AI and Research Credits
Before you start, understand how credits are applied to AI-powered features:| Feature | Credit Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| AI Email Generation | 3 credits per email | Covers the research and personalization engine for each message |
| Website Analysis | 50 credits per website | One-time deep crawl; reuse insights across multiple sequences |
| Fine Tune Campaign | 3 credits per email | First 3 fine-tune attempts per sequence are free |
Choosing Your Path
Head to the Outreach Dashboard. If this is your first sequence, you’ll see the Success Launchpad with two creation options.- Create with AI
- Create Manually
The fastest way to launch. Atlas uses a smart lead generator and AI personalization to eliminate writer’s block entirely. Choose this path if you want to go from zero to a fully personalized, multi-step sequence in minutes.After selecting this option, a popover asks for:
- Sequence Name — e.g., “Q3 Enterprise Outreach”
- Permitted Days — click the days you want emails to send. Days highlighted in blue are active sending days.
Setting Up Your Sequence
Once you’ve named your sequence and selected your sending days, Atlas walks you through six phases to build and launch your campaign.Phase 1 — Let Atlas Know Your Story
Atlas needs to understand your brand before it can write on your behalf. You have two options:Analyze your website: Paste your website URL and click Analyze. Atlas crawls your site and extracts your value propositions, tone, and offerings.Enter manually: If you don’t have a website, check the “I don’t have a website” box and describe your business in your own words. This gives Atlas the context it needs to represent your brand accurately.
If you’ve analyzed your website in a previous sequence, select a Saved Profile to instantly load that data. This is the fastest way to maintain a consistent brand voice across different sequences and avoids spending another 50 credits on a repeat analysis.
Phase 2 — Product Cards and ICP Definition
Atlas generates Product Cards based on your brand research—one card per product or service it identifies.
- Activate offerings: Use the blue toggle next to each card to tell Atlas which products or services this specific sequence should focus on.
- Refine your ICP: Click Edit on any card to define your Ideal Customer Profile. Specify the roles you’re targeting (e.g., “VP of Engineering,” “Head of Sales”) and the pain points that keep them up at night. The more specific you are here, the sharper Atlas’s personalization becomes.
Phase 3 — Master the Outreach Vibe
This phase controls how Atlas approaches your prospects in each email step.Mission Objective: Use the dropdown to select the goal of this email. Options include hooks to grab attention, value-led messages, and more.Tone and Style: Pick the writing personality that fits your brand. Available styles include:
Stack your sequence: Click the (+) icon between phases to add more email steps. Mix different objectives and styles across each day to keep prospects engaged through the full sequence.
| Style | Description |
|---|---|
| Whale Hunter | Bold, strategic, and confident—targets high-value accounts directly |
| Empathetic Strategist | Thoughtful and professional—leads with understanding the prospect’s world |
Phase 4 — Review Your Blueprint
Take a bird’s-eye view of your full strategy before Atlas starts generating. Review your website profile, target audience, and the email styles you’ve configured for each phase.When everything looks right, click Finish Setup. This saves your strategy so Atlas can tailor every message to your specific prospects once you import leads.
Phase 5 — Import Leads and Generate Emails
Now you bring in the people you want to reach.
- Click + Import New Recipients to find prospects via search or from an existing list.
- Select the contacts you want to target and click Add to feed them into the AI engine.
- Click Generate Emails. Atlas transforms your strategy into a personalized message for every contact on your list—instantly.
You are only charged credits for successful email generations. If Atlas fails to produce a draft due to a technical error, no credits are deducted from your account.
Email Status Reference
Every contact in your sequence moves through a lifecycle of statuses. Here’s what each one means:Generation Pipeline
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Awaiting | Contact has been added but no generation has been requested yet. They’re ready and waiting for your next action. |
| Gen_Queued | Contact is in line for AI email generation. |
| Generating | Atlas is actively crafting the email content for this contact right now. |
| Ready to Send | Generation is complete. The email is ready for your review and approval. |
Sending Lifecycle
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Scheduled | You’ve approved the email. It’s locked into the calendar for the right send time. |
| Paused | The email is on hold until you resume it manually. |
| Queued | The email is in the final sending queue and is about to be delivered. |
| Sent | The email has been successfully delivered from your account. |
Engagement and Outcomes
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Read | The recipient opened your email. |
| Replied | The recipient sent a reply—the goal of your outreach. |
| Hard Bounced | Permanent delivery failure (e.g., the email address doesn’t exist). Remove this contact from your list. |
| Soft Bounced | Temporary delivery failure (e.g., the recipient’s mailbox is full). The system will retry. |
| Unsubscribed | The recipient clicked your unsubscribe link. They will be excluded from future sends automatically. |
| Error | Something went wrong during compilation or sending. Check your email settings and retry. |
Pro Tips for Maximum Impact
| Tip | How to Apply It |
|---|---|
| Start Small | Launch with one ICP and one sequence first. This lets you calibrate Atlas’s voice and messaging to your brand before scaling up. |
| Use Saved Profiles | Always load a Saved Profile when running a new sequence for a domain you’ve analyzed before. You save 50 credits and maintain a consistent brand voice. |
| Mix Objectives and Styles | Use the (+) icon to add follow-up steps with different objectives and tones. Varying the approach keeps prospects engaged across the full sequence. |
| Regenerate Strategically | When fine-tuning, give Atlas a specific instruction (“Add social proof,” “Shorten to 3 sentences”) rather than regenerating without direction. |
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Atlas replace my SDRs?
Does Atlas replace my SDRs?
No. Atlas handles research, drafting, and routine follow-ups—freeing your team to focus on high-value conversations and relationship-building. Think of Atlas as a tireless research and writing assistant, not a replacement for the human judgment your SDRs bring to complex deals.
How does Atlas ensure brand consistency?
How does Atlas ensure brand consistency?
Atlas learns from your website content, the manual brand description you provide, and the style feedback you give through fine-tuning. You can also lock in key messaging pillars when defining your ICP and product cards, ensuring Atlas never strays from your approved positioning.
Do I get charged if I change my website URL?
Do I get charged if I change my website URL?
Yes. Each new website URL requires a fresh deep crawl, which costs 50 credits. To avoid this, use Saved Profiles for any domain you’ve already analyzed. Saved Profiles let you reuse the same brand intelligence across as many sequences as you like at no additional website analysis cost.
What happens if Atlas fails to generate an email?
What happens if Atlas fails to generate an email?
You are only charged for successful generations. If Atlas cannot produce a draft due to a technical error, no credits are deducted from your account. You can retry generation at any time without penalty for the failed attempt.
Can I use the Fine Tune button multiple times?
Can I use the Fine Tune button multiple times?