Step by step guide

Turn a LinkedIn post into infinite leads

Follow this guide at your own pace: build your SDR agent in Houston, install the agent or skills, and turn the comments on any LinkedIn post into an outbound campaign ready for your approval.

60 to 90 min of setup For founders and sales teams You need a Mac or Windows computer No technical skills needed

What you'll build

An SDR agent that prospects for you

You give it one thing: the link to a LinkedIn post. It hands you back a full campaign waiting for your approval.

The process, start to finish

Find

Pull everyone who commented: name, role, company, and profile.

Save

Drops them, neatly organized, into a fresh Google Sheet.

Enrich

Verified work emails with Apollo and Hunter.

Write

A 3-email sequence in your voice.

Launch on pause

Loads the campaign into Instantly and waits for your green light.

The agent in action

SDR

LinkedIn Comment to Outreach

Working

Found 1,000 commenters with Apify

Loaded the leads into Google Sheets

Enriched 620 emails with Apollo and Hunter

Wrote the 3-email sequence in your voice

Campaign paused in Instantly · waiting for your OK to send

Think about scale: a post with 1,000 comments becomes a database of 1,000 prospects, with a verified work email for more than half of them and a 3-email sequence already written and loaded into Instantly, waiting for your approval. All from a single link, in minutes instead of days. And the master move: it doesn't have to be your post. Run the same recipe on someone else's post (an industry leader's lead magnet, a competitor, an event) and their audience becomes your list. That's why it's called infinite leads.

≡Leads · LinkedIn Comment to Outreach

docs.google.com/spreadsheets

#	Name	Role	Company	Comment	Profile	Verified email
1	Ana M.	Head of Growth	Nubetech	"I'm interested 🙌"	in/ana-m	[email protected]
2	Carlos R.	Founder & CEO	Veloro	"I want to try it"	in/carlos-r	[email protected]
3	Diana P.	VP Sales	Aurora Labs	"+1, send it to me"	in/diana-p	[email protected]
4	Javier T.	Product Lead	Kantto	"Exactly what I needed"	in/javier-t	not found
5	Mariana B.	Marketing Director	Origen	"Interested 👀"	in/mariana-b	[email protected]
6	Sergio D.	COO	Brío	"Count me in"	in/sergio-d	enriching…

LeadsEnrichedSequence

ExampleThe Google Sheet the agent builds: every person who commented, with role, company, comment, profile, and verified work email. An empty cell is normal (nobody finds 100%).

Use it responsibly

This is a lot of power. The agent never sends anything on its own: the campaign always stays paused, waiting for your approval. Keep that guardrail and prospect with judgment.

Step 0 · Before you start

What to have on hand

~5 minutes

Four things you need and a couple of links on hand. Everything is free and takes minutes to set up.

A computer

Mac or Windows. Houston doesn't run on phone or tablet.

A LinkedIn account

Plus a post with comments to test on, yours or someone else's.

An AI provider

Create a free account with either one:

✳Anthropic ◉OpenAI

A Google account

So the agent can save the leads in Google Sheets.

Houston · download it at gethouston.ai with the code getsh*tdone

Download the agent · SDR.houstonagent, ready to import into Houston

The agent's tools · Apify, Apollo, Hunter (optional), and Instantly. We create the accounts together in Step 3.

Are you ready?

You have your computer on hand, you can open your email, and you have a quiet stretch ahead. Full setup takes 60 to 90 min and your first campaign another 15 to 40 min. You don't have to do it all in one sitting: every step is saved.

The full path

From step 0 to 5, in order

Do them top to bottom. Each step builds on the one before it.

0Gather what you need
Computer, accounts, links, and codes~5 min 1Install Houston and set it up
Download, invite code, AI provider~15 min 2Import the SDR agent
"From a friend" → SDR.houstonagent~5 min 3Create your tool accounts
Apify, Apollo, Hunter, and Instantly~15 min 4Connect the integrations in Houston
Apify MCP, Apollo, Google Sheets, and Instantly~15 min 5Run your first campaign
From a LinkedIn post to Instantly on pause15 to 40 min

Step 1 of 5

Install Houston and set it up

~15 minutes

If you already have Houston installed and set up, skip to Step 2.

