Follow-Up Timers for Property Leads: A Small Scheduler With Stop Rules

Description and use

A scheduler for real estate follow-ups that stops messages when a lead replies or changes status, reducing spam and improving agent efficiency.

Problem

Automating follow-up for property leads risks sending messages after a lead has replied or moved on, leading to spam and embarrassing timing errors.

Outcome

The scheduler pattern reduces spam, ensures timely follow-ups, and provides analytics on stop reasons, improving lead engagement and agent efficiency.

Workflow

• Define a data model with lead_id, agent_id, step, next_at, status, stop_reason.
• Create a short SEQUENCE list with after_hours and kind for each step.
• Implement should_stop to return a reason if the lead replied, status is closed, opted out, or sequence finished.
• Write a tick function that iterates over due follow-ups, checks should_stop, stops if needed, otherwise queues draft or sends template, then advances the step.
• Run tick from a scheduler every few minutes, ensuring atomicity of advance/stop or using an outbox table.
• Log every stop reason for analytics.
• Pause sequences for agents on leave instead of deleting.
• Use pre-approved templates for WhatsApp outside the customer service window.
• Clamp next_at to local quiet hours.

Evidence

A reply from the lead always stops automation and alerts the agent. That single rule prevents most of the embarrassing cases, like a nudge arriving an hour after the buyer booked a viewing.

Source

Run tick from a scheduler every few minutes. Make advance and stop atomic with the send, or use an outbox table, so a crash cannot send the same nudge twice.

Source