TL;DR
- Follow up on the conversation you actually had. A seller's requested date takes priority over a default reminder schedule.
- Ross Paller's course cadence is immediate response when possible, otherwise a first attempt within three hours, the next three business days, then weekly for three weeks. It describes his personal work, not an automatic Homebase sequence or permission to contact anyone.
- Keep the last answer, unresolved question, agreed contact method, next action and date together. An unanswered attempt is not a new seller commitment.
- Stop when the owner asks you to stop. A quiet phone does not justify changing channels, increasing pressure or treating a stop request as a later opportunity.
“Not yet” needs a next step, not a stronger pitch
When a seller who answered your mail is not ready, find out what “not ready” means. They may want to talk after a family discussion, need information you promised, or simply not want to proceed. Those answers should not land on the same calendar.
Ask whether there is a useful next conversation and, if so, when and how they want it. Write down the answer. If the seller says to call after a particular event, make that event part of the note instead of setting a generic reminder for tomorrow.
The first-call lesson covers learning the property facts and arranging a visit. This guide starts after that conversation, when the task is keeping a real next step from becoming a loose end.
Use Ross Paller's cadence as a starting point, not an override
In his deal-course follow-up discussion, Ross Paller corrects his first explanation and lays out his working cadence: answer immediately when possible, otherwise make the first return attempt within three hours; follow up on the next three business days; then weekly for three weeks. A still-viable opportunity may move to a later reminder, around three months.
That is how Ross organizes his attention. It is not evidence that a certain number of attempts wins a deal. Nor does a response to a postcard authorize every kind of future outreach.
A seller's requested pause comes first. So does a request to stop. If there is no longer a sensible reason for another conversation, do not keep generating reminders because the calendar has empty slots.
Work through a fictional business-day calendar
Invented planning exercise: assume an owner calls on a Monday during a week with no holidays. You speak, the property may fit, and the owner welcomes a return call about arranging a visit. No later date or pause has been requested. This illustrates timing, not a recommended contact quota.
| Point in the calendar | Possible action | What changes the plan |
|---|---|---|
| Monday, first response | Answer, or attempt a return within three hours when possible. Record what the owner actually says. | If the owner asks for Friday, use Friday instead of the default below. |
| Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday | The next three business days are reminder points for the still-open conversation. Review the last answer before any attempt. | A reply, appointment, requested pause or stop request replaces the remaining reminders. |
| Following three Thursdays | Weekly reminders, one week apart, while there is a legitimate unresolved next step and continued contact is appropriate. | Do not restart the daily sequence because one attempt was unanswered. |
| After that review | Decide whether a later reminder makes sense for a still-viable opportunity, or end active pursuit. | Around three months is a possible later reminder, not an instruction to recontact someone who said stop. |
The three weekly dates are one, two and three weeks after the Thursday reminder. This example does not account for holidays. On a real calendar, record actual dates and the seller's availability rather than copying day names blindly.
Now change one fact. On Monday the owner says, “Please call the first Tuesday next month after we have talked it over.” The next action is that Tuesday, not three daily attempts followed by weekly calls. You can prepare for the conversation in the meantime without contacting the person through the pause.
Distinguish a reminder from an attempt and an agreement
A reminder is a task for you. An attempt is something you did. An agreement is something the seller actually accepted. Keep them separate.
An unanswered call can produce a note such as “Tried the agreed number; no conversation; review the next action.” It cannot honestly produce “Seller wants another call tomorrow.” Likewise, a date on your calendar is not a confirmed property appointment.
Use this blank record after each meaningful interaction:
| Record | Fill in |
|---|---|
| Last actual answer | What did the owner say, without adding an assumed motivation? |
| Open question | What is stopping the next decision? |
| Responsibility | What will you do, and what did the owner agree to do, if anything? |
| Contact boundary | Agreed method, requested pause, or stop request |
| Next action and date | A specific task with the basis for its timing |
| Result | Conversation, unanswered attempt, appointment, pause, stop or end of pursuit |
For example, if you promised to check whether your timing can work, do that before calling to ask whether they are ready. Otherwise your follow-up asks the seller to repeat their situation while your own commitment remains unfinished.
End the sequence when the answer changes
A confirmed appointment replaces the follow-up sequence with visit preparation. A clear mismatch can end active pursuit. A stop request means stop outreach and preserve the request so it is not mistaken for a deferred conversation.
Do not treat being organized as a substitute for being welcome. The useful result is a clear next decision, not a larger count of attempts.
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