From list to outreach: Create a campaign

Create the campaign

A campaign always belongs to one list. You can start from either side:

• Campaigns in the sidebar → New Campaign, then Create campaign for an existing list or Create new list & campaign.
• In a list without a campaign, Create new Campaign in the list header.

The Create Campaign window has three sections:

• Campaign: a Campaign Name (at least 5 characters), Stop Contacting Colleagues After a Reply, the tracking options, and Stop Campaign At (an end date).
• Schedule: the time zone and the sending times for each weekday. Messages only go out inside these times.
• Senders: the users who send for this campaign. At least one must be active. With several senders, each lead gets one of them at random, and all follow-ups for that lead come from the same sender.

Stop Contacting Colleagues After a Reply ends the campaign for the other people at a company as soon as one of them replies. Their remaining steps are cancelled for good. Out-of-office notices and bounces do not count as replies.

Duplicate or copy a campaign

To reuse a campaign, use Duplicate on it, or bring campaigns over from another list with Copy from other list on the list's campaigns page. The copy is named after the original with "(Copy)" added.

• The copy starts without senders, so it shows Invalid until you pick who sends under Senders.
• The copy does not take over the original's Stop Campaign At date. On a list with event outreach switched on, it ends on the event's end date; otherwise it has no end date. Set one in the campaign settings if you need it.

Build the sequence

Add steps with Add step:

Add conditions to split the path, for example Lead accepted invitation, Lead is connected, Lead has email, Lead has linkedin, Lead Priority, or, after an email step, E-Mail has been opened or E-Mail has been clicked.

Each step waits "after N days" (0 to 30) after the previous one; with 0 it goes out at the earliest 10 minutes later. The first step goes out in the next sending window.

There is no Save button: the builder saves as you type, and the status chip shows Saving…, then Saved with the time. If it shows Not saved, click Retry.

If you go to another page while a change is still being saved, Signalist asks first: Save and leave saves the change and then opens the page, Leave without saving drops the change, and Cancel keeps you in the builder. Switching to another campaign of the same list does not ask: your change is saved before the builder switches.

The builder warns you about steps that cannot reach every lead on a path, for example a LinkedIn message to leads who have not accepted your invitation, or an email step for leads without an address. These warnings do not block saving, so read them.

Check before you start

• The campaign status is not Invalid. An invalid campaign is missing a sender or has an empty step and cannot accept leads; hover the badge to see what is missing.
• The senders are connected and have the daily limits you want.
• Invitation notes stay under 200 characters after personalisation (300 with LinkedIn Premium or Sales Navigator).
• You have read the messages for a few different leads, in the language they speak.
• If you set Stop Campaign At, the date is still in the future.

Start and add leads

• Click Activate campaign in the builder, or Resume in the Campaigns overview. If Signalist cannot activate the campaign, the Campaigns table tells you why, for example when its end date has already passed.
• Add leads from the list's Reach out menu (Add to campaign) or from Review to send. Add to campaign & send out starts the outreach; Assign to campaign only links the leads.
• In a list, Select → All adds every lead that matches the list's current search and filters, including leads on other pages.
• If the campaign is not running yet, Signalist asks Start the campaign? Choose Start campaign & assign to start this campaign, or Assign only to keep it stopped. Other campaigns on the list are not affected.

Start with a small group of leads, watch the Outbox and the first replies, and only then add more.

While the campaign runs

• A lead who replies leaves the sequence and moves to the Inbox. An out-of-office reply only moves the next step to the date the lead is back.
• Once a step has been sent, the campaign is locked: you can still edit texts, but not the senders or the channels. To change those, duplicate the campaign and use the copy.
• A campaign pauses itself when a connection note is too long or it has no active sender left. Every sender gets an email and the Dashboard shows the issue. Fix the campaign and activate it again.
• If a message contains an AI snippet and your workspace is out of credits when it is due, that step is not sent. The Outbox marks it as failed and says why, and the lead's next step still runs at its usual time. Top up credits under Company Settings → Plans & Billing.
• Use Pause and Resume in the Campaigns overview to stop and restart it.

Troubleshooting

Frequently asked questions

Can one campaign serve several lists?

No. A campaign belongs to one list. Create a campaign per list, use New campaign for this list to add another campaign to the same list, or use Copy from other list to reuse campaigns from another list.

Which end date does a copied campaign get?

Not the original's. On a list with event outreach switched on, the copy ends on the event's end date; otherwise it has no end date until you set Stop Campaign At.

Does assigning a lead send immediately?

Only if the campaign is running and you chose Add to campaign & send out. The first step then goes out in the next sending window.

Can I change the sequence after starting?

You can always edit texts. Once a step has been sent, senders and channels are locked.

What happens when a lead replies?

Their sequence stops and they move to the Inbox. With Stop Contacting Colleagues After a Reply, their colleagues on the list are no longer contacted either.

How many messages should I check before starting?

Look at the messages for several different leads, including ones in other languages or with missing data, before you add a larger group.