The number. When Harvard Business Review studied service businesses, losing just 5% fewer customers raised profits by 25% to 85%. The people who already know you are the cheapest revenue you have.
Source: Zero Defections: Quality Comes to Services, HBR, 1990. Measured in banking, insurance and auto service.
The three lists in your phone
| Who | What to send |
|---|---|
| The quote that went quiet | A check-in about that exact job: “Still looking to go ahead with the roof?” |
| The past customer | A thank-you and a question: “Anything else we can help with after last year’s job?” |
| The “maybe next month” | The reminder they asked for: “You mentioned October. Want me to hold a spot?” |
What an AI employee does with them
An AI employee works those lists for you, every day, from your own texts and inbox.
- Works the list. Every quiet quote, past customer and “not yet” from your texts and inbox, one at a time.
- Makes it personal. Each message names the job you quoted or the work you did.
- Books or hands off. A yes goes on your calendar. Anything else comes straight to you.
đź“‹ Paste this into your AI
Copy this into ChatGPT or Claude and fill in the two brackets. It takes a minute.
I run [type of business, e.g. a roofing company]. When someone says yes, I want them to book [what they book, e.g. a free inspection]. Write me a follow-up kit for the people already in my phone and inbox:
- A text for a quote that never got a reply.
- A text for a customer I did work for last year.
- A text for someone who said “maybe next month.”
- My reply when they say yes, and my reply when they say not now.
Keep each one under three sentences. Sound like a real person who remembers them, and leave their name and the job as blanks for me to fill in. Say who I am in the first message. No discounts or prices I haven’t given you. Then ask me the three things you’d need to know to make these fit my business.
What comes back is your follow-up kit. Send the first ten yourself.
The three traps
- “Just checking in” reads like spam. Name the job, the quote or the month they gave you. That’s what makes it sound like you.
- Get the texting right. Before anything automated sends a sales text, you need their permission to text that number, a registered texting number, 8am to 8pm their time, and an instant stop when they reply STOP. Not legal advice; rules vary by state.
- It doesn’t quote prices. It reopens the conversation and books the time. The numbers stay with you.
Start this week
- Scroll back 90 days. Count the quotes that went quiet. That’s your list.
- Paste the prompt. Get your three texts and your replies.
- Send ten by hand. See who answers before you automate anything.