If you need to chase down an unpaid invoice, get feedback, or give someone a timely nudge about a deadline, you’ll need to write a follow up email. A well-crafted follow-up email is powerful. It can keep work moving, build strong collaborator relationships, save time, close deals, and even improve cash flow. But it can also be so hard to find the right words to express what you mean.
In this blog, we will help you write the kind of follow-up email that helps you communicate what you mean clearly and get your recipient to respond before projects run later.
We’ll cover the six most common types of follow-up email (with tips on when to send them and templates you can copy) and give you the rules to writing a more effective follow-up email for every workplace situation.
Six common types of follow up emails
Follow-up emails have different purposes. For each scenario, we’ve listed when to send it and a template you can adapt for your own message.
Reminders
Whether it’s about an upcoming payment, a critical all-hands meeting, or a deliverable that will have a knock-on effect if its not submitted on time, a reminder email can keep work on track. The challenge is to write it so that it inspires action, without coming across as pushy. To do that:
- Use an empathetic and open tone
- Reply in an existing thread or set some context in one or two sentences
- State the upcoming date clearly
- Give the reader an opportunity to ask for more support
When to send: A couple of days (or more) ahead.
Template:
Subject: Reminder: Your [name the invoice/meeting topic here] is coming up on [state the deadline here]
Hi [Name],
Thanks for your participation in [offer context here].
I wanted to get in touch to offer you a friendly reminder that [name the invoice/meeting topic here] is fast approaching. It’s due by [state the deadline here].
If there’s anything we can do to support you, please do get in touch.
Best regards,
[Your name]
[Your title]
[Your business]
Information requests
You’ve already sent an email that was detailed, clear, and considerate. But you haven’t heard back from the recipient, and it’s now holding up a decision or delaying a deadline.
How do you send a follow up email after no response without apologizing too much (“Sorry to be a pain, just wanted to check…”) or using passive-aggressive language (“As per my last email…”)?
Here are some tips:
- Give the reader an easy “out” upfront (“I know this is a busy time”)
- State clearly what action you need the reader to take
- Outline the downstream impact of a delay
- Make the next step easy for the reader (“Please respond to confirm”, “Click this link to book”)
When to send: 1-2 business days after the due date.
Template:
Subject: Following up: [name the invoice/document/deliverable here] still needed
Hi [Name],
I know this task is only one of many on your to-do list, but I wanted to ask for your input on [name the invoice/document/deliverable here].
This needs your urgent attention because delay at this stage will affect [mention downstream effects here] and we’ll need to push back [mention the launch date / project timeline / next stage of the work here].
I’ve included a link here to [upload the file / confirm directly], but please do let me know if there’s anything else I can do to push this through.
Best regards,
[Your name]
[Your title]
[Your business]
Meeting summaries
Sending meeting minutes or a call summary to a vendor, partner, or investor after you’ve had a productive meeting accomplishes two important things that keeps work on track: it records the decisions you made and clarifies the necessary next steps.
To write a helpful meeting summary, don’t forget to:
- Remind recipients about the main points covered
- Confirm key decisions made
- State next steps and follow ups that must be scheduled
When to send: Within 24 hours when decisions made in the meeting are still fresh so that the message reads as reinforcement. If you lay out a next step here, send another follow-up email in a week.
Template:
Subject: Next steps from [mention the date here] meeting on [mention the topic here]
Hello all,
Following on the meeting scheduled to discuss [topic with more context], I am including below a summary:
[Mention key decision 1 here]
[Mention key decision 2 here]
[Mention key decision 3 here]
Next actions:
[Name the relevant stakeholder here] to complete [name the specific task here] by [set a deadline here].
Name the relevant stakeholder here] to complete [name the specific task here] by [set a deadline here].
Name the relevant stakeholder here] to complete [name the specific task here] by [set a deadline here].
I will check in within the week to check on the status of each task and will be monitoring this thread for any follow up questions. The next meeting on this project will be on [include the date here].
Best regards,
[Your name]
[Your title]
[Your business]
Status updates
You’ve wanted to send this kind of email before. Maybe when you delegated a project to a vendor or placed an order with a supplier, and wanted to ask: “Are we still on track to hit on schedule to hit our targets?” so you could prepare for delays or project hiccups.
