Three days of silence. The follow-up already went out.
When a thread in your Unified Inbox goes quiet, an inbox agent follows up in context, from the same sender. A "not right now" gets a follow-up on the date the prospect gave. A reply or a no stops it.
Set 1 to 5 follow-ups per agent. Nobody gets chased forever.
- 50 free replies
- No credit card
- Stops when they reply
Re: Outbound for your team
via Email Bison 
Agent will stop after 2 attempts.
- The prospect replies
- The prospect says not interested
- The attempt limit is reached
Follow-up scheduled alerts post to Slack The first reply is easy. The fourth is where deals are won.
Most replies that go quiet were never a no. Someone got busy. Your inbox agents keep the thread alive until there is an answer either way.
Follows up when a thread goes quiet
An inbox agent replies in under 5 minutes. If the prospect goes silent after that, the agent sends a follow-up in the context of the thread, from the same sender, through the same tool. The conversation stays alive without a rep remembering to chase it.
Waits for the date they gave
A "Not right now" or "circle back in Q2" is not a no. The agent acknowledges it and schedules the follow-up for the timeframe the prospect gave. The thread shows the date in your Unified Inbox and Slack gets a Follow-up scheduled alert.
Stops the moment it should
Follow-ups stop as soon as the prospect replies. A "Not interested" closes the thread politely and no more follow-ups go out. And every agent has an attempt limit, so nobody gets chased forever.
Configured per agent
Smart Follow-up lives in each inbox agent's response settings. Choose how many follow-ups the agent sends, from 1 to 5. Each workspace and each client can run its own rules.
Smart follow-ups vs the follow-ups you already have
Your sequencer follows up with people who never answered. This is for the ones who did.
Sequencer follow-up steps
Does: Sends the next pre-written email to everyone who has not replied to the campaign.
Gap: Built for people who never answered. Once a prospect replies, the thread leaves the sequence and following up on the conversation is on you.
CRM tasks and reminders
Does: Reminds a rep to chase a thread on a given day.
Gap: A reminder is not a message. Someone still has to open the thread, reread it, and write the follow-up.
A rep remembers
Does: Works when the rep has time and the thread is fresh in mind.
Gap: Quiet threads pile up. The ones that go cold are usually the ones that were close.
Underfive smart follow-ups
Does: Writes a follow-up in the context of the thread when it goes quiet, times it to what the prospect said, and stops when they answer or say no.
- Written in the context of the thread
- Sent from the same sender and tool
- "Not right now" waits for the date they gave
- Stops on a reply or a "not interested"
- 1 to 5 attempts, set per agent
How a quiet thread gets its answer
One rule set per inbox agent. The agent watches the thread, not a campaign list.
- 1
Reply sent
An inbox agent answers the prospect in under 5 minutes from the inbox that received the reply.
- 2
Thread goes quiet
No answer comes back. The agent is watching the thread, not a campaign list.
- 3
Follow-up 1 goes out
A short follow-up written in the context of the conversation, sent from the same sender through the same tool.
- 4
Repeat up to your limit
The agent keeps nudging up to the number of follow-ups you set for it, from 1 to 5.
- 5
Stop on a reply or a no
The moment the prospect answers, follow-ups stop and the agent handles the new reply. A "Not interested" closes the thread.
"Circle back in Q2" is a date, not a brush-off
When a prospect gives a timeframe, the agent acknowledges it and schedules the follow-up for then. The thread shows the date in your Unified Inbox, and your CRM stage can move to Nurture if a CRM is connected.
Smart follow-ups FAQ
What is a smart follow-up?
A follow-up that an inbox agent sends when a thread goes quiet after it has replied. It is written in the context of the conversation, sent from the same sender through the same tool, and it stops as soon as the prospect answers or says they are not interested.
How many follow-ups does the agent send?
You choose, per inbox agent, in the Smart Follow-up section of the response settings. Pick between 1 and 5 follow-ups. The agent stops after that many attempts.
What happens when a prospect says "not right now"?
The agent acknowledges the reply and schedules a follow-up for the timeframe the prospect gave. The Unified Inbox shows the follow-up date on the thread, and Slack gets a Follow-up scheduled notification if Slack is connected.
When do follow-ups stop?
When the prospect replies, when the prospect says they are not interested, or when the agent reaches the attempt limit you set. A "Not interested" reply closes the thread politely and no more follow-ups go out.
What about out-of-office replies?
Out of Office is one of the categories the agent classifies. When no draft is needed, only the Understanding Agent runs, at 0.5 credits instead of a full reply.
Which tools do follow-ups work with?
Every tool connected to your Unified Inbox: Smartlead, Instantly, Email Bison, PlusVibe, Lemlist, HeyReach, Aimfox, Expandi, GetSales, and Gmail. Follow-ups go out through the same tool and sender that received the original reply.
Can different clients or workspaces have different follow-up rules?
Yes. Smart Follow-up is set per inbox agent, and each workspace has its own agents. Agencies running one workspace per client give each client its own number of follow-ups.
Are follow-ups included in the price?
Yes. Every plan includes objection handling and follow-ups. Start with 50 free replies and no credit card. After that, plans are priced by agent credits.
Related reading
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