Instantly sends your messages and manages the follow-up sequences across email and LinkedIn. Here’s how to set it up for recruiting outreach.
Go to Settings and add your dedicated outreach email address (the secondary domain you set up in the Getting Started section). Instantly will walk you through the DNS setup (SPF, DKIM, DMARC records). Follow it exactly. This is what keeps your emails out of spam.
Turn on Email Warmup immediately. Instantly sends and receives emails automatically to build your domain’s reputation. Let this run for a minimum of 14 days before launching any campaigns. 21 days is better.
Click “New Campaign” and name it after the role you’re hiring for.
Step 1: Import your leads. Upload a CSV with your candidate list from Metaview. At minimum include: first name, last name, email address, current company, current title. If you have LinkedIn profile URLs, include those too for multi-channel sequences.
Step 2: Build your sequence. A proven recruiting sequence looks like this:
Day 1: Personalized email (written by Claude, pasted into Instantly) Day 3: LinkedIn connection request Day 5: Follow-up email if no reply Day 10: Second follow-up with a different angle Day 15: Final breakup email
Keep the total sequence to 4-5 touches over 2-3 weeks. More than that crosses into spam territory for recruiting outreach.
Step 3: Personalize with variables. Instantly lets you insert custom variables like first name, company name, and custom fields. Use a custom column in your CSV to paste the personalized first line Claude wrote for each candidate. This way every email feels individually written even though it’s sent automatically.
Instantly supports both email and LinkedIn outreach in a single sequence. This is a major advantage over email-only tools. Candidates who don’t open your email might accept your LinkedIn request and vice versa.
When building your sequence, alternate between channels. A typical multi-channel flow: email first, LinkedIn connection on day 3, email follow-up on day 5, LinkedIn message on day 8 if they accepted. This covers both channels without overwhelming the candidate on either one.
Start slow. Send 20-30 emails per day for the first week. Gradually increase to 50-75 per day over the next 2-3 weeks. Never go above 100 per day from a single email address. If you need more volume, add a second sending address.
For LinkedIn, keep connection requests under 20-25 per day to avoid restrictions.
Instantly tracks opens, clicks, and replies automatically. When a candidate replies, they’re automatically removed from the sequence so they don’t get follow-up emails.
Respond to interested candidates within 2 hours if possible. Speed matters in recruiting. The best candidates have options and the first company to respond often wins.