If you work in sales, you know what happens when follow-ups fall through the cracks: deals stall, leads drift off, and all that pipeline work goes to waste. This guide is for sales managers, reps, or anyone who’s tired of reminders scribbled on post-its (or worse, nowhere at all). We’ll walk through how to set up real, reliable automated follow-up reminders in Salesbolt, so you can actually focus on selling—not just remembering to do it.
Why Automated Reminders Matter (and Why They Don’t Always Work)
Before we get hands-on, let’s be honest: most “reminder” features are either too naggy, too easy to ignore, or buried under a mountain of other notifications. You want reminders that show up where you work, at the right time, and don’t require a PhD in workflow automation to set up.
Salesbolt does a decent job here—it’s not magic, but it gets the basics right if you set it up thoughtfully. Here’s how.
Step 1: Decide What Needs a Reminder (Don’t Automate Everything)
First, don’t just automate reminders for every touchpoint. That’s how you get alert fatigue and end up ignoring all of them.
Start with: - Leads who haven’t responded after X days - Open opportunities with no recent activity - Key accounts needing a quarterly check-in - Contracts or renewals coming up
Skip reminders for: - Every single email sent (you’ll drown in noise) - Internal “FYIs” or tasks that don’t impact deals
Pro tip: Talk to your team. Ask what they actually forget to do—not what you think they forget.
Step 2: Get Your Data into Salesbolt
Automated reminders are only as good as the data behind them. If your contacts, deals, or activity aren’t logged in Salesbolt, the system won’t know what to remind you about.
Checklist: - Import or sync your contacts, leads, and opportunities into Salesbolt. - Make sure fields like “Last Contacted Date,” “Next Step,” and “Owner” are up to date. - If you’re using Salesbolt’s Chrome extension, double-check it’s connected to your CRM (like Salesforce or HubSpot).
Heads up: Garbage in, garbage out. If your team is still working off spreadsheets or only half-uses the CRM, fix that first.
Step 3: Set Up Your First Automated Reminder Rule
Here’s where the rubber meets the road. Salesbolt’s reminder system works off rules—think “if this, then that.”
Example:
If a lead hasn’t been contacted in 3 days, remind the owner to follow up.
How to Set It Up:
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Go to the Automation/Reminders section:
Find this in the main sidebar (it might be called “Workflows” or “Automations” depending on your version). -
Start a new rule or workflow:
Click “Create Rule” or “Add Automation.” Ignore the urge to make 10 at once—one at a time is best. -
Set your trigger:
- Choose something like “Lead Last Contacted Date is more than 3 days ago.”
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You can usually filter by lead status, deal stage, or owner.
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Define the action:
- Select “Send Reminder” or “Create Task.”
- Decide if you want an email, an in-app notification, or both.
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Assign the reminder to the lead owner (not a general sales inbox).
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Write a useful message:
Don’t just say “Follow up.” Add context: “You haven’t contacted {{Lead Name}} in 3 days. Check in or update the status.” -
Save and test:
- Save the rule.
- Have a teammate (or yourself) trigger the workflow with a test lead.
- Make sure the reminder actually gets sent and shows up where you expect.
Pro tip: Start with one or two rules, not ten. See what works, then expand.
Step 4: Make Reminders Actually Useful (Not Annoying)
Automated reminders are only helpful if people pay attention to them. Here’s what to tweak:
- Timing: Set realistic intervals. A reminder the same day you last emailed someone is pointless. 2–5 days is a sweet spot for most leads.
- Channel: Email is fine, but most reps ignore them. In-app or Slack notifications usually get seen faster. Pick what your team actually checks.
- Clarity: “You have tasks due” isn’t helpful. “Follow up with Jane Doe at Acme Corp—last contact was 4 days ago” is.
- Frequency: Don’t send daily nags. Space them out, and consider a weekly summary for low-priority stuff.
What to avoid:
- Overlapping or duplicate reminders (this just breeds apathy).
- Generic messages—if you sound like a robot, people will ignore you like one.
Step 5: Monitor, Adjust, and Kill What Doesn’t Work
No system is perfect out of the gate. You’ll need to check in after a week or two.
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Is anyone actually acting on reminders?
If not, ask why. Too many? Wrong timing? Not specific enough? -
Are deals moving faster?
If reminders aren’t leading to more follow-ups or faster responses, you may be tracking the wrong things. -
Is the team ignoring reminders?
Fewer, more targeted reminders work better than a flood. -
Adjust rules as needed:
Don’t be afraid to delete or pause reminders that don’t get used.
Pro tip: Once a month, review with your team and ask what’s working. Kill what isn’t.
Step 6: Train Your Team (But Keep It Simple)
Even the best automation will fail if people don’t know how to use it—or worse, if they turn it off.
- Show, don’t tell: Demo how reminders look and what to do when you get one.
- Keep documentation short: A one-pager with screenshots is plenty.
- Reinforce in meetings: Start weekly sales meetings by reviewing outstanding reminders.
- Encourage feedback: If something’s annoying, make it clear you want to know.
What not to do:
Don’t dump a 30-page manual on the team. Don’t threaten to track who “completes” reminders—trust and iterate.
Step 7: What About Integrations and Advanced Workflows?
You’ll hear about integrating reminders with Slack, SMS, or other tools. These can help, but only if you’re already using those channels.
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Slack Integration:
If your team lives in Slack, set up reminders to go directly there. Otherwise, skip it. -
Calendar Integration:
Some teams like reminders to show up as calendar events. This works if you actually check your calendar daily. -
CRM Sync:
Make sure Salesbolt is always up to date with your main CRM. Otherwise, reminders will get stale fast.
Don’t bother with:
- SMS reminders unless you’re field-based or never at a desk.
- Zapier hacks unless you’re genuinely missing a feature—stick to built-in tools first.
Common Pitfalls (And How to Dodge Them)
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Too Many Reminders:
Quality beats quantity. Start with critical touchpoints only. -
Reminders Nobody Sees:
Send reminders to the place your team works—don’t default to email if everyone lives in the CRM or Slack. -
Outdated Data:
Reminders are useless if your CRM isn’t up to date. Make data hygiene part of the process. -
Assuming Automation Fixes Everything:
It won’t. Reminders are a nudge, not a replacement for real management or coaching.
Keep It Simple and Iterate
Automated follow-up reminders in Salesbolt can save you a ton of hassle—if you set them up with care and keep them tuned to how your team actually works. Start small, focus on what really matters, and don’t be afraid to tweak or kill rules that don’t help. The goal isn’t a perfect system—it’s one where nothing critical slips through the cracks.
Now, go build something that helps your team sell, not just check boxes. And remember: nobody needs a reminder to ignore bad reminders.