Go to www.gethouston.ai and click the download button.
Enter the invite code: getsh*tdone (all lowercase, with the asterisk) and download the right version for your system: Mac or Windows.

Screenshot 1The invite code window on gethouston.ai. Paste the code and click download.
Open the installer and follow Next → Next → Install. Open Houston.
Choose the language (English) and read the welcome screen.
Connect your AI provider: Anthropic (Claude) or OpenAI (your ChatGPT account). Sign in through the browser and come back to Houston when it says you can close the page.
Connect your integrations provider (Composio): click Sign In, sign in with Google or Microsoft, authorize, and come back to Houston.

If you're on Windows

Windows may show "Windows protected your PC". That's normal: Houston is in beta on Windows. Click More info and then Run anyway.

Windows warning: Windows protected your PC, with the Run anyway button — Screenshot 2The Windows warning. Click "More info" and "Run anyway" appears. Windows only.

Houston main screen unlocked: agents in the left column and the SDR agent board with missions in progress, needing attention, and ready — Screenshot 3The Houston main screen, now unlocked: your agents in the left column and the mission board (in progress, needs your attention, ready) in the center.

You should see

The Houston main screen unlocked, with the agents column on the left, and your AI provider and Composio connected.

Step 2 of 5

Import the SDR agent

~5 minutes

The fastest way is to bring in the agent already built. It arrives with its identity, its 8 skills, and its 14 learnings, ready to work. You don't have to configure anything by hand.

Download the agent file (if you haven't already in Step 0).
Download SDR.houstonagentSave it as is, without unzipping.
In Houston, in the left bar, click New agent.
At the very top, choose From a friend.

Screenshot 4The "New agent" window. The "From a friend" option is at the top: that's where you upload the agent file.
Click Choose file, select the SDR.houstonagent you downloaded, then Continue.

Screenshot 5Upload the file. Houston reads it on your machine; nothing is uploaded to the internet.
Houston shows you what the agent brings (8 skills, 14 learnings) and asks "Do you want Houston to take a look?". Choose Yes, review it: it runs a quick security review before installing anything from a third party. Wait for it to confirm.

Screenshot 6Houston summarizes what the agent brings and offers to review it. Choose "Yes, review it".
Give it a name (for example, SDR) and a color, and bring the agent into your space.

Don't unzip the file

Upload SDR.houstonagent as is, as a single file. If your computer unzips it into several parts, the import fails. Keep it all together.

Prefer to build it yourself?

You can also build it by hand: create an agent from the Sales template and then install the skills pack from GitHub (Job Description → Skills → Add skill → From GitHub → github.com/felipesalinasr/fsr-stack → install all). It takes a bit longer; the result is the same.

You should see

Your new SDR agent in the left column, with its 8 skills and its learnings already loaded.

Step 3 of 5

Create your tool accounts

~15 minutes · we only create accounts here, we connect them in Step 4

Four tools give your agent hands. Create an account with each one (all free to start); we connect them in Step 4. Create it before connecting it.

Free credits

Pulls everyone who commented on the post.

Email signup failing? Sign in with Google.

Create account

Free · ~100/mo

Finds verified work emails.

Corporate Apollo? Create a personal account: API keys require admin rights.

Create account

HunterOptional

Backup for the emails Apollo can't find.

If you don't create it, tell the agent to use Apollo only.

Create account

Free

Sends the campaign without burning your domain.

For volume, use alternate domains warmed up with Warm Up.

Create account

You should have

Four accounts created: Apify, Apollo, Instantly, and (optional) Hunter.

Step 4 of 5

Connect the integrations in Houston

~15 minutes

In Houston, open your agent's Integrations tab. There are two ways to connect: one click (you sign in) or with an API key (you copy it from the tool and paste it into Houston).

