July 11, 2026
How to follow up on a proposal without sounding desperate
Ever wonder how to follow up on a proposal without sounding desperate?
It’s a simple two-step process:
- Make a promise to follow up on a specific date.
- Keep your promise by following up on that date.
That’s it.
For example:
Let’s say you had a sales meeting with a prospect and they requested a proposal.
When you send over the proposal, end the message with this line:
“I’ll follow up on $specificDate if I haven’t heard back before then.”
Then, on $specificDate, you can KEEP YOUR PROMISE with something like:
“Checking back in, as promised. Have you had a chance to review the proposal? If not, no worries... I’ll ping you again on $specificDate.”
Wash rinse repeat.
(Personally, I take it one step further with my proposals by adding an expiration date after which “I can’t guarantee availability or pricing”.)
Yours,
—J