What it does: Goes through the people you know and finds local businesses that post often but edit by hand, then writes a short, personal first message to the best 10.
Use it when: You're starting out as a freelancer and have few or no clients.
You get: A list of 10 with why each made it, one true thing and its link, the channel, and a message under 70 words each, plus who was skipped and why.
This one runs in Claude: paste it there.
You are my business coach, a senior freelancer with 15 years of helping new freelancers land their first paying clients. Goal: find 10 people who might hire me and write a short, personal first message to each, so I have a list and messages ready to send after I check them. Context: I freelance as [your service, like video editing]. I have few or no clients yet. The fastest first clients are people who already know me, then small businesses that clearly need what I do, because a warm hello gets a reply long before an ad does. First, check that you can open my Gmail contacts and my LinkedIn connections export in Google Drive, and that Apify is connected. Tell me how many contacts and connections you found. If you can't open them, stop and ask me to paste a list of 20 people I know instead. If Apify isn't connected, use web search for step 2 if you have it. If you don't, tell me and build the list from people I know only. Ask me these, then run. Skip any I already answered. 1. Who do you want to work for? (Default: small businesses near me that post videos on YouTube or Instagram.) 2. What can you show? (Default: my best 1 or 2 samples from my Drive, or [check: sample link].) 3. What is your first offer? (Default: one short edit at a starter price, with the price left as [check: price].) Do this: 1. Go through my contacts and connections. Pick people who run a business, work in marketing, or post videos. Skip anyone I already pitched in the last 60 days. 2. Use Apify to find small businesses that match question 1 and post often but look like they edit by hand, like long unedited clips or no captions. Keep the link and the date of their newest post. 3. Rank everyone. First, people I know who have a true thing from the last 60 days. Then businesses that post every week, edit by hand and have a way to reach them. Then people I know with nothing recent. Pick the top 10. 4. For each one, find one true, specific thing about them from the last 60 days, like a recent post or a new product. Keep the link. For people I know with nothing recent, use how we know each other instead. 5. Write one message each, under 70 words. Line 1: the true thing about them. Line 2: one small idea for how I could help. Line 3: my sample link. Line 4: one easy ask built on my offer from question 3. 6. For people I know, start with how we know each other. Keep one ask. If they can't use it themselves, ask only for a referral instead, like "Know anyone who needs an editor?" Never both in one message. 7. Pick the right channel for each: email if I have it, LinkedIn if we are connected, an Instagram comment then a DM. For YouTube only businesses, use the email or contact form on their website or channel page, or write [check: channel]. Example of a message, match this shape: "Hi Jo, your new bakery tour video has great shots. Captions could help people who watch with the sound off. Here is one I did: [sample link]. Want me to caption your next one free so you can see?" The details are made up, only copy the shape. Give me a table: name, why they made the list, the true thing and its link, the channel, and the message. Then a list of who you skipped and why. Last, a one line tracker header I can paste into a Google Sheet. Before you show me, check your work: - Each true thing has a link and a date in the last 60 days. - Each message is under 70 words and has one ask. - Nobody pitched in the last 60 days is on the list. - Every skip reason comes from data you opened. If you did not check someone, say "not checked". - If you could not check my past pitches on a channel, mark that row [check: pitch history]. Don't count it as passed. Rules: - Drafts only. Never send, post, comment or connect with anyone until I say yes. Saving this skill is fine. - Don't make up a fact, a past client or a result. Use only my data, the links you found and what I tell you. - Describe my work only with what my samples and past jobs show. Never say full time, many clients or "for local businesses" unless my data says so. - If something is missing, write [check: what is missing] and keep going. - Plain words. Short sentences. No em dashes, no semicolons. Don't say you looked at their profile or posts. Last, save these steps as a skill called "First Clients" so you do it this way each time I ask. To run it again every Monday, I just say: run First Clients.
You need
LinkedIn
Gmail
Apify
Google Drive![]()
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Any AITested on sample data
Connect first: your email and LinkedIn. The steps for each AI are on one page. Then the prompt reads it for you. It ends by saving itself as a skill.
Built on: $100M Leads. Warm outreach comes first: reach out one to one to people who already know you.
Copilot version
Needs a Microsoft 365 Copilot work license. Grounded in your work email, files and meetings. Run it once, then save it in Copilot Prompt Gallery.
Goal: You are my business coach, a senior freelancer with 15 years of helping new freelancers land first clients. Find 10 people who might hire me and write a short, personal first message to each, so I have a list and messages ready to send after I check them. Context: I freelance as [your service, like video editing]. I have few or no clients yet. The fastest first clients are people who already know me, then small businesses that clearly need what I do, because a warm hello gets a reply long before an ad does. Source: Use only my Outlook contacts, my sent mail from the last 60 days, /[my LinkedIn connections export], and a web search for small businesses near me that post videos. First, check that you can open them. Tell me how many contacts you found. If you can't find them, tell me which one is missing. Or I will paste it in instead. Expectations: 1. Pick contacts who run a business, work in marketing or post videos. Skip anyone I pitched in the last 60 days. 2. Search the web for small businesses that post often but look hand edited. Keep the link and newest post date. 3. Rank: people I know with something true from the last 60 days, then weekly posting businesses with a way to reach them, then people I know with nothing recent. Pick 10. 4. For each, one true, specific thing from the last 60 days with its link. For people I know with nothing recent, use how we know each other. 5. One message each, under 70 words: the true thing, one small idea, my sample link from [my sample], one easy ask built on [my first offer]. For people I know who can't use it, ask only for a referral. Never both. 6. Pick the channel: email if I have it, LinkedIn if we are connected, or the contact form on their site. Example of a message, match this shape: "Hi Jo, your new bakery tour video has great shots. Captions could help people who watch with the sound off. Here is one I did: [sample link]. Want me to caption your next one free so you can see?" The details are made up, only copy the shape. Give me a table: name, why they made the list, the true thing and link, the channel and the message. Then who you skipped and why. Before you show me, check that each true thing has a link and date in the last 60 days, and each message is under 70 words with one ask. Rules: Drafts only. Leave emails as drafts in Outlook for me. Never send, post or connect. Describe my work only with what my samples show. Don't make up a fact or a past client. If something is missing, write [check: what is missing]. Plain words, short sentences, no em dashes, no semicolons. When it works, save this in Copilot Prompt Gallery as "First Clients" and run it again every Monday.
See a real example
Tested on sample data Sample data run (simulated tool). failed 2 runs, fixed, third run passed
Watch: no video for this one yet.
AuthorCorey Leon