One click

In HoustonIntegrations→Apify MCP→Connect→Authorize

Choose Apify MCP, not plain "Apify": that one asks for a token and confuses everyone.

Google SheetsOne click

In HoustonIntegrations→Google Sheets→Connect→Sign in with Google

Select the exact "Google Sheets" in the list.

API key

In ApolloSettings→Integrations→API Keys→Create→Copy

In HoustonIntegrations→Apollo→Connect→Paste

Apollo shows the key only once: copy it the moment you create it.

API key

In InstantlyYour initial→Settings→Integrations→API keys→Copy

In HoustonIntegrations→Instantly→Connect→Paste

Houston Integrations section showing Apify and Apify MCP side by side, with Apify MCP as the correct option — Screenshot 7The two Apify results in Integrations. Connect the one on the right: **Apify MCP** (red box).

With API keys

Paste them into Integrations, not the chat (there they get exposed in the history), and don't share your screen while you copy them. Lost looking for a key? Ask the agent for help: "help me step by step to find this tool's API key."

You should have

Four integrations in green: Apify MCP, Apollo, Google Sheets, and Instantly. (Hunter connects the same way, or you leave it for later.)

Step 5 of 5

Run your first campaign

15 to 40 minutes · the agent works in phases and checks in with you

Go to LinkedIn and copy the link of a post with comments: one of yours, or someone else's whose audience is useful to you (an industry lead magnet, for example).
In your agent, open Activity and in the In progress column click the + to create a new mission.
In the mission's skill picker, look for LinkedIn Comment to Outreach G-Sheets. If you don't see it right away, scroll down: it shows up under Featured.
Paste the link and write:
Copy and paste, with your linkRun this skill on this LinkedIn post: [paste the post link here]
Let it work in phases. First it scrapes the comments with Apify and creates the Google Sheet; then it asks for your green light to enrich with Apollo; then it writes the 3-email sequence with you; and at the end it loads everything into Instantly. This is on purpose: you review at each phase and don't burn credits if something went wrong.

Screenshot 8The agent starts the mission: it reads the skill, takes the post link, and announces it will run the full pipeline until it leaves the campaign paused in Instantly, saving the leads in a Google Sheet.
When it finishes, open the campaign in Instantly: it's paused, with your leads and the 3-email sequence (opener day 0, reminder day 3, close day 6 to 7). Review it, adjust whatever you want, and only then decide whether to send.

What to expect

Apollo and Hunter find a verified email for 50 to 70% of the leads: it's a database, not magic. In practice, 42 commenters yielded 24 emails (57%). An empty cell is normal, not a failure. And each email found uses one Apollo credit.

Before you send for real

Loading the campaign is safe: it stays paused. But don't activate it until you have sending emails set up in Instantly (ideally alternate domains warmed up with Warm Up). If you don't have them yet, tell the agent: "I want to try the skill without Instantly for now."

You've done it when

You have a Google Sheet with every commenter on the post, verified emails for most of the reachable ones, and a 3-email campaign waiting for your approval in Instantly. From a single link.

Extra

Make it yours

You edit everything by talking to it in plain language, no code. Treat it like a new team member you're teaching your way of working.

Qualify against your ICP before spending credits:
Copy and paste, attaching your criteriaEdit the skill: add a column called qualification and always score against these ideal-customer criteria. If a lead is not qualified, do not even fetch the email.
Teach it to always use the skill:
Copy and paste into the chatStore in your memory that every time I give you a LinkedIn post link, you use the LinkedIn Comment to Outreach G-Sheets skill.
Avoid duplicates across runs:
Copy and paste into the chatWhenever we prospect, check in Apollo that we are not enriching duplicate data.
Use a different sequencer or a CRM? Houston connects to any tool with an API or MCP. In practice we connected Smartlead, a tool we had never used before:
Copy and paste, with your toolI want to connect to [your tool], help me please. Here is the link to its documentation: [paste the link]
Prospect the people who react too: the pack includes LinkedIn Reaction to Outreach, the same play but with a post's likes instead of its comments.

