Lead Follow Up Checklist

Two mistakes cost roughly the same amount of money and look nothing alike: giving up on a lead too soon, and refusing to stop after someone’s asked you to.

Fresh lead setup

First call timing defined. Voicemail script approved. Text follow up approved. Email follow up approved when used. Attempt schedule documented.

Outcome rules

No answer has a next attempt. Voicemail has a next attempt. Wrong number stops the call cadence. Busy or failed call retries later. Customer callback request creates a specific task. Opt out stops appropriate messaging.

Conversation rules

Customer replies pause outdated automation. Previous context is visible before the next message. Lead is not asked the same questions repeatedly.

Nurture rules

Fresh lead cadence has an end point. Long term prospects move to a different sequence. Future project timing creates a future task.

Quality control

Contact rate measured by attempt number. Response by channel measured. Stale active leads reported. Opt outs reviewed. Appointments from later attempts tracked.

Run this checklist against your own worst recent example — the lead who fell through the cracks, or the one who complained about being contacted too many times. Nine times out of ten, one specific line above would have caught it.