The rule
A follow-up that only says “bumping this to the top of your inbox” tells the prospect you have nothing new to say. Every message in the sequence should be something they’d be mildly glad to have received even if they never reply.
Follow-up 1 (day 3 to 5): the example
{first name}, one thing I should have mentioned. We worked with a {similar company} last quarter on exactly the problem in my note; the short version is {one-line result}. If it’s relevant, happy to walk you through what they did. If not, no bother.
Follow-up 2 (day 8 to 12): the voice note
Switch format. A thirty-second voice note referencing the original reason you reached out. The change of format is the message.
Follow-up 3 (day 15 to 20): the content
{first name}, no reply needed on this one. We put together {short content: a benchmark, a checklist, a two-minute video} on {topic} and it seemed more useful than another message from me. {Link or attachment.}
Follow-up 4 (day 25 to 30): the exit
{first name}, I’ll leave this here. If {problem} comes back around, you know where I am. Good luck with {something specific from their profile}.
Why the exit works: it gets more replies than any other follow-up in our data, because it removes the pressure. People often reply to say “actually, let’s talk next month.”
Optional: the email step
If you have a verified email, one email step in the middle of the sequence (after follow-up 1) lifts reply rates without adding LinkedIn volume. Prospectio runs LinkedIn and email as one sequence.
What Prospectio does
Follow-ups are built into the sequence with randomised gaps, format changes (text, voice, video, email) and a stop rule. If the prospect replies at any point, the sequence halts and the auto-responder takes over.