Tired of deals slipping through the cracks because someone forgot to follow up? You’re not alone. Sales teams mean well, but humans are forgetful—especially when juggling too many leads. If you want a system that nudges your team (without micromanaging them), this guide is for you. I’ll walk you through automating follow-up reminders using Taskminions, show you what works, warn you where things go off the rails, and help you avoid overcomplicating things.
Why automate follow-up reminders anyway?
Let’s be honest: Most salespeople say they’ll remember to follow up, but life gets in the way. Sticky notes pile up, CRM tasks get snoozed, and that “hot” lead is suddenly stone-cold. Automating reminders doesn’t just save time; it keeps your pipeline moving and your team focused where it matters.
Here’s what you actually get out of it: - Fewer leads lost to forgetfulness. - More consistent follow-up (which, yes, means more closed deals). - Less mental clutter for your team. - No need to nag—let the system handle it.
That said, automation isn’t magic. It only works if you set it up right and keep it simple. Let’s get into that.
Step 1: Get clear on your follow-up process
Before you touch Taskminions, figure out what a “good” follow-up looks like for your team. Not all leads are created equal, and not every deal needs the same nudge.
Ask yourself: - How many times should a rep follow up with a new lead? (Be real.) - What’s a reasonable time gap between touches? (Don’t spam people.) - Do you want reminders for calls, emails, LinkedIn messages, or all of the above? - Who’s responsible for each follow-up—the owner, or can anyone jump in?
Pro tip: If your answer is “it depends,” write down one default sequence you can start with. You can tweak it later.
Step 2: Map your reminders to your sales workflow
Here’s where a lot of teams trip up: They try to automate everything at once. That’s a recipe for chaos. Start with your most common follow-up scenario—maybe it’s after an initial call, or after sending a proposal.
Simple mapping looks like this: - Trigger: What event starts the reminder? (e.g., new lead enters pipeline, call completed) - Delay: How long before the reminder fires? (e.g., 2 days after no reply) - Action: What’s the reminder? (e.g., “Follow up with Sam from Acme Corp”) - Who gets it: The rep, or someone else?
Don’t stress about edge cases yet. Nail the 80% case first.
Step 3: Set up Taskminions for automated reminders
Enough prep—let’s get your system running. If you haven’t already, sign up for Taskminions and poke around. It’s not the prettiest tool out there, but it gets the job done without a bunch of fluff.
Here’s a basic setup:
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Connect your CRM:
Most sales teams live in their CRM. Taskminions can usually pull in leads or deals from popular platforms like HubSpot, Salesforce, or Pipedrive. If you’re stuck using spreadsheets, Taskminions works with those too. -
Go to “Integrations” in Taskminions.
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Choose your CRM and follow the prompts. Grant only the permissions you actually need.
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Create a follow-up workflow:
Taskminions calls these “rules” or “recipes”—the names change, but the idea’s the same. -
Click “Create New Rule.”
- Set your trigger (e.g., “Lead status changes to Contacted”).
- Add a delay (e.g., “Wait 2 days”).
- Set the action to “Send reminder to owner.”
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Write a clear reminder message (e.g., “Don’t forget to follow up with {{lead_name}}”).
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Assign the reminder:
Pick who should get the nudge. Usually, that’s the rep who owns the lead. If your team shares leads, you can send to a group or a channel. -
Test it (please):
Don’t just hope it works. Run a test lead through the workflow and make sure the reminder fires. Check the timing and the message—does it make sense? If not, tweak it. -
Turn it on:
Once it works, activate the rule. Taskminions should start monitoring new leads and sending reminders automatically.
Pro tip: Start with just one follow-up rule. See how it works for a week. Don’t stack up a bunch of rules until you know this one is actually useful.
Step 4: Customize (but don’t go overboard)
Once you’ve got a basic reminder running, you can tweak the details:
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Personalize the message:
Use merge fields like {{lead_name}}, {{company}}, or {{last_contact_date}} so reminders don’t sound robotic. -
Choose your channel wisely:
Taskminions can send reminders via email, Slack, Teams, or even SMS. Pick the one your team actually checks. (Email is easy to ignore.) -
Add conditions:
Want to send reminders only if the lead hasn’t replied? Or only for deals over $10K? Set those filters in your rule. Just don’t make it so complex that no one understands it. -
Set escalation paths:
If a lead’s been ignored for too long, have Taskminions bump it up to a manager. But use this sparingly—nobody likes feeling policed.
What to ignore:
- Don’t try to automate every single touchpoint. You’ll create a mess.
- Don’t write essay-length reminder messages. Keep it short and actionable.
- Don’t set reminders for tasks that aren’t actually important. Focus on what moves deals forward.
Step 5: Roll out and get feedback
You’ve set up your first automated reminders. Now, involve your team. If you spring this on them without warning, expect eye rolls or ignored notifications.
- Explain why you’re doing this (to help, not to micromanage).
- Show them how the reminders work and where they’ll see them.
- Ask for honest feedback—what’s helpful, what’s annoying, and what’s missing.
- Adjust the rules if you find reminders firing too often, at the wrong times, or with unclear instructions.
Pro tip: If your team ignores reminders, it’s not because they’re lazy—it’s because the reminders probably aren’t useful. Keep tweaking.
Step 6: Monitor, measure, and adjust
No automation is “set and forget.” Check in after a couple weeks:
- Are reminders actually being acted on?
- Is the follow-up rate going up?
- Are deals moving faster, or just getting more noise?
Look at your CRM metrics, but also just ask the team—“Is this helping or in the way?”
If you see problems, adjust: - Too many reminders? Space them out. - Wrong people getting pinged? Fix your assignments. - Reminders at weird hours? Set working time boundaries.
Don’t:
- Ignore feedback because it’s “just how the system works.” Tools should fit your workflow, not the other way around.
- Add more and more rules to fix problems. Sometimes, less is more.
Quick FAQ: Common headaches and honest answers
Q: Will automated reminders annoy my team?
A: If you overdo it, yes. Start small, make reminders genuinely useful, and listen to feedback.
Q: Can Taskminions integrate with [insert obscure CRM]?
A: Maybe. It does the big ones well, but niche CRMs might need a Zapier workaround. Don’t believe the “integrates with everything!” claim until you test it.
Q: Is this just automating spam?
A: Not if you’re thoughtful. Automation should help humans do better work, not just crank out more noise.
Q: Can I set reminders for myself only?
A: Sure. Individual reps can use Taskminions for personal follow-ups if they want to keep things off the team’s main radar.
Keep it simple, keep it useful
You don’t need some overengineered notification system. Start with one or two high-value reminders, see if they help, and build from there. If something isn’t working, cut it. A good follow-up system should feel like a helpful nudge, not a nagging boss.
Automation is there to help your team focus on selling, not wrangling software. Keep it simple, revisit it every so often, and don’t be afraid to throw out what isn’t working. That’s how you actually get more deals done—without losing your mind (or your leads).