Agency Client Onboarding for Cold Email Infrastructure
A reusable agency intake, ownership, authentication, list, copy, and go/no-go workflow for launching a client outreach program.
Product & Engineering · September 25, 2026 · 3 min read
Before you start
A client campaign is ready to launch only when ownership, audience, sending identity, message, suppression data, and test evidence each have an explicit owner and pass a recorded gate. Use the workflow below as the intake form and sign-off record; do not treat it as an inbox-placement promise.
1. Capture the client intake
Record these fields before requesting DNS or mailbox access:
| Field | Required answer | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| Business objective | What conversation is the campaign intended to start? | Client |
| Audience and geography | Roles, company types, locations, and exclusions | Client + agency |
| Sending identity | From domain, reply address, display name, and postal address | Client |
| Data provenance | Source, collection date, validation method, and permitted use | Client + agency |
| Suppression inputs | Existing opt-outs, complaints, customers, competitors, and do-not-contact files | Client |
| Approvers | Named copy, audience, and launch approver with backup | Client |
| Access boundary | Who can change DNS, mailboxes, lists, and campaigns | Both |
The outbound suppression rules guide helps turn the suppression answer into an operating rule. Do not let a blank answer become an implicit approval.
2. Use ordered launch gates
Gate A — ownership. Confirm the client can authorize use of the domain and mailbox inventory. The agency should not assume that a shared login or a forwarded credential establishes authority.
Gate B — identity and authentication. Confirm the sending domain, SPF/DKIM/DMARC plan, reply handling, and record owner. Use the email authentication guide and keep a timestamped verification result.
Gate C — data and suppression. Import only the fields needed for the campaign. Match the new audience against client-local and required global exclusions before copy is approved. Preserve the source and review date.
Gate D — copy and rendering. The client approves the sequence, sender identity, claims, links, opt-out path, and fallback text. Send test messages to controlled addresses and record desktop/mobile or plain-text observations where relevant.
Gate E — go/no-go. The delivery lead records GO, HOLD, or NO-GO, with evidence links and an expiry date for facts that can change. A hold is the correct result when access, source, suppression, authentication, or approval evidence is missing.
RACI-style handoff
| Work | Agency delivery | Client owner | Client approver |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infrastructure changes | R | A/C | I |
| Audience and exclusions | R | A | C |
| Message claims and offer | C | R | A |
| Test render and seed send | R | C | A |
| Launch decision | R | C | A |
Where RepMail fits
RepMail is useful only after these responsibilities are clear. The repository's documented current sending path uses AWS SES over SMTP and AWS SNS feedback events for campaign delivery telemetry. That documents the repository path, not every customer's configuration: it does not by itself prove a workspace's provider scope, account or region, IP pool, mailbox hosting, or DNS/TLS automation. Verify those details per workspace—including the active provider, IP allocation, mailbox ownership, DNS/TLS responsibilities, and event path—before treating any step as a product-specific procedure. The client still owns the audience decision, data provenance, approvals, and applicable compliance review.
Related internal resources
Sources
Resources in this guide
- Record the owner, scope, evidence link, status, and checked date for each control.
- Mark the item HOLD when required evidence is missing or a decision is uncertain.
- Attach the completed record to the client or incident review before proceeding.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Starting setup before recording who owns the domain, mailboxes, list, and approvals.
- Treating an imported list as approved without checking exclusions and suppression records.
- Calling a test send a launch approval without recording the recipient, render, and reviewer.
Frequently asked questions
Who should complete the intake?
The agency account owner should coordinate it, while the client confirms business facts, domain access, audience, exclusions, and approval authority.
Does this checklist guarantee delivery?
No. It creates evidence for a controlled launch. Provider behavior, recipient expectations, list quality, and policy can still affect delivery and placement.
Continue learning
Next: verify email authentication
Check the records before client approval.