The short answer
Call new inquiries within minutes. If you don't connect, follow up across a few channels over the next 30 days: calls for the first week, a short text where you have consent, and brief emails in between. Six or so call attempts covers most of the people you will ever reach. Each touch should be short, friendly and easy to answer.
Why a sequence beats a single call
People who reach out are busy. A missed call usually means bad timing, not a lack of interest. A planned sequence gives them several easy chances to say yes.
In a Velocify study of nearly 3.5 million leads from more than 400 companies, 93% of converted leads were reached by the sixth call attempt. Earlier Velocify research cited in the same report found that half of leads are never called a second time (Velocify). The data is from 2012, but the pattern holds up: a few well-timed tries recover people a single call misses.
The 30-day sequence
| Day | Call | Text (with consent) | Email |
|---|
| Day 0 | Call within 5 minutes. If no answer, try again within the hour. | "Hi Alex, it's Sam at Oak Park. Saw your note about a 2-bed. Want me to hold a tour time?" | Short confirmation with your name and a direct line. |
| Day 1 | Call at a different time of day than Day 0. | | One-line check-in: "Still looking? Happy to help." |
| Day 3 | Call again. | "Still interested in touring this week? Reply yes and I'll send times." | |
| Day 7 | Last call of the first week. | | Short ping with one useful detail, like a new opening or price. |
| Day 14 | One call. | "Checking in. Want me to keep you on the list?" | |
| Day 30 | | | Friendly close: "I'll stop reaching out. Reply anytime if timing changes." |
Adjust the timing to your business. A plumbing lead is hot for hours. A lease or a legal matter may take weeks to decide.
What to say
- Keep every follow-up short. One or two sentences. A quick, human ping reads better than a list of features.
- Ask for one easy reply. "Reply yes and I'll send times" is simpler than asking someone to click, log in or fill out a form.
- Put a booking link second. Include it for people who prefer to pick a time themselves.
- Use their words. Mention the unit, service or question they asked about.
- Sign with a name and a direct number. People reply to people.
Stay inside the rules
- Get consent before automated texts or calls. The FCC says written or oral consent is required for all autodialed or prerecorded calls or texts to a wireless number, and prior express written consent for telemarketing robocalls (FCC). See Text message consent made simple.
- Respect calling hours. Federal telemarketing rules prohibit sales calls before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. in the recipient's time zone (Michigan PSC summary). Some states set tighter windows.
- Honor stop requests right away, in every channel, and note them in your CRM so the next person doesn't reach out again.
- Check the Do Not Call list before any sales call to someone who hasn't contacted you.
- When in doubt, ask your counsel. Consent rules vary by state and change often.
Track what works
- Log every attempt with the channel, time and result.
- Look at which day and channel gets replies. Move effort there.
- Review stalled leads monthly. Old inquiries are leads you already paid for.
How YesOneOne helps
Leigh answers leasing calls the moment they ring, books tours on the same call and follows up with missed callers and cold leads by phone and text. Emma does the same for home and professional services, reaching back out to missed calls and unresponsive leads to get them booked. Your sequence runs every time, and your team picks up the conversation with the details in hand.
See what a 30-day follow-up looks like when it runs itself.
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