The problem
Repeat and referral business comes from people who remember you, and many past clients hear nothing after the closing gift. With 180 past clients and no system, an agent might reach a handful a month. If keeping in touch brought 1 extra repeat or referral closing a year at an average commission of $9,000£6,767€8,053A$12,992C$12,722 to the agent, that's $750£564€671A$1,083C$1,060 a month in commission.
What the AI does
Follow Up Boss Smart Lists filter contacts by tags and last contact. The vendor's own example is a list of everyone tagged Past Clients who was last emailed more than 60 days ago, which becomes your weekly call and email list. Between calls, its email page says you can drip nurturing content to past clients by email and batch-send one email to a segment. The AI features suggest texts and emails based on a contact's activity; you edit each one so it sounds like you. Write the content yourself: a local market note with figures from your MLS, a seasonal home maintenance reminder, an invitation to a client event.
A worked example
A solo agent in Raleigh has about 180 past clients from 8 years of closings, kept in a spreadsheet. She imports them into Follow Up Boss tagged Past Clients, works the 60-day Smart List for 20 minutes each weekday, and sends a short market email to the group each month.
Before
About 5 of 180 past clients contacted a month, mostly when they call first
After
Every past client hears from her at least every 60 days; an assumed 1 extra repeat or referral closing a year at $9,000£6,767€8,053A$12,992C$12,722 commission
What it's worth
About $525£395€470A$758C$742 a month in profit, against a $58£44€52A$84C$82 cost. That assumes 1 extra closing a year from past clients, $750£564€671A$1,083C$1,060 a month of commission at an average $9,000£6,767€8,053A$12,992C$12,722 to the agent after the brokerage split, at an assumed 70% margin after marketing and other costs. Grow is $58£44€52A$84C$82 a month billed annually or $69£52€62A$100C$98 billed monthly for one user.
How to set it up
- Import past clients with their closing date and property address, and tag them Past Clients.
- Build a Smart List of Past Clients last emailed more than 60 days ago, and work it on set days each week with a call or a personal email.
- Write 6 to 12 short nurture emails yourself (market updates, seasonal home care, client events) and set them as a drip for past clients.
- Put your physical mailing address and a clear unsubscribe line in every marketing email, as CAN-SPAM requires, and stop emailing anyone who opts out.
- Text only the past clients who agreed to texts; marketing texts need prior express written consent under the TCPA.
What goes wrong
- Follow Up Boss's email page doesn't mention unsubscribe handling. Check how opt-outs are recorded before you batch-send, and keep a list of people not to email.
- Batch emails from a connected Gmail or Microsoft 365 account can hit sending limits or spam folders. Send to a small group first and watch for replies and bounces.
- Grow is priced per user, so adding a team member to share the calls adds $58£44€52A$84C$82 to $69£52€62A$100C$98 a month.
- AI-suggested messages can sound generic or state market facts that aren't true. Check every figure in a market note against your MLS before it goes out.