How to Run Lotus
Everything you need to send outreach and convert leads into clients. Written for anyone running this, no tech knowledge needed.
Your daily routine
Takes 15–20 minutes each morning
Check the home page
localhost:3001on the Mac Mini. You'll see three task cards at the top — emails sent today, WhatsApp sent today, and inbox replies. These are your three jobs every day.Send emails (via Review page)
You'll see leads one at a time — each shows the business name, city, and the email that will go out.
- Add to Drafts — approves the email and queues it. Do this for each one you're happy with.
- Skip — skips this lead. Nothing gets sent.
- Edit this email — tap if you want to tweak the subject or body before approving.
When you're done reviewing, click Go to Drafts and send them all from Gmail. Limit: 50 emails per day — the dashboard enforces this automatically.
Send WhatsApp messages (via WhatsApp page)
These are leads who only have a phone number — no email. The message is pre-written.
- Open WhatsApp & Mark Sent — opens the chat in WhatsApp with the message pre-filled. Send it there, then come back. It marks the lead as sent automatically.
- Skip — moves to the next one.
- Edit message — tweak the message before sending if needed.
Limit: 30 WhatsApp messages per day. You can also switch between Main Base (diagnosed leads) and Overflow (1,102 additional raw leads) using the toggle at the top.
Check the inbox
The system checks Gmail automatically every 15 minutes and picks up any replies. The Inbox page shows two tabs:
- Gmail Feed — raw Gmail inbox: shows every email that came in, whether it's a prospect reply, a bounce, or something else.
- Replies — filtered view of just the leads that replied. Sorted by Interested / Questions / Not Interested. Action each one here.
If a reply needs action, you'll also see it appear at the top of the Inbox page under Drafts ready to send — the automated pipeline will have already written the reply email. Just hit Send.
Each page explained
What they do and when to use them
/Your dashboard overview. Shows today's task cards (emails, WhatsApp, inbox), daily progress bars, pipeline funnel, and recent activity. Start here every day.
/reviewStep through today's email queue one lead at a time. Approve each email, skip ones you don't like, or edit before approving. Approved emails go to a Gmail drafts queue — you send them all at once from Gmail. Has a Main/Overflow toggle and city filter. Limit: 50/day.
/draftsHolds the emails you approved in the Review page, waiting to go out. Send them all from here with one click, or go straight to Gmail. Tracks how many have been sent today.
/whatsappQueue for leads who only have a phone number. Opens WhatsApp with the message pre-filled, marks the lead as sent when you click the button. Shows the next 9 leads in the queue so you can see what's coming. Limit: 30/day.
/leadsFull searchable list of every lead. Filter by pipeline stage, search by name or city, click any lead to see their full profile — email draft, WhatsApp message, pitch angle, Google Maps link, website. Can also select multiple leads and bulk draft. Has Main/Overflow toggle.
/pipelineKanban view showing every lead grouped by stage: Ready, Email Sent, Replied, Proposed, Won. Also shows the automated flow diagram — what happens at each step without you having to do anything. Good for understanding where leads are in the process.
/inboxTwo tabs: Gmail Feed (raw inbox) and Replies (just prospects who replied). Replies tab lets you mark leads as Won, Not Interested, or schedule a follow-up. Any automated reply drafts appear at the top — you just hit Send. Includes a manual Scan button if you want to force a check.
/operationsManual controls for all the background scripts. Create Drafts, Check Inbox, Sync Sent Emails, Run WA Audit, Fix WA Messages, Rebuild Dashboard. Also shows the scheduled job list. Only come here if something isn't working automatically.
What the system does automatically
You don't need to do any of this — it just happens
Once you send an email, the system takes over. Here's the full flow:
You send the email
50 per day via the Review page
They reply
Gmail is checked automatically every 15 minutes
PDF audit generated
A personalised Thai massage visibility audit is created and uploaded to Google Drive
Reply email drafted automatically
The audit link is included. It appears in your Inbox page under “Drafts ready to send”
You hit Send — that's it
One click in the Inbox page
They say yes
System detects positive reply in the next inbox scan
Invoice drafted automatically
Stripe invoice for £149.50 created and a draft reply email prepared
You hit Send on the invoice email
Again, one click. Then wait for payment.
Your total involvement per lead: 2 clicks.
Send the outreach → send the invoice. Everything in between is automated.
Rules to remember
Don't break these
50 emails per day max
Gmail limits how many you can send before flagging your account. The dashboard enforces this — it will stop you at 50.
30 WhatsApp messages per day max
Too many in one day can get your number flagged. Stick to 30.
Never edit Airtable directly
All changes to lead stages, messages, and data should go through the dashboard. Editing Airtable directly can break the pipeline.
If someone says STOP or Unsubscribe — mark Not Interested immediately
Go to Inbox → Replies, find the lead, click Not Interested. This is a legal requirement.
Overflow base = 993 more leads ready when you need them
The main base has ~1,300 diagnosed leads. When you've worked through those, use the Overflow toggle on Review or WhatsApp pages to access 1,102 additional raw leads.
Don't change the email footer
The footer contains the opt-out line. It's legally required and must stay exactly as written.
If something goes wrong
Most issues fix themselves — here's what to do if they don't
⚠Dashboard not loading or showing errors
Go to Operations → click Rebuild Dashboard → wait 30 seconds → refresh the page.
⚠WhatsApp messages showing red warnings or banned words
Go to Operations → click Run WA Audit to see what's broken, then click Fix WA Messages to auto-rewrite them.
⚠A reply came in but it's not showing in the Inbox
The inbox checks every 15 minutes automatically. Wait a few minutes and refresh. If it's still missing, go to Inbox and click Scan for Replies manually.
⚠The email queue is empty on the Review page
Go to Operations → Create Drafts. This runs the script that pulls READY leads into the queue. Then go back to Review.
⚠Emails sent in Gmail aren't showing as sent in Airtable
Go to Operations → click Sync Sent Emails. This scans Gmail Sent folder and updates all the lead stages.
⚠You don't see a reply draft in the Inbox after a lead replied
The automation runs on a 15-minute cycle. Wait for the next scan, or go to Inbox and click Scan for Replies to trigger it manually.