Tool Stack
No research needed. No comparison shopping. I’ve picked one optimal tool for each step. Start with these. Swap later if you need to.
Core Tool
| Tool | What it does | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| AutoWhisper | AI CMO system: plan → produce → publish → analyze, all-in-one | 50 free tokens on signup, Basic from $30/mo |
AutoWhisper covers all 7 steps of the flywheel. You only need to handle Step ① (positioning) yourself — 15 minutes — and the system does the rest.
The Optimal Path: You Only Need These
Publishing platforms (start with 2)
International: Connect LinkedIn + TikTok first. LinkedIn for B2B and professional content, TikTok for short video and younger audiences.
China-based: Start with Xiaohongshu. Top platform for product seeding in China. AutoWhisper generates the content, you copy-paste to publish.
Don’t spread too thin. Get 2 platforms running smoothly (by Week 4), then consider adding X, Instagram, WeChat Official Account, etc.
Email marketing (add at Week 6)
Use Resend. Free tier: 3,000 emails/month. Clean API, developer-friendly. Enough for most early-stage brands.
Sign up → Create contact list → Set up automated email sequence → Done. See Email Sequence Templates for templates.
Other options: Brevo (free 300 emails/day), Mailchimp (free for 500 contacts). But Resend is the most developer-friendly option with the cleanest API — the best way to start.
Outbound email finding (add at Week 4)
Use Apollo.io free tier. Find people + find emails + send emails, all in one. Zero cost to start.
Other options: Prospeo ($39/mo, stronger LinkedIn export), Hunter.io (free 25 lookups/mo). But Apollo’s free tier is enough to validate whether outbound works for you.
WeChat follow-up (China-based customers)
Use WeCom (Enterprise WeChat). Channel QR codes for source tracking + auto-tagging + group messaging. Free. See WeChat Nurture Sequence.
Blog / SEO (add at Week 6)
Use Hashnode. Free, built-in SEO optimization, supports custom domains (e.g., blog.yourbrand.com).
Sign up → Bind domain → Publish Story articles generated by AutoWhisper. See SEO Strategy.
Other options: WordPress (most features, requires hosting), Substack (built-in subscriptions), WeChat Official Account (for China SEO via WeChat Search).
Analytics
Use AutoWhisper Analytics (built-in, no extra tool needed). View content performance + UTM sources + signal scoring.
If you have your own website, add Google Analytics (free) for website traffic.
Add Tools by Phase
Don’t install everything at once. Follow this timeline:
| Phase | Add what | Why now |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | AutoWhisper + 2 publishing platforms | Get the flywheel spinning |
| Week 4 | Apollo.io (free) | Flywheel is stable, start outbound |
| Week 6 | Resend + Hashnode | Add email conversion + SEO long-tail |
| Week 8+ | More publishing platforms | You have data — you know which platforms to expand to |
Total cost: Weeks 1-4 $0 (using AutoWhisper free tokens). From Week 5: $30/mo (AutoWhisper Basic). All other tools are free tier.
Next: See Outbound Guide for the full Outbound process, or go straight to Execution Calendar and start executing.