If something goes wrong

Troubleshooting

The real snags people hit and how to fix them.

?I can't connect my AI provider (Claude doesn't respond or the login fails)

This happens sometimes: Anthropic can be unstable. Switch providers: in Houston, Settings → AI Provider → connect OpenAI with your ChatGPT account. The result is the same.

?Windows says "Windows protected your PC" and won't let me install

Click More info and then Run anyway. It's because Houston is in beta on Windows; it's safe.

?Apify asks me for a "token"

You connected the wrong "Apify". Use Apify MCP, which only asks you to sign in and authorize, no token.

?I can't find the Apollo API key

In Apollo: Settings (bottom left, the last item) → left menu Integrations → API Keys → create a new key. The rule works for almost every tool: Settings → Integrations → API Keys.

?I copied the Apollo API key wrong and can't see it anymore

Apollo shows the key only once for security. Don't look for it: create a new key and paste it into Houston.

?Apollo says only an admin can create the API key

You're in the corporate account and someone else is the admin. To move forward today: create a personal Apollo account with your personal email. If your sessions got mixed up, sign out completely and sign up again. You can sort out corporate access later with your team.

?I switched Apollo accounts but Houston still uses the old one

The old connection is saved in your integrations provider. Go to composio.dev with the same email you used to connect your apps, find Apollo in your connected apps, Delete the old connection, and reconnect with the new key from Houston.

?The Composio page keeps loading when I connect the integrations provider

Go straight to composio.dev → get started for free → sign in with your Gmail. If there's a selector at the top left, switch it to for you. Then go back to Houston and try again.

?The Settings or Integrations menu doesn't show up in Instantly

Three common causes: you don't have any email set up in Instantly yet, or the browser window is too small (make it bigger and the menu appears), or your plan doesn't include it. If you're still lost, ask Houston.

?Mid-run it says Google Sheets isn't connected

Go to Integrations → find Google Sheets (select the exact one) → connect it with your Google account. Go back to the mission and tell it: "I've connected Google Sheets now, continue."

?The agent asks me for Hunter.io and I don't want another account

Tell it: "I'm not going to connect Hunter.io, I want to use the skill with Apollo only for now." It works just the same; it'll just find a few fewer emails.

?It says "LinkedIn is blocking Apify" or something similar

First, don't take it at face value: agents sometimes get the diagnosis wrong. Tell it: "please verify what you're telling me, or whether you're having a different problem." A common cause is an old version of the skills: reinstall the pack (Add skill → From GitHub → the repo → install all) and start a new mission.

?I can't find the skill in the new mission's picker

Scroll down the list: it shows up in the Featured section. And confirm under Job Description → Skills that the pack is installed.

?It found very few emails

That's expected on small posts or very mixed audiences: normal coverage is 50 to 70%. These are databases and people change jobs. Also keep in mind that each search uses Apollo credits: don't re-search the missing ones without reason.

?I'm about to update Houston and I'm afraid of losing everything

Relax: your content doesn't live inside the app, it lives in files on your computer. You can delete and reinstall Houston and the new one picks up all your information.

Before you wrap up

Your success checklist

If you can check all of this, you're done.

SDR

LinkedIn Comment to Outreach

Ready

Houston installed, with AI provider and Composio connected
Sales agent created from the Sales template
Skills pack installed from github.com/felipesalinasr/fsr-stack
Accounts created: Apify, Apollo, Instantly (and Hunter, optional)
Integrations connected: Apify MCP, Apollo, Google Sheets, Instantly
First mission run with a real post
Google Sheet with the commenters and their verified emails
3-email campaign paused in Instantly, waiting for your approval

Checked everything? Your SDR agent is already working for you.

Tell us how your first campaign went and what you want to automate next.

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