1 · Problem
Leads older than a few months are never contacted again, no matter how warmly they once enquired.
Fields & signals: age, original interest, outcome, consent status
Home / Workflows / Dead Lead Reactivation
Workflow · ReactivationBring genuinely old leads back: 90, 180 and 365 days
Some leads are not ready yet — and “yet” can be a season away. This workflow organises your oldest leads into 90, 180 and 365-day reactivation campaigns, each with a reason to make contact that actually fits the gap.
90/180/365-day campaigns
Long-horizon
Consent-first
★★★★★ 4.9/5 rating
1,200+ reviews
8+ years
500+ clients
The problem it solves
The oldest leads are the ones no one will ever call
Leads older than a few months fall out of every workflow. They are too old for follow-up and too valuable to delete, so they sit untouched forever. That is exactly what this workflow is for.
- Budgets that were closed reopen with a new financial year.
- Timing that was wrong becomes right with a move, a birth or a renovation.
- Nobody wants to cold-call a two-year-old enquiry, so it never happens.
- One “we miss you” blast is not a reactivation strategy.
Illustrative example — the lead that aged out
- Day 0 A lead enquires but the budget is not available.
- Day 45 Follow-up ends. The lead is marked “not now”.
- Month 6 A new budget cycle opens and they are ready.
- Month 24 Still in the database, still untouched, still ready.
The nine-stage workflow
How Dead Lead Reactivation runs, stage by stage
Nine stages that turn an unbounded old database into a measurable, consent-safe campaign.
1
Problem
Leads older than a few months are never contacted again, no matter how warmly they once enquired.
2
Trigger
A time-based campaign is scheduled at 90, 180 and 365 days from last contact for each eligible segment.
3
AI Agent
The agent writes a re-opener specific to the elapsed time and the original enquiry.
4
Decision / Qualification
Replies are sorted into ready-now, still-later, wrong-contact and opt-out.
5
CRM Update
Every outcome updates the contact, including a hard flag for anyone who opts out.
6
Message / Call
The agent follows up by email first, then SMS where consent and rules allow.
7
Appointment / Next Step
Ready leads are booked; still-later leads get a scheduled future touch at the next offset.
8
Follow-Up
Leads unresponsive after all offsets are closed out so the database stops decaying.
9
Reporting
Reactivation rate by offset and by segment is reported so the campaign keeps improving.
2 · Trigger
A time-based campaign is scheduled at 90, 180 and 365 days from last contact for each eligible segment.
Fields & signals: segment, offset, reason to contact, exclusion list
3 · AI Agent
The agent writes a re-opener specific to the elapsed time and the original enquiry.
Fields & signals: original enquiry, elapsed time, seasonal hook, brand voice
4 · Decision / Qualification
Replies are sorted into ready-now, still-later, wrong-contact and opt-out.
Fields & signals: intent, timing, sentiment, opt-out, classification
5 · CRM Update
Every outcome updates the contact, including a hard flag for anyone who opts out.
Fields & signals: contact, reactivated, deferred-until, do-not-contact
6 · Message / Call
The agent follows up by email first, then SMS where consent and rules allow.
Fields & signals: channel order, message copy, quiet hours, consent
7 · Appointment / Next Step
Ready leads are booked; still-later leads get a scheduled future touch at the next offset.
Fields & signals: appointment, next offset, nurture tag
8 · Follow-Up
Leads unresponsive after all offsets are closed out so the database stops decaying.
Fields & signals: final touch, stop reason, archive flag
9 · Reporting
Reactivation rate by offset and by segment is reported so the campaign keeps improving.
Fields & signals: segment, offset, replies, bookings, close-outs
What it looks like in practice
The 365-day message is not the same as the 90-day one
Each offset gets a different reason to re-engage.
At 90 days the lead probably still remembers you, so the message can be direct. At 180 days a seasonal or lifecycle reason works better. At 365 days the message reintroduces the business and the offer, because the lead may genuinely have forgotten.
- Offsets are anchored to the last real contact, not the original form date.
- Each offset changes the copy angle rather than repeating the same nudge.
- Consent and suppression rules are checked before every send.
- Leads are closed out cleanly when all offsets are exhausted.
Hi Laura — about a year ago you looked into new windows for your home but the timing wasn’t right. We’ve just released our spring installation slots, and I wondered if this is the year. Would a fresh quote be useful?
Actually yes — we’re finally ready to go ahead this year.
That’s great to hear. Would you like us to re-survey, or use the measurements from last year as a starting point?
A fresh survey makes sense.
Perfect. Our surveyor has Tuesday 10:00 or Saturday 09:00 free — which works?
Saturday 09:00.
Illustrative example
Illustrative example. Old lists are only contacted where consent and local rules permit, and every message is opt-outable.
Same workflow, different industries
How it flexes for three very different businesses
The nine stages stay the same. The trigger, the language, the qualification questions and the outcome change completely.
Replacement-cycle timing
At 365 days the campaign targets past enquires about items with a natural replacement cycle — boilers, roofs, windows — using maintenance and age as the reason to reach out.
Market-change re-contact
Buyers and sellers from a year ago are re-contacted when market conditions shift, with a plain-language update and an offer of a valuation or a fresh shortlist.
Annual compliance cycle
For firms, the 365-day touch coincides with annual filings or reviews, giving a legitimate reason to reach out and offer a review appointment.
Failure modes & safeguards
What happens when things are not tidy
Real conversations are messy. These are the guardrails we build in before go-live.
Human handoff when the AI is unsure
Anyone who opted out at any point is permanently suppressed before any campaign runs, and suppression is checked at send time.
Opt-out and consent handling
Replies that are irritated, confused or that raise a complaint go to a human immediately with the contact history attached.
Quiet hours for SMS
SMS is only used where consent is documented; where it is uncertain, email is used, and quiet hours always apply.
No fabricated outcomes
The campaign never invents a policy change, price increase or deadline that is not real and approved.
Metrics to watch
What we measure for you
We report on outcomes from your own data. We do not publish invented benchmarks — the numbers below are the ones we track and explain with you.
Response time
How quickly a reactivated reply is answered, which is what determines whether the re-opened lead converts.
Qualification rate
The share of each offset segment that replies, so you learn how long your real sales cycle is.
Booking rate
The share of replies that book, by offset and by segment.
Show rate
How many contacts are closed out, which shows the database is being maintained rather than left to rot.
Where it fits
Connect it to the rest of your system
Related workflows
- Lead Reactivation — for leads that are quiet rather than ancient.
- Customer Reactivation — for past customers rather than old enquiries.
- Lead Follow-Up — the cadence for leads that are still recent.
Services this uses
- AI Reactivation Agent — runs the long-horizon campaign.
- CRM Automation — calculates segment ages and suppression.
- Marketing Attribution — attributes re-opened revenue correctly.
Where it works best
- Home Services — replacement-cycle re-contact.
- Real Estate — market-timing re-engagement.
- Professional Services — annual review cycles.
FAQ
Dead Lead Reactivation questions
What if we have no consent records for old leads?
Then those contacts should not be messaged. We will help you identify which parts of the database are contactable, and recommend how to capture proper consent from new enquiries going forward.
How do you avoid annoying people with an old lead list?
By contacting sparingly, at meaningful intervals, with a genuine reason, and by honouring opt-outs permanently. If a segment performs poorly and opts out heavily, we stop contacting it.
Is a 365-day campaign worth running?
For offers with natural annual cycles — home improvements, reviews, seasonally dependent services — it is often the cheapest pipeline available. We will tell you honestly if your offer has no such cycle.
Get started
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