Sales follow up email templates

Forgetting to send follow up emails is one of the most critical mistakes sales and marketing professionals make when reaching out to prospects. Far too often, they focus solely on the initial pitch and completely neglect follow-ups. A whopping 70% of sales emails aren’t followed up on, although as many as 80% of deals require at least five follow-ups before closing. 

Getting back in touch with prospects ultimately helps businesses increase response rates and close more sales. In fact, follow up emails typically get better response rates than the initial email. A study conducted by Iko System saw a reply rate of 18% on the first email, 14% on the second, 13% on the fourth, and a massive 27% on the sixth. With the right follow up email templates at hand, your sales and marketing team can ensure more consistent communication with prospects and improve sales in the long run.

3 major follow up email mistakes to avoid

Sending too many emails

While there is no universal formula for the best number and frequency of follow up emails you should send (as it greatly depends on the kind of interaction you had with your prospect previously) – research shows that 2 or 3 follow-ups are the optimal number. As a general rule, it is recommended to wait at least two days before sending your first follow up email.

Giving up too soon

Statistically, if you don’t receive a reply to your first email, you have a 21% chance of getting a reply to the second one, and a 25% chance that you will eventually hear back from the recipient after a couple of follow-up messages. It might also take 5 follow-up emails or more to actually get a response from a prospect.

Lack of personalization

Personalization is key when it comes to email marketing as it can help your follow up emails stand out. Studies have revealed that emails with personalized subject lines are 26% more likely to be opened than those without, and that revenue is 5.7 times higher in emails that employ personalization.

Sales follow up email template examples

Deciding how to follow up with prospects who didn’t respond to your initial email can be tricky as you need to find the right balance between adding value and being pushy/annoying. Below are 10 basic sales follow up email templates for different use cases that you can use as a jump-off point before creating your own.

Follow up email after a trigger event

Follow up email to share a special deal

Follow up email to reconnect with a prospect 

Follow up email after leaving a voicemail

Follow up email after an event

Free trial follow up email

Follow up email after a demo

Promotional outreach follow up email

Follow up email after no response

Follow up email for ‘breaking up’ with a prospect

Bonus: Funny sales follow up email template to inspire your sales team

Sales follow up emails – Frequently asked questions

How do you write a good follow-up email for sales?

To write an effective follow-up email, you need to be patient. Sometimes it takes time and effort to get the response. However, do not spam the prospective clients because it could have an oppositive effect. And most importantly, don’t send generic emails. The more personalized the email is, the better chance you have for a response. 

Why should I send a follow-up email?

A good follow-up email can help you stay at the forefront of your client’s mind. Most sales will be closed in the follow-up stages of the sales cycle, so the follow-up email is a direct way to get you closer to closing the deal.

What is a follow-up email?

A follow-up email is a message you send to people who have not responded to a previous email. Moreover, follow-up emails are usually sent after a couple of days.