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Sales & Lead Capture

Lead Follow-Up Queue

Every new lead gets a timed follow-up cadence until they reply or you close them.

Saves about ~2 hrs per week

What it does

  • Adds every new lead to a follow-up queue with timed touches
  • Sends day-1, day-3, and day-7 follow-ups automatically
  • Stops the sequence the moment the lead replies
  • Keeps you in the loop with a weekly reply-status digest

How it works

  1. New lead captured from any source
  2. Follow-up sequence starts with day-1 email
  3. Day-3 and day-7 touches fire if there's no reply
  4. Sequence stops on first reply; weekly digest shows status

What's included

  • 3-step follow-up cadence
  • Reply detection
  • Weekly status digest

Set it up yourself

Follow these 4 steps in order. You will need accounts for: Gmail.

Step 1: Define your sequence

  1. Write the day-1 email: reference the lead's context, one clear ask.
  2. Write the day-3 email: add value (a relevant case or link) and restate the ask once.
  3. Write the day-7 email: a graceful 'closing the loop' + re-open invitation.
  4. Keep each under 120 words — long sequences get read as spam.
  5. Create a sheet 'Follow-Up Queue' with columns: Lead Email, Added At, Next Touch, Status.

Watch out: The day-7 email must offer an easy exit ('if now's a bad time, ignore and I'll check back in a month') — it builds respect and stops unsubscribes.

Step 2: Connect your lead source

  1. Wire the trigger: new row in a leads sheet, new form submission, or CRM deal stage change.
  2. In the workflow, on trigger, insert a row into the Follow-Up Queue with Next Touch = day-1.
  3. Add a daily scheduler that scans the queue and sends whoever is due today.
  4. Mark each send (Email 1 sent → Next Touch = day-3).
  5. Test: add a fake lead today and watch the cadence fire.

Watch out: Make the scheduler idempotent — it must not double-send if two triggers overlap on the same row.

Step 3: Set the stop rule

  1. Detect replies: Gmail — mark 'queue' label reads as reply when subject is Re:; n8n — IMAP search for replies from the lead address.
  2. When a reply is detected, set Status = replied (stop further sends).
  3. Optionally bump replied leads into a 'waiting on you' bucket with a 5-day reminder.
  4. Test by replying to a queued email and confirming the sequence halts.

Watch out: The stop rule is what separates a lead-nurture system from spam — get it right before enabling the scheduler.

Step 4: Add the weekly digest

  1. Add a weekly schedule (Fridays 4pm) that aggregates: in sequence, replied, waiting, closed.
  2. Send yourself the digest with counts and the names of anyone stuck 14+ days.
  3. Use the digest to manually close or reposition stale leads.
  4. After two weeks of digests, adjust cadence if needed.

Watch out: The 14-day stuck flag is your personal nudge — the automation works best with a human looking at the digest weekly.

Frequently asked questions

What does the Lead Follow-Up Queue automation do?

Every new lead gets a timed follow-up cadence until they reply or you close them. Adds every new lead to a follow-up queue with timed touches

How much time does Lead Follow-Up Queue save?

It is estimated to save ~2 hrs per week. Actual savings depend on your volume.

Which tools does Lead Follow-Up Queue use?

It works with Gmail.

What does Lead Follow-Up Queue include?

3-step follow-up cadence, Reply detection, Weekly status digest.

Can I set up Lead Follow-Up Queue myself?

Yes. The do-it-yourself guide on this page walks through 4 steps, from getting access to testing the finished automation.