Readers have learned to spot AI-written email in the first line. “I hope this email finds you well”, “In today’s fast-paced world” and the same three-part structure every time. The problem isn’t AI, it’s asking for a whole sequence in one go with nothing specific to say. The email prompts in our text library work differently.
Below: how to plan the sequence first, give the model real material and ban the usual phrases. It pairs well with the brand voice rules from our previous post.
Plan the sequence before writing a word
Decide what each email is for before asking for copy. A simple outline works:
Email 1 (day 0): Welcome. One quick win they can get today. Email 2 (day 2): The most common mistake new users make. Email 3 (day 5): A short customer story with one real number. Email 4 (day 9): Feature they probably haven't found yet. Email 5 (day 14): Ask for a reply: what are they trying to do?
Write one email at a time
Write email {{email_number}} of a 5-part onboarding sequence.
Purpose of this email: {{purpose}}
Facts you may use (do not invent others):
{{facts}}
Under 120 words. One link, one call to action.
Subject line under 45 characters, no clickbait.The facts field is the key. A real number, a real customer quote or a real feature name is what makes an email sound like it came from a company and not a template.
Ban the clichés by name
Add a short list of phrases the model must not use. Being explicit works much better than “avoid clichés”:
- “I hope this email finds you well”
- “In today’s fast-paced world”
- “Don’t miss out”
- “Unlock”, “elevate”, “supercharge”
Specific beats clever. A real number beats both.
Email marketer, SaaS team
Read them in order
Before sending anything, read the whole sequence top to bottom. Repeated openers, a call to action used twice and the same story told twice are easy to miss one email at a time and obvious when read in a row.