist, the task will be marked as done in both lemlist and the CRM.
This integration ensures that manual tasks are synced between your campaign platform and CRM.
📖 Key Considerations and FAQs
Campaign Paused: If the campaign is paused, the due date for manual tasks remains the same, but the "Schedule & mark as done" button will be disabled until the campaign is resumed.
Switching Back to Automated: Once a campaign is launched, you cannot change a step from manual to non-manual.
Handling Missing or Bounced Emails: If a lead doesn’t have an email or if their email bounces, the manual email step will be skipped, and no task will be created.
Marking steps as manual offers additional flexibility in your sequences, particularly for email and LinkedIn outreach.
By giving you more control over how and when messages are sent, this new feature ensures that you can effectively manage your tasks while maintaining the automation process where needed. Whether you're manually sending an email or LinkedIn message, the steps are easy to track and manage through the sequence, task, and CRM integrations. 🙌
If you have any questions or need further assistance with marking steps as manual, don't hesitate to reach out to our support team. We're here to help! 🤗