Atomic Emails Research

Conduct a structured discovery process to gather everything needed before planning a SaaS email campaign. Output a discovery brief that feeds into the storyboard skill.

Overview

This skill covers Steps 1–2 of the Atomic Emails method:

1. Gather insights — customer profile, campaign goal, steps to success, main problems, and copywriting material.
2. Gather resources — inventory of existing assets and engagements.

Workflow

1. Identify the campaign type

Using the AskUserQuestion tool, ask the user which campaign(s) they're planning. Common SaaS campaigns:

• User onboarding
• Trial expiring / upgrade-to-paid
• Customer success (post-conversion)
• Lead nurture
• Re-engagement / win-back
• Feature announcement

Multiple campaigns can share the same discovery brief.

2. Gather strategic insights

Using the AskUserQuestion tool, work through these questions conversationally — ask 2–3 at a time, then follow up. Adapt based on what the user already knows.

Core four (required):

1. Customer — Who's the ideal customer? Who is NOT a good fit?
2. Campaign goal — What's the campaign's job? (e.g. "get user from 0 to 1", "increase engagement and loyalty")
3. Steps — What steps must the user take to reach that goal?
4. Problems — What obstacles do users struggle with on their way?

Copywriting material (gather if available):

• What does the product do? (elevator pitch)
• Founding story
• Why do customers choose this over alternatives?
• Top 5 things customers love
• What would users do without a tool? (manual alternative)
• How should users feel while using the product?

Do not strive for perfection — current best judgment is sufficient.

3. Inventory existing resources

If not available already, prompt the user to provide their website. Then fetch the website to extract information and resources rather than asking redundant questions.

Assets: help docs, blog posts, testimonials, case studies, explainer videos/webinars, templates/worksheets.

Engagements: calendar links (demos, onboarding calls), concierge setup, extended trials, discounts/promo codes.

For each resource, capture: title/description, URL or location, and which step or problem it addresses.

Ask the user for any additional resources not on the website. If they provide URLs, fetch them to extract information.

4. Produce the discovery brief

Compile into a structured Markdown document using the template in references/brief-template.md. Save as

.md

, present to user for review. Remind them this feeds into the

atomic-emails-storyboard

skill.

Guidelines

• Be conversational and encouraging. Many users procrastinate on this step.
• If the user already has information from prior strategy work, accept it and fill gaps.
• If the user provides URLs to their product, docs, or marketing site, fetch them to extract information rather than asking redundant questions.
• The brief does not need to be perfect — it's a working document.