How to Write Effective Follow-Up Emails?

How to write follow-up emails that get replies? Here are some examples and templates for you to follow.

Writing follow-up emails is essential for B2B sales because it helps turn leads into potential sales. It also generates more sales engagement opportunities for prospects to interact with. Following up is important to guide leads along the sales pipeline.

Furthermore, following up with prospects is crucial in creating long-lasting and positive relationships with them. According to a Forrester study, 53% of marketers state that email is the most effective channel for early-stage lead generation.

Follow-ups are important for repeated exposure to your brand. It creates various touchpoints in which prospects can interact with you.

What is a Follow-Up Email?

A follow-up email is an email sent to a prospect after an initial interaction to continue the conversation or start a new conversation. Follow-up emails are an important part of the sales engagement process because they increase touchpoints which leads to better sales results.

These emails can vary in content depending on the relationship and the stage of the sales cycle. They typically include a brief recap of the previous interaction, a reminder of the value proposition, and a clear call to action.

How to Write Follow-Up Emails?

Here are the components that you need to know to write follow-up emails.

Straightforward Subject Line

The subject line is the first thing the receiver will see in the email so it needs to be snappy and straightforward. A personalized subject line can make the email relevant to the receiver. Furthermore, you should avoid using words that trigger spam filters.

According to Regie.ai’s 2023 Sales Email Benchmark Report, follow-up emails with a subject line of around 4 words had a 56.6% open rate. You can create a straightforward subject line by following these templates:

Feedback on Our Last Meeting.
[timeframe] Meeting for a Demo.
Are You Still Interested?

Practical Email Opener

Start your follow-up email with a practical email opener reminding them of the subject of the first email. You should provide context to let the receiver identify your previous interaction with them.

Here are some examples of great email openers:

Hello [Prospect’s Name], I wanted to reach out if you’re still interested in [product/service].
Last time we had a conversation we discussed [topic].
I wanted to follow up on the email I sent last [day] about [topic].

Add a Call-to-Action (CTA)

A call-to-action (CTA) is a prompt that encourages the recipient to take a specific action. CTAs provide a convenient way for receivers to reply to your follow-up email. You can include a CTA by asking a question, providing a form to fill out, or offering something to the receiver.

There are several ways you can add a CTA to your email:

If you’re available, we can do a quick call to discuss [topic] further, does [specific time] work for you?
We can arrange [personalized request] for you at [specific time], will this be okay with you?
If you’re still interested, you can fill out this form so we can schedule a demo for the [product/service].

Types of Follow-Up Emails

There are several types of follow-up emails, each with its own purpose. These follow-up templates can help you speed up the process of emailing your prospects so you bring them quicker along the sales cycle.

After-Proposal Follow-Up Email

An after-proposal follow-up email is an email you send after discussing the terms of your agreement. The purpose is to create a sense of urgency for the client and to let them know you’re open to answering any inquiries.

You can use this template to offer additional support to the client. Here’s a sample template that shows various touchpoints for your clients.

No-Response Follow-Up Email

A no-response follow-up email is an email sent to a recipient who hasn’t responded to the initial email. These emails are typically used to remind the recipient about the original message and encourage them to respond.

Furthermore, no-response follow-up emails should be polite, concise, and respectful of the recipient’s time. They should also provide more value for the recipient to respond. Some examples of value-based follow-ups are additional information or a reminder of the benefits.

Discovery Call Follow-Up Email

A discovery call follow-up email is an email sent after an initial meeting to learn more about the prospect’s needs and goals. The purpose of the email is to summarize the touchpoints discussed during the call.

In the email, you can reiterate the value proposition and outline the next steps in the sales process. Here’s a sample template of the follow-up.

Check-In Follow-Up Email

A check-in follow-up is an email sent to a prospect to inquire about their progress since their last interaction. It’s a great way to stay engaged with prospects to maintain a positive relationship.

Additionally, check-in follow-up emails should be friendly, genuine, and personalized to the recipient’s situation. Here’s an example of a check-in follow-up email.

