5-Step Outbound Cadence Template

This cadence is designed for mid-market B2B outreach targeting director-level and above prospects. It uses three channels (email, phone, LinkedIn) over 14 days.

The scripts below are filled in for a fictional example: Sam from Ridgeway Data is reaching out to Maria, Director of Sales Operations at Northwind Logistics, and Brightline Freight is the reference customer. Names, companies and results are illustrative; replace them with your own research and real customer proof.

Cadence Overview

Step	Day	Channel	Purpose	Time to Execute
1	Day 1	Email + LinkedIn	Open the conversation, send connection request	5-8 min
2	Day 3	Phone	Live conversation attempt, voicemail if no answer	3-5 min
3	Day 6	Email	Provide value with a relevant resource	3-5 min
4	Day 10	Phone + LinkedIn message	Second call attempt, LinkedIn follow-up	5-7 min
5	Day 14	Email	Breakup email, close the loop	2-3 min

Step 1: Opening Email + LinkedIn Connect (Day 1)

Email subject: Forecast accuracy at Northwind

Email body:

Hi Maria,

I noticed Northwind recently opened a second sales office in Denver. Teams in that position often find their forecast stops matching reality within a few months.

We worked with Brightline Freight when they hit the same wall, and they were able to cut their weekly forecast prep from a full day to two hours.

Would a 15-minute call this week make sense to see if something similar could work for you?

LinkedIn connection request (same day):

Hi Maria, I work with sales operations teams in logistics and came across Northwind. Would love to connect.

Rules:

• Email is under 80 words
• Contains one trigger event specific to the prospect
• Contains one proof point with a number
• LinkedIn note is under 200 characters
• No pitch in the LinkedIn request

Step 2: Phone Call (Day 3)

Call framework:

Hi Maria, this is Sam from Ridgeway Data. I sent you an email a couple of days ago about forecast accuracy.

(Pause and let her respond.)

The reason I’m calling is that we’ve been helping teams like yours, Brightline Freight for example, with forecasts that drift once the team grows, and they cut their weekly forecast prep from a full day to two hours. I wanted to see if that’s something on your radar.

If voicemail:

Hi Maria, this is Sam from Ridgeway Data. I sent you an email about forecast accuracy at Northwind. I’ll follow up with another email, but if you want to chat, my number is 555-0142. Talk soon.

Rules:

• Voicemail is under 25 seconds
• Reference the email you already sent
• Leave voicemail only on the first call attempt
• Log the call outcome immediately in CRM

Step 3: Value-Add Email (Day 6)

Email subject: Re: Forecast accuracy at Northwind

Email body:

Maria,

I came across this guide that I thought might be relevant to you, regardless of whether we connect.

It walks through how to run a weekly pipeline review when reps sit in more than one office.

Here’s the link to the guide.

Let me know if it’s helpful. Happy to walk through how it applies to Northwind’s situation.

Rules:

• The resource is genuinely useful (not a product demo link)
• No hard pitch in this email
• Use “Re:” to keep it in the same thread
• Resource links to a blog post, benchmark, or guide

Step 4: Second Call + LinkedIn Message (Day 10)

Call framework: Same as Step 2, but reference the resource you shared in Step 3.

LinkedIn message (if connected):

Hey Maria, sent you a couple of emails over the past week about forecasting across two offices. Curious if forecast drift is something your team is dealing with right now, or if the timing is off?

LinkedIn message (if not connected):

Send an InMail with the same message as above.

Rules:

• Do not leave a second voicemail
• LinkedIn message is casual and question-based
• Keep the LinkedIn message under 50 words

Step 5: Breakup Email (Day 14)

Email subject: Closing the loop

Email body:

Maria,

I’ve reached out a few times and I know you’re busy, so I won’t keep pinging.

If forecast accuracy becomes a priority, I’m easy to find. I’ll also keep an eye on Northwind and reach out if I spot something relevant.

All the best, Sam

Rules:

• No guilt or passive aggression
• Keep it under 50 words
• Leave the door open for future outreach
• Mark the contact for re-engagement in 90 days

Performance Benchmarks

Track these metrics to evaluate cadence effectiveness.

Metric	Target	Below Target
Step 1 email open rate	> 50%	< 35%
Overall reply rate	> 12%	< 6%
Positive reply rate	> 4%	< 2%
Connect-to-meeting rate	> 8%	< 3%
Cadence completion rate	> 85%	< 70%