Learning Objective
By the end of this guide, you'll know how to enable auto-launch for your campaigns, configure deliverability status criteria to control which leads get automatically launched, and use this feature to maintain continuous outreach momentum without manual approval.
Why This Matters
Manual lead review and launching work well for small, highly targeted campaigns. But when you're running ongoing outreach or adding leads continuously, manual launching becomes a bottleneck. You have to log in, check leads, and launch them repeatedly, wasting time and creating delays.
Auto-launch solves this by automatically starting outreach for new leads as soon as they meet your criteria. This enables:
Continuous momentum – Leads enter your sequence immediately when ready, no delay waiting for manual review
Time savings – No more daily logins just to approve and launch leads
Scalability – Add hundreds of leads and they launch automatically without your involvement
Consistency – Every lead gets fast response time
This is especially powerful for ongoing lead generation, CRM integrations, or high-volume campaigns where leads trickle in over time.
Prerequisites
Before enabling auto-launch:
Your campaign sequence is complete and tested – Auto-launch starts outreach automatically, so your emails should be finalized
Email verification is set up – Auto-launch relies on deliverability status, and deliverability status is determined by running lemlist's Email Finder & Verifier
Important: Deliverability status can’t be imported – Even if your CSV/provider includes a “deliverable” label, lemlist won’t use imported values as the campaign deliverability status. Leads must be verified in lemlist to get a deliverability status that auto-launch can act on.
Your sending limits are configured – Auto-launch respects daily sending limits, but make sure they're set appropriately
How Auto-Launch Works
Auto-launch monitors your campaign for new leads. When a lead is added, and their deliverability status matches your selected criteria, lemlist automatically:
Moves the lead from "To Launch" to active campaign status
Starts sending the sequence according to the lemlist sending algorithm and your schedule, and delays
Continues monitoring for new leads to auto-launch
Key trigger: Deliverability status (from Email Verifier)
Auto-launch uses deliverability status (Deliverable, Risky, Not verified, Undeliverable, etc.) as the condition. These statuses are assigned/updated by lemlist’s Email Finder & Verifier. You can’t import a deliverability status into lemlist and expect auto-launch to use it.
Example:
You select Deliverable as the auto-launch status
You add/import new leads (they may initially appear as Not verified)
Once you verify those leads in lemlist and they become Deliverable, lemlist automatically launches them into the sequence
Leads verified as Undeliverable are NOT auto-launched (they stay in "To Launch" for manual review)
This gives you control over data quality while automating the launch process.
Core Lesson: Step-by-Step Workflow
Phase 1: Complete Your Campaign Setup
Step 1: Build your sequence
Before enabling auto-launch, complete your campaign sequence in the Sequence tab. Make sure all emails, LinkedIn steps, and delays are configured and tested.
💡 Important: Auto-launch starts outreach automatically. Don't enable it until your sequence is finalized.
Step 2: Verify your sending schedule
Go to campaign Settings and confirm your sending schedule (which days/times emails send) and daily sending limits.
Auto-launch respects these settings, so ensure they're configured correctly.
Phase 2: Enable Auto-Launch
Step 3: Open the campaign
From the left sidebar, click Campaigns, then open the campaign you want to enable auto-launch for.
Step 4: Navigate to the Launch tab
Inside the campaign, click Launch, then review the leads waiting in To launch.
Step 5: Access auto-launch settings
In the To launch section, click the three dots (⋯), then select Auto launch.
Phase 3: Configure Deliverability Status Criteria
Step 6: Enable auto-launch and choose eligible statuses
In the auto-launch pop-up:
Turn on Enable auto launch for this campaign
Select which deliverability statuses should be auto-launched (recommended: Deliverable only)
Recommended setup for most campaigns:
Select Deliverable only. This ensures only verified deliverable emails are auto-launched.
For more aggressive outreach:
You can consider including other statuses, but be aware that they may increase bounce risk or reduce data quality.
💡 Best practice: Start with the deliverable only. Once you're comfortable, expand the criteria if needed.
Step 7: Save your auto-launch settings
Click Save auto-launch settings to activate auto-launch with your selected criteria.
From this point forward, any newly added lead that becomes verified with a matching deliverability status will automatically launch into your sequence.
Phase 4: Verify Auto-Launch is Working
Step 8: Import test leads
Add a small batch of leads (5-10) to test that auto-launch is working correctly.
Note: If the leads haven’t been verified in lemlist yet, they may show as Not verified and won’t auto-launch if you selected Deliverable only.
Step 9: Check lead status
Go to the Lead list tab and verify that leads with matching deliverability statuses have moved from To launch to In progress (or another active status).
This confirms auto-launch is functioning.
Step 10: Monitor campaign activity
Check that emails are being scheduled and sent according to your campaign settings.
If leads aren't launching, review your deliverability status criteria and confirm the leads have been verified in lemlist.
Understanding Deliverability Statuses
Deliverability status determines whether a lead qualifies for auto-launch.
Important: Deliverability status used by auto-launch is produced by lemlist’s Email Finder & Verifier. You can’t import deliverability status values into lemlist for auto-launch to use.
Here’s what each status means in the auto-launch settings:
Deliverable
The email address is confirmed by the recipient's provider and is safe to send.
Recommended for auto-launch
Risky
The email address might result in a bounce or low engagement. This includes addresses marked as Accept-All, Full Mailbox, or Disposable.
Not recommended for auto-launch – review manually
Unknown
The address is either syntactically incorrect or does not exist.
Not recommended for auto-launch – review/fix the address source
Undeliverable
No response was received from the email provider.