Tips for B2B Sales Follow-Up Emails

Here are some tips and tricks that you need to know to succeed in sending B2B sales follow-up emails. These tips can help you organize and strategize your next wave of messages.

Provide Context and Value

When following up you should provide context by referring to your previous interaction with them. Moreover, you should provide value by providing additional information via personalized add-ons.

Context is important for follow-ups because it creates interest in the prospect. It also provides a reason as to why you’re sending the follow-up. Furthermore, context is the organic interaction that allows you to offer something beneficial.

Lastly, you can provide value by giving more information through new and relevant blogs, data, or newsletters. You can also add value by offering unique offers to your prospects.

Be Genuine

Being genuine in your emails can help build rapport with your clients. When writing follow-ups, you think about what your potential prospects need. Your solutions and their needs must match to generate a sale. It can also help maintain a positive relationship with them.

Use Cold Emailing Tools

You can use cold emailing tools to streamline your follow-ups. Tools like Clevenio can help you make cold email sequences to create a follow-up process for your prospects. These tools can also be integrated into CRM systems to organize your email lists.

How Long Should You Wait Before Following Up?

Typically, you wait 4 to 5 days to a week before following up with your prospect. The frequency of follow-ups revolves around your sales cycle and goals. You can experiment and test different frequencies to see which one works best for you.

How to Create a Follow-Up Email Strategy?

You can create a follow-up email strategy by incorporating various tools and concepts to fit your goals. These key components can help make a fluid follow-up email strategy.

Create a Sales Cadence Strategy

Sales cadence is the frequency of various touchpoints that prospects engage with. A sales cadence strategy is a system where a sales team identifies the different touchpoints prospects need to go to throughout the sales process.

Additionally, a sales cadence strategy can help you understand your audience and which types of emails they best reciprocate. Keeping track of a cadence schedule can help you optimize and adjust your follow-up email strategy.

Build a Follow-Up Sequence

The goal of a follow-up sequence is to nurture the relationship with the prospect and guide them through the sales process. Make sure that your follow-up sequence fits the nature of your prospect.

Each touchpoint is designed to move prospects closer to a desired action like purchasing or scheduling a meeting. There are various ways to make a follow-up sequence. The three-basket method allows you to segment your prospects into different groups. Here are some tips when making a follow-up sequence:

Concise and straightforward
Simple and readable
Personalized
Customer-centric
Timely

Test and Analyze Follow-Up Emails

Testing different templates and analyzing various metrics is a great way to gather data to make informed decisions with your follow-up strategies. You can also use various email tools to help you keep track of the metrics.

You can run A/B testing and other tests for your follow-up emails. Here are some of the components of the email that you need to test for:

Subject line
Content
Links
Images

Here are some of the metrics that you need to keep track of:

Click-through-rate (CTR)
Email deliverability rate
Response rate
Email bounce rate

Why are Follow-Up Emails Important?

Follow-up emails are important because they keep the conversation going with your prospect. They help build relationships because they provide added value. Moreover, follow-up emails provide another touchpoint for your prospects to interact with. It also keeps the momentum going.

According to data, 48% of salespeople never make a single follow-up. However, 80% of sales require at least 5 follow-ups before progressing through the sales pipeline. It’s important to understand that nurturing leads and converting them into sales takes time and effort.

Furthermore, there’s a formula as to why follow-up emails are important. It can create various points of interaction for your prospects. Follow-ups are an effective way of making different touchpoints.

Here’s the formula for calculating the effectiveness of cold outreach campaigns. The traditional formula didn’t take into account follow-ups.

Here’s the formula for calculating your email outreach with follow-ups. The added touchpoints increase the chances of opportunities to make appointments.

Effectiveness of Follow-Up Emails

Writing effective follow-up emails is important for lead generation, client relationships, and sales conversion. By applying various tools and concepts you can curate a follow-up email strategy that’s scaleable and adaptable.