Writing a status request email is delicate work. If you ask for a status update too firmly, it can read like an accusation. Ask it too softly and you might miss your deadline.
To write a status update email, remember to:
- State the purpose of your email early
- Mention what you can do to support the recipient
- Include the deadline or target you’ve agreed to hit
When to send: 2-3 business days after the last agreed checkpoint or expected delivery date has passed.
Template:
Subject: Quick check-in on [mention the project name here]
Hello [Name],
We’re only [mention the number of days to deadline here] and I wanted to make sure we have everything in place to meet it. Could you give us an update on how your team is progressing?
If you’d like help [mention specific ways in which you can support the recipient here], please let us know. We’re here to support in any way necessary.
As you already know, [include deadline or target here] and I want to make sure you have everything you need from us to meet it.
Thanks for all your efforts,
[Your name]
[Your title]
[Your business]
Contacting a member of your network
You know your network, former colleagues and peers, can open new doors for your business. But you’ve lost touch and don’t know how to reopen the conversation without it feeling forced, transactional, or like you’re only reaching out because you need something.
But how do you write an email that says both “I’m genuinely happy to reconnect” and “I noticed you can now buy from me”? Leaning too hard into the opportunity can read as opportunistic, but lean too soften can make it unclear why you emailed at all.
Before you write this type of email, remember:
- Open with the relationship by referencing something specific from your history together. Make the opportunity a soft mention
- Give them an easy, low-pressure way to respond (a call, a coffee, a quick reply)
When to send: When you’ve identified a specific opportunity that your contact may want to contribute to and benefit from.
Template:
Subject: Saw [refer to the specific update] and thought of you
Hi [Name],
I just saw that you’ve [mention the genuine trigger new here] and am so pleased to see you succeed at [add specific achievement here]. Congratulations!
My team at [remind the recipient of who you are and what your business does here] is working on something I think you may be interested in. We’re [mention what that something is, briefly, here].
If you think this is a fit and you’re interested in hearing more, I’d love to tell you more [give them options for low-pressure ways to connect here] soon.
Either way, congratulations again! We’re delighted for you.
Best,
[Your name]
[Your title]
[Your business]
Thanking somebody
It can be easy to treat thank-you emails as a formality, but a well-written one can make your reader feel valued, and more inclined to help you again.
A client who refers new work your way is more likely to repeat that favor if you thank them sincerely. The same goes for a supplier who’s turned an order around for you under pressure, or a colleague who’s put in hard work on a shared project.
Before you write this type of email, remember:
- Name the specific thing they’ve done for you and what it meant to you or your business, rather than offering a general “thanks for everything”
- Keep it short, so it doesn’t feel like you’re angling for another favor
- Don’t attach a new ask: this will undercut the sincerity of your thanks. Instead, where appropriate, offer to return the favor when signing off
When to send: When the moment’s fresh and when the specific impact of what they’ve done for you can be measured. Sometimes that’s immediately after your interaction, sometimes that’s a day or two after.
Subject: Thanks for [specific thing]
Hi [Name],
Just wanted to say thanks for [the specific thing they’ve done]. It made a real difference to [what it enabled: saved time, avoided a mistake, kept things on track, etc.].
[If this isn’t a one-off favor, call that out specifically: “You’ve turned things around fast for us more than once now, and it doesn’t go unnoticed”.]
Let me know if there’s ever anything I can do for you in return.
Best regards,
[Your name]
[Your title]
[Your business]
Sending a follow-up email that invites a response
Following the advice in this blog won’t guarantee you a reply. But the common reasons why emails go unanswered are: The ask is unclear, there’s no obvious next step, or the message arrives at a moment your recipient is too buried in their inbox to deal with it. A follow up that’s specific, well-timed, and makes it easy for your reader to take action makes it easier for your recipient to respond without having to dig back through the thread to figure out what you actually need from them.
Those are the factors you control by how you write the email. But there’s also: when it lands. Proton Mail can help you to schedule follow up business emails with Schedule Send. You can direct emails to your recipient’s inbox at a specific time so it lands at when they’re most likely to respond.
That could mean the difference between an invoice that’s delayed or paid immediately, a project that’s stalled or completed, and a deal that’s open or closed.
