A few months ago, I decided to run a little test to see how active people were at sending follow-up emails.
Whenever I received a marketing or sales outreach email, Iâd wait a week or two before replying and see if they followed up.
The results from this back-of-the-envelope test:
- Most people (~60%) donât send a follow-up email, even when theyâre explicitly emailing to ask for an answer/deal/link/conversation/etc.
- Of those who did send a follow-up, a majority of them sent 1-2 emails with a basic and not that relevant âDid you get that email I sent?â template.
- The remaining few people sent relevant follow-up emails that built on their ask, helped overcome objections, and continued for ~2-4 additional emails.
So, why donât people follow-up?
Typically, itâs one of three reasons.
- Theyâre time-constrained and sending a single email (without follow-up) is all they have the capacity for
- Theyâre worried about getting a ânoâ (or even a âno-replyâ), and The Resistance convinces them that sending just a single email is less scary than sending a follow-up email or two and getting a âNot a fit for me, thanksâ reply.
- They donât know any better. The idea that the most useful thing to do if you donât get a response is to send another email can be a bit of a square peg in a round hole. (Isnât it rude to send a second email? Nope, itâs proactive + demonstrates your interest).
Alas, most people will continue to not follow-up, which is a shame. Sending a follow-up email is one of the most straightforward steps you can take to get more replies.
All you need to do is:
- Send your first email
- Wait a few days to see if they reply
- If they donât, send them your first follow-up email
By the way, if you want to get more clients through email outreach (and follow-up), then youâll want to check out The Outreach Blueprint. Youâll get the framework, strategy, and templates you need to succeed.
https://kaidavis.com/outreach-blueprint/
Excelsior!
Kai