How often should you check in with sales prospects? Surprisingly, that number is much higher than you think.
It takes experience to learn how often to contact a prospect before you start to rub a potential customer the wrong way.
“No one wants to be annoying or bothersome to a professional contact,” says Elliott Bell, Director of Marketing at The Muse, “especially when you want a meeting or sales dollars from that person.”
Before moving up the ranks in marketing, he spent years in sales talking to prospects and closing deals. Elliott says it’s important to remember that your email can easily get lost in the workday shuffle.
The average person can get a few hundred emails a day. That makes it pretty tough to respond to all of them, and things naturally fall to the bottom of the list. If you don’t get a response, it doesn’t mean that someone is ignoring you – it just may mean that he or she is too busy.
Elliott Bell, Director of Marketing, The Muse
So, how often does he recommend contacting prospects?
“As many times as it takes,” says Elliott in this blog post. “The important thing is to do it the right way.”
Research supports his claims. According to a recent Yesware report, almost 90% of emails that receive replies were responded to within 24 hours after being opened. That means if a prospect hasn’t responded after a week, chances are they won’t reply to that email.
After years of spending time with Fortune 500 corporate prospects, business entrepreneur Caryn Kopp agrees that continuous communication is needed to build that relationship between potential customer and company.
Caryn Kopp, business entrepreneur
“There is a balance between persistence and patience,” she says. “Too little follow-up and decision makers say they will forget about you. Too much follow up and prospects will become annoyed.”
Caryn says the right number of times to reach out to a prospect depends on their needs.
“Each decision maker will be different,” she says on her blog. “The best way to know what they want is to ask.”
Caryn recommends asking each potential customer early on. She asks the following questions during her first conversation with a prospect:
“What do you see as the next best step?”
“Would a call or email be best to schedule time to continue our conversation?”
“When should I check back with you for future opportunities?”
“How often should I check in with you?”
She urges sales reps to not forget about prospects who aren’t quite ready for your services. Checking in with prospects weeks later is often needed and always appreciated.
If a seller doesn’t continue to follow up, they will delete all their information and not ever consider that company, even if they later have a need. They want you to know that you are not the only one who has invested time to begin a relationship. If you want to be considered when a need arises, you need to stay in touch.
Elliott Bell, Director of Marketing, The Muse
While Elliott recommends staying “pleasantly persistent” when contacting prospects, he cautions sales teams from reaching out too often.
“Sending a follow-up email every day shows you don’t respect a person’s time,” he says. “Give at least a week before following up. Any sooner might come off as pushy.”
Elliott and Caryn both agree that continuous follow-ups are needed in order to start the conversation when the prospect is ready.
“Getting people to respond,” says Elliott, “sometimes just comes down to catching them at the right time.”
FAQs
1. How can I automate follow-ups without losing the personal touch?
Use your CRM to set up automated email sequences triggered by specific actions, but personalize each message with the prospect’s name, company, and relevant details. Schedule reminders for manual touchpoints like phone calls. The key is blending automation for consistency with human interaction for relationship-building.
2. What should I say in a follow-up email if a prospect hasn’t responded?
Lead with value, not pressure. Reference your previous conversation, share a relevant resource (case study, article, or insight), and ask a specific question related to their business challenge. Keep it brief and helpful. Example: “Saw this article on [their pain point]—thought of our conversation. Worth a quick chat?”
3. What’s the best time of day to send follow-up emails?
Tuesday through Thursday between 10 AM and 2 PM in the prospect’s time zone typically sees the highest open rates. Avoid Monday mornings (inbox overload) and Friday afternoons (weekend mode). Test different times with your specific audience and track results in your CRM to find your optimal window.
4. How many follow-up attempts should I make before moving on?
Plan for 5-8 touchpoints over 2-3 weeks for active prospects. If there’s no response after that, move them to a long-term nurture sequence with monthly check-ins. The key is spacing attempts appropriately (3-7 days apart) and varying your approach—mix emails, calls, and LinkedIn messages.
5. What CRM features help me stay consistent with follow-ups?
Look for automated task reminders, email sequences, pipeline tracking, and activity logging. Nutshell offers all of these plus customizable workflows that trigger follow-up tasks based on prospect actions. You can also set up email templates, schedule sends, and track engagement—all in one platform to keep nothing falling through the cracks.
