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Agency & Client Ops

Proposal Follow-Up Automation

Sent proposals get tracked — follow-ups fire until they say yes, no, or later.

Saves about ~1 hr per week

What it does

  • Tracks every proposal's sent date and status
  • Sends follow-ups at day 3 and day 10
  • Stops when the prospect replies or decides
  • Logs the whole thread for your notes

How it works

  1. Proposal marked sent
  2. Day-3 follow-up goes out
  3. Day-10 follow-up if silent
  4. Reply or decision stops the flow

What's included

  • Proposal tracker
  • 2 follow-up emails
  • Reply stop + logging

Set it up yourself

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

Step 1: Track proposals

  1. Create a 'Proposals' sheet: Prospect, Email, Proposal Link, Sent Date, Status, Notes.
  2. Enter proposals as you send them (or wire the send action to log automatically).
  3. Set Status values: Sent, Follow-up 1, Follow-up 2, Won, Lost.
  4. Test the sheet read.
  5. Keep it current — the automation reads it.

Watch out: Status transitions must be linear and obvious — a proposal whose status is 'Sent' after two follow-ups means the log and reality have drifted.

Step 2: Write the follow-ups

  1. Day-3: 'Wanted to make sure you saw the proposal — happy to walk through it if useful.'
  2. Day-10: 'Checking in once more — shall I keep this open?' with a soft close.
  3. Both under 60 words, single question.
  4. Add the proposal link.
  5. Save as templates.

Watch out: Two follow-ups is the discipline — a third is where prospects start considering you a nag; the day-10 email's job is to force a close decision.

Step 3: Set the triggers

  1. Daily scan: proposals where status is Sent and day-count = 3 → day-3 email.
  2. Then status = Follow-up 1; when day-count = 10 → day-10 email; status = Follow-up 2.
  3. Auto-stop: if you mark Won/Lost, nothing more fires.
  4. Reply detection stops the chain on any reply.
  5. Test with dummy dates.

Watch out: Store the sent-date as the anchor — the day-count math is relative to when it was sent, not a fixed calendar, or a proposal sent on a Thursday fires a 'day 3' follow-up on Sunday.

Step 4: Log the outcomes

  1. When a proposal converts or dies, update Status + notes.
  2. Monthly: win rate, days-to-decision, which follow-up got replies.
  3. Post the monthly numbers to your team.
  4. Tune the cadence with the data (if day-10 gets the wins, shift).
  5. Review quarterly.

Watch out: The data loop (which follow-up produces replies) tells you if the automation is helping or just adding noise — without it you're guessing.

Frequently asked questions

What does the Proposal Follow-Up Automation automation do?

Sent proposals get tracked — follow-ups fire until they say yes, no, or later. Tracks every proposal's sent date and status

How much time does Proposal Follow-Up Automation save?

It is estimated to save ~1 hr per week. Actual savings depend on your volume.

Which tools does Proposal Follow-Up Automation use?

It works with Gmail.

What does Proposal Follow-Up Automation include?

Proposal tracker, 2 follow-up emails, Reply stop + logging.

Can I set up Proposal Follow-Up Automation myself?

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