# CRM Follow-up Automation Checklist

Use this checklist before automating CRM follow-ups for stale deals, missed replies, demo requests, or sales pipeline leakage. The safest first version creates internal tasks and draft reminders instead of sending automatic messages directly to prospects.

## 1. Workflow Goal

- CRM platform:
- Sales owner:
- Pipeline stage:
- Follow-up channel:
- Alert channel:
- Review cadence:
- Manual action owner:

## 2. Trigger

Choose one primary trigger:

- Deal has no activity for N days
- Contact has not replied after N days
- Demo request has no owner
- Proposal sent but no follow-up task exists
- Lead score changed but owner was not notified

Avoid using multiple triggers until duplicate task handling is defined.

## 3. Records To Check

| Record | Why it matters | Suggested action |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Deal stage | Follow-up rules vary by stage | Segment tasks by stage |
| Last activity date | Detects stale opportunities | Create reminder task |
| Owner | Prevents unassigned follow-up | Notify owner or manager |
| Deal value | Prioritizes high-value accounts | Escalate if value is high |
| Last email status | Avoids double-sending | Draft only if recent email exists |
| Next task date | Prevents duplicate tasks | Skip if future task exists |
| Lead source | Helps tailor context | Include in alert |

## 4. Follow-up Rules

| Rule | Recommended behavior |
| --- | --- |
| No owner | Notify sales manager |
| No activity for threshold | Create CRM task |
| High-value deal stale | Send high-priority internal alert |
| Recent follow-up already exists | Skip duplicate task |
| Prospect replied recently | Do not create new follow-up |
| Missing email or CRM fields | Log error and ask owner to review |

## 5. Task Or Alert Payload

Minimum fields:

- CRM record URL
- Deal or contact name
- Owner
- Pipeline stage
- Deal value
- Last activity date
- Days since last activity
- Existing next task date
- Suggested follow-up angle
- Recommended priority

## 6. Test Cases

| Test | Input | Expected result |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Normal active deal | Recent activity | No task |
| Stale deal | No activity beyond threshold | Follow-up task is created |
| High-value stale deal | High value plus stale activity | High-priority alert is sent |
| Unassigned lead | No owner | Manager alert is sent |
| Existing future task | Next task already scheduled | No duplicate task |
| Missing fields | Missing owner or email | Error or review route is triggered |

## 7. Handoff Standard

The workflow is ready when the sales operator can answer:

- Which CRM records are checked?
- Which stage-specific thresholds are used?
- What creates a task?
- What sends a manager alert?
- How are duplicate tasks prevented?
- Who reviews high-priority accounts?
- How do we disable the workflow safely?