How to set up automated follow up reminders in Attio

If you’ve ever stared at your inbox and thought, “Did I ever get back to that person?”—this one’s for you. Whether you’re in sales, fundraising, or just trying to be a decent human who replies to emails, keeping up with follow-ups is a pain. The good news: you can set up automated follow-up reminders in Attio and stop relying on sticky notes or your memory. The bad news: it takes a little setup, and there are a few gotchas to watch for. Let’s get straight to it.

1. Make Sure Attio’s the Right Tool for This

First, some honesty. Attio is a flexible CRM, not a full-blown marketing automation suite. Its automation tools are solid for reminders and basic workflows, but if you want multi-step drip campaigns or AI-powered magic, look elsewhere. If you mostly need nudges to check in with contacts, Attio will do the job (and won’t drown you in complexity).

Who this works for: - People or small teams managing relationships (sales, fundraising, partnerships) - Folks who live in Gmail or Outlook but want a bit more structure - Anyone who hates “just following up” but knows it’s necessary

Who might want more: - Hardcore outbound teams needing sequenced email campaigns - People who want reminders to send SMS, LinkedIn messages, or other non-email follow-ups - Anyone allergic to setting up automations themselves

If you’re still in, let’s dive in.

2. Get Your Contacts and Workspaces Set Up

You can’t remind yourself to follow up with people you haven’t added. So, first things first:

  • Import your contacts. Attio can pull them from Google, Outlook, or via CSV. It’s pretty painless.
  • Organize with collections. Think of collections as buckets: “Leads,” “VCs,” “Clients,” whatever makes sense. This is where you’ll set up reminders.
  • Check your fields. Make sure you have fields for things like “Last Contacted” and “Next Follow-Up.” If not, add them—custom fields are easy.

Pro tip:
Don’t overthink collections. You can always reorganize later. Start with broad groups and split them only if you actually need to.

3. Understand How Attio’s Reminders Actually Work

Here’s where reality checks in. Attio’s reminders are based on automations you set up—think of them as “if this, then that” rules.

  • You can trigger reminders based on changes to fields. For example, if “Last Contacted” is more than 14 days ago, trigger a reminder.
  • Reminders come as tasks or emails. You’ll get notified in Attio, and you can set up email notifications, too.
  • There’s no out-of-the-box “remind me to follow up with everyone every month” button. You need to build the logic.

This is flexible, but it means you do a bit of the thinking up front. The good news: once it’s set, you don’t have to mess with it again.

4. Build an Automated Follow-Up Reminder Workflow

Here’s the meat and potatoes. Let’s walk through building a simple, useful reminder:

Step 1: Create a Date Field for “Next Follow-Up”

  1. Go to your collection (e.g., “Leads”).
  2. Click the “Fields” button and add a new Date field called “Next Follow-Up.”
  3. Optionally, add a “Last Contacted” field if you want to get fancy.

Why?
You’ll use this field to set when you want to be reminded about each contact.

Step 2: Add an Automation

  1. In your collection, click the “Automations” tab.
  2. Hit “New Automation.”
  3. Set up a trigger:
  4. Trigger: When the “Next Follow-Up” date is reached (or is today).
  5. Add an action:
  6. Action: Create a task for yourself (or your teammate) to follow up with that contact.
  7. You can also send an email notification if you prefer.

Pro tip:
Name your automation something obvious, like “Follow-Up Reminder.”

Step 3: Keep Your Dates Updated

Automations are only as smart as your data. After you talk to a contact, update their “Next Follow-Up” date. If you forget, the system won’t nudge you.

  • After each call or email, set the next follow-up date.
  • If you use Gmail/Outlook, Attio can sometimes auto-update the “Last Contacted” field. But check it occasionally—syncs aren’t perfect.

Ignore anyone who says this is “fully automated.” You still need to keep dates fresh.

Step 4: Tune Your Reminder Frequency

How often should you follow up? That depends:

  • Active deals: Maybe every 3-7 days.
  • Long-term relationships: Every 30-90 days.
  • Dormant leads: Once a quarter, if at all.

It’s easy to get overzealous and set reminders for everyone, all the time. Don’t. You’ll just train yourself to ignore them.

5. Optional: Build Smarter Automations

Want to go a little deeper? Here are some ways to make your reminders less annoying and more useful:

  • Trigger off “Last Contacted” instead of a set date.
    Set an automation: “If ‘Last Contacted’ is over 14 days ago, create a follow-up task.”
    This catches anyone slipping through the cracks.

  • Add filters.
    Only get reminders for contacts in certain stages or with certain tags. No point nagging yourself about every old lead.

  • Batch your reminders.
    Create a daily view showing all contacts due for follow-up. Sometimes, seeing it in a list is less stressful than a flood of notifications.

Things that don’t work so well: - Trying to automate everything. You’ll just end up with noise. - Relying on auto-updated fields without spot-checking. Syncs break, fields get stale. - Setting reminders for people you don’t actually want to hear from again (yes, it happens).

6. Actually Use the Reminders

This sounds obvious, but it’s where most systems fail. Here’s what works in the real world:

  • Check your Attio task list daily. It’s your to-do list for follow-ups.
  • If you get reminders by email, don’t snooze them forever. Act or reschedule.
  • After you follow up, reset the “Next Follow-Up” date. Don’t let it go stale.

Pro tip:
If you’re not using the reminders, simplify your workflow. Maybe you don’t need this level of structure yet.

7. What About Integrations and Mobile?

A couple of honest notes here:

  • Mobile app: Attio’s mobile app is improving, but it’s not as full-featured as desktop. You can see tasks and contacts, but building automations is best on web.
  • Integrations: You can connect Attio to Slack, Zapier, or email, but don’t expect magic. These are nice for notifications, not for building complex multi-channel sequences.
  • Calendar sync: Handy for logging meetings, but not a replacement for actually updating follow-up dates.

If you spend most of your day on your phone or need reminders popping up in other tools, test carefully before moving your whole workflow.

8. Common Pitfalls (And How to Dodge Them)

Let’s be real—most people set up reminders, then ignore them. Here’s how to avoid that:

  • Don’t create reminders for everyone. Only set them for people you genuinely want to stay in touch with.
  • Keep your system simple. The more fields and automations you add, the more maintenance you’ll need.
  • Review your reminders weekly. Clear out stale tasks and contacts.
  • Don’t trust syncs blindly. Double-check “Last Contacted” every so often.

If you find yourself overwhelmed, dial it back. You’re better off with five solid follow-ups than 50 ignored pings.

Keep It Simple, Iterate as You Go

Setting up automated follow-up reminders in Attio isn’t rocket science, but it does require a bit of thought and regular upkeep. Start with a basic workflow, test it for a week or two, and tweak as needed. Don’t get sucked into over-engineering—remember, the goal is to make follow-ups less painful, not to build the world’s fanciest CRM.

Keep it simple, and you’ll actually use it. And that’s what gets results.