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CRM follow-up task plan prompt: free ChatGPT template

Follow-upsSalesAccountingWorks in ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Copilot

Updated · By Robert Breen

Use this when you have a handful of open enquiries in a spreadsheet or inbox and want to turn each one into a clear next step before you enter them in your CRM. It proposes one action, one due date and one short description per enquiry, in a form you can paste into a follow-up task.

It plans, it does not send. You still pick the dates against your calendar and write the real messages. Use it once a week, for example on Monday morning.

The prompt

Copy it into ChatGPT (or Claude, Gemini or Copilot) and replace every [BLANK] with your own details. It uses the four parts from Prompt Writing 101: Role, Context, Task and Format.

Role: You are a sales operations assistant at [FIRM], helping a partner make sure no enquiry goes without a next step.
Context: Today is [TODAY]. Our open enquiries are: [ENQUIRIES]. Each has a name, a source, the date it arrived, what they asked for and what has happened so far. The partner is free for calls on [AVAILABLE DAYS]. Do not invent facts about a person, and do not promise prices or dates to anyone.
Task: For each enquiry, write one follow-up task: a short description that starts with a verb, a due date no later than [DAYS] days after the enquiry arrived (or today if it is already older), and a category chosen from Call, Email or Meeting. Put the oldest enquiries first, and flag any enquiry with no reply yet as "overdue".
Format: A table with the columns Enquiry, Task description, Due date, Category and Overdue. Keep each description under 12 words. After the table, add two lines on which enquiry to do first and why.

Fill in the blanks

[FIRM]
Your firm name and what it does, in a few words.
[TODAY]
Today's date, so the model can tell what is overdue.
[ENQUIRIES]
One line per enquiry: name, source, date received, request and status. Use first names only if you can.
[AVAILABLE DAYS]
The days the partner can take calls, such as Tuesday and Thursday.
[DAYS]
How many days a new enquiry may wait, such as 2.

Example, filled in

A made-up example from the free lesson Never Lose a Client Follow-up using Capsule CRM. Merrin & Cole Accounting is the made-up four-person firm in the Capsule CRM lesson. Priya has three open enquiries from the past week and wants a task for each before she enters them in Capsule.

Role: You are a sales operations assistant at Merrin & Cole Accounting, a four-person accounting firm, helping a partner make sure no enquiry goes without a next step.
Context: Today is Monday, October 12. Our open enquiries are: Dana, website form, arrived October 6, asked about monthly bookkeeping, no reply yet; Marcus, referral, arrived October 8, asked for a quote on a first-year tax return, we sent a fee range; Elena, phone, arrived October 9, wants a meeting about payroll, left a voicemail. The partner is free for calls on Tuesday and Thursday. Do not invent facts about a person, and do not promise prices or dates to anyone.
Task: For each enquiry, write one follow-up task: a short description that starts with a verb, a due date no later than 2 days after the enquiry arrived (or today if it is already older), and a category chosen from Call, Email or Meeting. Put the oldest enquiries first, and flag any enquiry with no reply yet as "overdue".
Format: A table with the columns Enquiry, Task description, Due date, Category and Overdue. Keep each description under 12 words. After the table, add two lines on which enquiry to do first and why.

What a good answer looks like

  • Each task starts with a verb and names one action, such as "Call Dana about bookkeeping scope".
  • The oldest enquiry with no reply is first and marked overdue.
  • No task promises a price, a date or a result the partner has not approved.

How to check it before you use it

An AI draft can sound right and still say something you never told it. Use the habit from the Reply Faster lesson: check every promise, name, date and number against what you gave it before anything goes out.

  • Compare every date and name with your own list. The model can only repeat what you gave it.
  • Move any due date that clashes with your calendar before you enter it in the CRM.
  • Write the actual call notes or messages yourself, and keep promises out of them.
  • Remove personal details you do not need before you paste them in, and follow your firm's AI policy.

Why this prompt works

The prompt caps the wait with a number the user sets and defines what overdue means, so the model applies a rule instead of a feeling. Limiting each description to a few words matches the length of a CRM task field.

Practice it in the free lesson

Never Lose a Client Follow-up using Capsule CRM: A business case for a small firm: price what dropped follow-ups cost, then use Capsule CRM to give every enquiry an owner and a next step: add a client, check the pipeline stages, add a deal with a value and close… You do every step yourself in a practice copy of Capsule CRM, and nothing touches your real accounts.

Start the free lesson

Terms used here

Follow-up task (CRM)CRMSales pipeline
  • Stalled deal follow-up prompt: Restart a deal that went quiet after pricing or a proposal: address the likely blocker in the prospect's own words and ask for a…
  • Lead no-response follow-up prompt: Write three follow-ups for a lead who asked about you and went quiet: a useful nudge, a new angle and a polite last note, with…
  • Sales pipeline review prompt: Paste your open deals and get a pipeline review for your sales meeting: stalled deals, missing next steps, past-due close dates…

More follow-ups prompts

Frequently asked questions

Can ChatGPT add the tasks to my CRM?
Not from this prompt. It writes the plan, and you enter the tasks in your CRM yourself. Some tools can connect to a CRM, but check what each one can see and change first.
How soon should I follow up on a new enquiry?
There is no universal number. Pick a limit that fits your firm, such as two days, and write it into the prompt.

All free prompt templates · AI glossary