Not recommended for auto-launch – likely to bounce and harm sender reputation
Not verified
Email hasn't been verified in lemlist yet
Recommended to verify before launching (or include this status only if you accept higher risk)
💡 Pro tip: Verify leads in lemlist before expecting auto-launch to pick them up. This improves auto-launch effectiveness and protects your sender reputation.
Verifying Deliverability Status in Your Lead List
Step 1: Go to the Lead list tab
Open your campaign and click Lead list.
Step 2: Check the Deliverability column
Look for the Deliverability column in your lead table. Each lead shows their verification status (for example, Deliverable or Not verified).
Step 3: Use Email Finder & Verifier if needed
If many leads show unverified statuses or you need to verify emails:
Select leads to verify
Click Enrich leads and choose Verify emails or Find verified emails
lemlist uses credits from your plan to verify email addresses
This updates deliverability statuses so auto-launch can process leads correctly.
Practical Application / Real-Life Example
Lead Generation Agency Running Continuous Outreach
A lead generation agency runs campaigns for multiple clients. They use Zapier to automatically add new leads to lemlist campaigns as soon as they're scraped from LinkedIn or captured via landing pages.
Their setup:
Campaign configuration:
Sequence: 4-step email outreach with 2-3 day delays
Sending schedule: Monday-Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM
Daily limit: 100 emails per email sender
Auto-launch configuration:
Deliverability criteria: Deliverable only
Leads are verified in lemlist so they receive an accurate deliverability status
Workflow:
Zapier adds 20-30 new leads daily to the lemlist campaign
Leads are verified in lemlist (so they become Deliverable, Risky, Unknown, etc.)
Leads with Deliverable status auto-launch into the sequence
Leads with Not verified, Risky, Unknown, or Undeliverable remain in To launch for manual review
Results:
Zero manual launching for most leads (those that are deliverable)
Increase in reply rates due to faster launch timing
Team saves hours/week previously spent on manual lead launching
Key takeaway: Auto-launch combined with verification creates a truly hands-off outreach system while keeping email quality under control.
When to Use Auto-Launch
Auto-launch is ideal for:
✅ Ongoing lead generation campaigns where leads are added continuously
✅ CRM or Zapier integrations that push new leads to lemlist automatically
✅ High-volume outreach where manual review doesn't scale
✅ Predictable, tested sequences that don't need lead-by-lead customization
✅ Campaigns with strong email verification to ensure data quality
Manual launch is better for:
❌ Highly personalized outreach where each lead needs a custom review
❌ Small, strategic campaigns with VIP prospects requiring individual attention
❌ Untested sequences that might need adjustments after the first few sends
❌ Campaigns with unverified email data where you need to manually check quality
Troubleshooting
Issue: Auto-launch is enabled, but leads aren't launching automatically
Root cause: Leads’ deliverability statuses don’t match your selected criteria, or the leads haven’t been verified in lemlist yet.
Fix:
Check the deliverability status of leads in your To launch section
If you selected Deliverable only and leads are Not verified, they won’t launch
Run Email Finder & Verifier to generate/update deliverability status (you can’t import deliverability status into lemlist)
Review your auto-launch settings to confirm the correct statuses are selected
Issue: Too many leads are auto-launching and hitting my daily sending limit
Root cause: Large batches of verified leads match your criteria at once.
Fix:
Increase your daily sending limit in account settings (our recommendation is not to send more than 100 emails per day)
Import/verify leads in smaller batches spread across multiple days
Use more restrictive criteria (e.g., Deliverable only)
lemlist will queue leads and send according to lemlist sending algorithm, but this creates delays
Issue: I enabled auto-launch but want to review leads before they send
Root cause: Auto-launch and manual review are mutually exclusive
Fix:
Disable auto-launch in the three-dot menu
Leads will return to requiring manual approval in the To launch section
Alternatively, keep auto-launch enabled but only select very strict criteria (e.g., Deliverable)
Issue: Auto-launch sent emails to invalid addresses
Root cause: Verification wasn’t performed (or criteria included riskier statuses), or lead source quality is poor.
Fix:
Verify emails in lemlist before relying on auto-launch
Make sure your auto-launch criteria exclude undeliverable/risky/unknown statuses
Review your lead import source. If emails are coming from scraped or purchased lists, they may be low quality
Optimization Tips
Verify in lemlist (don’t rely on imported labels): Auto-launch uses lemlist deliverability status from Email Finder & Verifier. Imported “deliverable” fields won’t drive auto-launch.
Start conservative: Begin with Deliverable only as your auto-launch criteria. Once you're confident in lead quality, expand if needed.
Monitor bounce rates: Track your campaign bounce rate in analytics. If it rises above 3-5%, review your auto-launch criteria and lead sources.
Use with CRM integrations: Combine auto-launch with Zapier, Make, or native CRM integrations for fully automated lead-to-launch pipelines.
Set appropriate daily limits: Make sure your daily sending limit can handle the volume of auto-launched leads. If you're importing 100 leads/day but your limit is 50, you'll create a backlog.
Segment by email quality: Create separate campaigns for higher-quality leads vs. riskier/unverified leads with different auto-launch settings and messaging approaches.
Test with small batches first: Before enabling auto-launch on a high-volume campaign, test with 50-100 leads to ensure everything works as expected.
Combine with lead scoring: If you have lead scoring data (via custom variables), use conditions in your sequence to adapt messaging based on lead quality, even if they auto-launch.
Review "To launch" weekly: Even with auto-launch enabled, check your To launch section weekly for leads that didn't meet criteria. Decide whether to manually launch or exclude them.
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