1. Gathering Partner Information for Smarter Targeting

Before any outreach could begin, we needed to ensure we were targeting the right businesses — those most likely to benefit from Shopify solutions.

To do this, we worked closely with each Shopify partner to gather specific details about their ideal customer profile. This wasn’t just for segmentation — this information allowed us to perform deep data mining and build highly-targeted prospect lists.

We asked partners for details like:

• Industry verticals they wanted to focus on
• Preferred target regions or countries
• Business size or maturity (SMEs, growing brands, enterprise)
• Common customer pain points or needs

Why this mattered: With this data, we could perform targeted data mining to identify real businesses that matched these criteria — not just random lists pulled from a database.

Instead of relying on generic lists or cold scraping, we took a strategic, data-driven approach to building prospect lists — ensuring every contact added was intentional and high-potential.

This groundwork set the stage for highly personalised outreach that felt relevant from the very first message.

2. Feeding Data Into Our Marketing Automation Tool for Personalised Outreach

Once we had a clean and well-researched list of prospects, the next step was activating that data. This is where our marketing automation tool came into play. It allowed us to reach out to hundreds of prospects in a structured, personalised, and scalable way.

But this wasn’t about sending generic messages to a cold list.

Each Shopify partner had different goals, tone preferences, and customer journeys — which meant we needed flexibility in how we approached outreach.

Campaigns that we created based on the needs of our clients

Customising Outreach Sequences Based on Partner Needs

We worked with each partner to select the outreach sequence that best fit their sales strategy. Some wanted a direct approach highlighting Shopify’s benefits immediately. Others preferred a more educational and relationship-driven sequence.

These sequences included:

• Initial introduction messages
• Follow-up nudges spaced over time
• Value-driven content about Shopify’s capabilities
• Friendly CTAs encouraging prospects to reply or ask questions

Why this mattered: Instead of sending one-off cold emails that are easy to ignore, these sequences allowed us to stay top-of-mind with prospects over several touchpoints — increasing the chances of engagement without being overly aggressive.

Feeding Data Into Automation for Smart Execution

Once the sequence was selected, we uploaded the lead data into our marketing automation tool — allowing the system to handle the time-consuming tasks of:

• Sending messages at scheduled intervals
• Tracking message opens and responses
• Automatically following up with prospects who didn’t reply

This gave our partners a consistent outreach engine running in the background — nurturing prospects while freeing up their time to focus on higher-value conversations.

Outreach message (left) and replies (right) that we crafted as part of our automated lead generation strategy

How it helped: Partners could reach a much larger audience without needing to manually write, send, and track every single message — all while ensuring every prospect received a thoughtful, personalised experience.

3. Monitoring Responses and Engaging Prospects in Real-Time

While automation helped us reach more prospects efficiently, we knew that real relationships and real conversions only happen through human interaction.

That’s why our job didn’t stop once the outreach sequences were set live.

In fact, the most critical part of the process came next: monitoring replies and engaging in real conversations.
Actively Managing Responses to Keep Conversations Moving
To make all of this happen, we didn’t just rely on automated messages alone. We customised our marketing automation tool to engage with prospective leads in a more organic, human-like way — long before any reply even came in.

This included actions like:

• Automatically viewing a prospect’s profile
• Liking their recent posts
• Following their activity over time
• And then sending a personalised message after building initial familiarity

Why this mattered: These small touchpoints helped warm up prospects before direct outreach — making the eventual message feel less intrusive and more like a natural connection.

How it helped: Instead of feeling like a cold, out-of-the-blue sales pitch, prospects often recognised our engagement beforehand — leading to higher reply rates and more open, friendly conversations right from the start.

The sequence below showcases how we structured our marketing automation system — allowing us to engage with prospects at multiple touchpoints automatically.

From profile views and post interactions to personalised message sequences, every step was designed to warm up potential leads and create a more human, conversational outreach experience at scale.

We set up our marketing automation tool to view profiles, engage with posts, and send personalised messages

4. Systematically Processing Leads

Once prospects began responding, it was just as important to manage those conversations properly as it was to start them.

To keep everything organised, we built a systematic lead management process — allowing us to track every prospect’s status and handle them accordingly.

This meant categorising leads based on their level of interest or next action required, such as:

• Qualified Lead — Ready for sales conversations
• To Nurture — Not ready yet, but worth staying in touch
• Opportunity — High potential lead showing buying signals
• Unqualified — Not a good fit
• Closed Won — Successfully converted

How our team processed and managed leads that were obtained – note the use of lead status

Why this mattered: It gave complete clarity on where every lead stood — no guessing, no leads slipping through the cracks.

How it helped: Our partners could prioritise their time and resources on the most promising conversations, while our nurturing sequences kept the rest engaged until they were ready.