I feel like I make a post about this almost every year… but spring cleaning isn’t just for closets, junk drawers, and that cup holder in your car full of receipts, hair ties, mystery crumbs, and old empty coffee cups from Starbucks. It’s for your follow-up too.

Let’s be honest… somewhere in that CRM is a sales process you built with the best of intentions and then never looked at again. She’s out there. Collecting dust. Sending old emails. Possibly embarrassing you.

This time of year, is the perfect excuse to clean house.

Take a look at your follow-up plan. Are your emails still sounding like you? Are they timely? Are they helpful? Are you asking for the appointment, or are you just sending polite little notes into the void and hoping for the best?

I’ve seen it happen more times than I can count. Someone sets up a process, loads in a few emails, checks the box, and moves on like the work is done. It is not done. That follow-up needs supervision. It needs attention. It needs you to stop pretending automation is a personality trait.

Spring is a great time to freshen up subject lines, tighten your messaging, check your calls to action, and make sure your process still matches how people actually shop today.

Think of it like opening the windows after a long winter. Let some air in. Toss out what’s stale. Keep what works. Fix what doesn’t.

So what exactly should you spring clean? Here’s the top 5 things you can do this week that will make a difference.

1. Your Subject Lines – If your subject line sounds like it was written by a robot in 2022, it’s time. Make it sound human, relevant, and worth opening.  Pleeeaaase don’t have the subject line just checking in.  

Instead, here are a few options:

• This could make your home search easier
• A few homes worth your attention
• Found something that may fit your wish list
• Let’s make your home search feel less overwhelming
• Is XYZ builder still on your list?

2. Your Calls to Action – Are you actually moving the conversation forward, or are you just “reaching out to check in” for the 47th time? Be nice but be clear.  Throw out all those “Just checking in emails” (see subject lines above.) and make them more relevant. 

Here are a few strong calls to action and why they are effective:

• Is XYZ builder still on your list?  – Simple, direct, and easy to answer. It gives the prospect permission to tell the truth without feeling trapped. 
• Where does XYZ builder rank in your home search? – This one is great because it helps uncover whether you are top choice, backup plan, or barely hanging on by a thread. 
• Is becoming a homeowner still in your future? – This gets bigger-picture and helps you find out whether the delay is about your community… or life in general.

3. Your Timing and Spacing – Look at when emails, calls, and texts are going out. Too much and you’re annoying. Too little and you’re forgettable. There is a sweet spot, and “random acts of follow-up” is not it. 

Here are some cadences to think about:

• First 30–60 days: This is the high-touch stage. Follow up more often and mix your methods. Email, phone, text, and video emailing. This is not the time to disappear. People are actively looking, getting distracted, comparing everyone, and forgetting who is who. Stay visible without becoming a stage-five clinger. 
• 60–180 days: Now you can widen the spacing a bit, but stay consistent. This is where helpful, relevant follow-up matters most. Think updated inventory, community news, helpful questions, changes in timing, or checking whether their priorities have shifted. You are nurturing, not nagging. 
• 180–365 days: This is the long game. Touches should be lighter, intentional, and spaced out, but not abandoned. Life changes, leases end, finances improve, kids switch schools, jobs move people around. This is where a well-timed email can bring someone back from the dead and make you look like you care.

4. Your outdated messaging – Rates change. Incentives change. Buyer priorities change. The market changes. That clever email you wrote six months ago no longer be applicable. I cannot emphasize enough the need to check your messaging on a regular basis. 
5. Stale Leads and Messy Data in Your CRM – This is the hardest one. It takes time and a systematic approach. You need to identify old leads with bad tags, broken plans, unfinished notes, duplicate contacts, and zombie prospects still getting emails from beyond the grave… clean it up. Your database should look like a hoarder runs it. Sometimes we do have to let things go. 

Spring cleaning is so important because your leads deserve better than dusty follow-up and email copy from three seasons ago. And frankly, so do you.