This might already exist somewhere in the CRM topics but I wanted to create a new one to bump to the top.
I’m always curious about what action plans, types of follow up, email templates, text templates, etc. teams are doing within their CRM that is generating engagement from leads.
Obviously every lead is different and there are certain communication methods that work for leads in different stages of their journey but in general what is working for other teams? I would love for this topic to allow us to share what’s generating responses, frameworks for action plans, automations, templates, etc. And for reference, I’m really talking about beyond the first few days of outreach but if there are tactics that are working on initial outreach that would be awesome to know as well!
I’ll share what’s working for me…
I’m on the go most of the time so I like to get notified when a lead who has been in the CRM for a while becomes active again. With the new automations engine I setup a notification that lets me know when a lead who was created more than 100 days ago views a listing. That way I can follow up immediately. This type of notification can be tweaked in many different ways depending on how exactly you want to be notified.
Why this works: instead of creating a list that I have to check daily, I get notified when they come back. Most of the time what I see is that leads will see something they like in a saved search and they will click it. If I can catch them quickly(text, phone, and email) I have a better chance at have a conversation. And we all know conversation leads to conversion!
So what’s working for you?
Also, I’m working on a shared doc with a ton of automations and how to build them. I would like to include any and all that are working for other teams/agents in this doc to share with the community. Looking forward to collaborating with everyone!
Hi @MattFranklin! I love this idea, as part of R&D we are always curious to know what real world scenarios look like and how users actually use our tools, I’m eager to learn what’s generating the most engagement and conversions.
We are always looking for ways to improve and this could be a great opportunity for us to learn about, no only the challenges, but what does work and further improve or enhance those areas! For example, since you mentioned text templates, we are planning to launch Pre-Written Texts next year, which will basically be a template builder for text messages, similar to how Form Letters work for emails.
Looking forward to hear what other users’ experience looks like!
Matt, how did you set up notifications for a lead who comes back after a long time? I’m waiting for the REW text module to notify me via text (not just email) when a lead responds to a text I’ve sent via automations. I was told it’s in the works, and I hope it comes soon.
I have studied automated texts for leads and even used a few services in the past. One of them was Smart Alto, and although I did get a couple of buyers with them (still working with one), I felt a disconnect as the texts were being sent by a different “person” - using a bot’s name who said she was my assistant (although there were supposedly humans behind the bot). If one of the leads responded and the bot converted, and then my name was mentioned, many of the leads asked, “Who is Judy?” And I was also emailing them myself on a drip campaign.
So I took those texts, kept the sending times Smart Alto used, and personalized them so it didn’t sound like it was coming from a bot/assistant. Recently, I created a 100-day follow-up using my text module, as I was using a different CRM just for the texts. With that CRM I had to manually add each lead and it wasn’t always easy when I wasn’t at my laptop. But that CRM notified me by text as soon as a lead would respond to one of the texts they received from me.
Next I’ll be working on going past 100 days using text and I’m trying to refresh my automated email follow-up. I used to send a newsletter out every month but stopped, and I want to start that up again.
Hmmm, this gives me an idea - we do actually have an admin/assistant full-time on our team, I should create an automation for texting and have it attached to Krista, and then when they reply we could notify the agent that the lead is engaged and they should reach out.
Off to check automations to see if I could make that happen.
(Also have to check the BCFSA unlicenced assistant rules)
There’s another option and that would be to use something like Zapier and maybe Twilio to receive a text alert. Depending on the email provider you use(I use gmail) you can set the incoming action to be triggered on a new email matching a specific search criteria and then the action can be Send SMS via Twilio(or whatever integrated text platform you choose).
I’m happy to help you as well set something up. Just shoot me a message if you need help!
Thanks Matt. I use something similar to send me a text when a lead responds to one of my automated texts via the text module and I receive an email notification from REW. I just wish it would come directly from REW because no matter what outside service you use, it’s not instantaneous.
As far as setting it up in push notifications, there is no Condition for when a lead responds to a text. There are a few “text” items, but nothing specifically for a lead replying or responding. As I currently have it set up in Gmail and the 3rd party service I use, I am getting a text.
Unfortunately, I didn’t even get an email from a recent lead response text, and am working with support on this.
Ohh…you wanted a notification when someone responds to a text specifically. Apologies. I read the first post wrong. I thought you wanted a text when a lead returned to your site after a long time.
That’s correct. There’s no way to send a notification when a lead text’s back. I think that this is something that Morgan wrote about in his recent Automations 3.0 post.
You sound like you have the idea and framework correct but the platforms don’t execute quickly enough. I get the urgency especially when someone responds to a text.
The problem for the texting at this point is that there is only email notification, and that isn’t even working 100% of the time. I just found 2 leads that responded to my Text Action Plan and I wasn’t notified at all.
I’ve got 2 support tickets in, but I don’t think they understand what I’m saying. I know they can’t yet respond to my text via a text (which my other CRM can do without fail). But so far since I’ve started the Text Action Plan, I found 2 leads that responded to my automated text and I wasn’t notified at all.
So if Krista isn’t notified when a lead responds, she won’t be able to pass that lead on to the agent. And receiving a text is so important (I know it’s on the table), because when we’re out on appointments (or doing anything), we’re not looking at email. I will look at a text if I can.
As it is, the text module and Action Plan using it isn’t working correctly. I’ve also noticed that some of my leads are receiving 2 texts in the same day, and that’s not how I set it up.
