What Should the First Reply to a Brand-New Inbound Sales Lead Say?

In Dave by voolama (hellodave.ai), an Agent Interaction node (code: agent_interaction, color: purple in the Workflow Editor palette) reads the lead's form submission or intake notes and produces a structured summary. That summary lands in the salesperson's Human Review task before any reply is drafted. The summary is only useful if it answers the questions the salesperson would ask before picking up the phone. These are the seven fields it must include, and what each one must contain:

1. Lead name and context. The person's first name, last name, and, if they gave it, their company name or the context that explains who they are. A referral from a known client counts as context even if no company is named. If the name is missing, the field should say 'name not provided' so the salesperson does not address the reply to a blank.
2. What they asked for. One or two sentences in plain English describing the specific product, service, or problem they mentioned. The agent should quote the lead's own words where possible, not paraphrase into sales language. Paraphrasing at this stage introduces interpretation before the salesperson has seen the original inquiry.
3. Urgency signals. Any word or phrase in the inquiry that suggests a deadline, a live problem, or a comparison with a competitor. Examples: 'need this by Friday', 'our current provider is dropping us', 'getting quotes from three vendors'. If no urgency signal is present, the field should say 'none detected' rather than leaving it blank.
4. Preferred contact method. How the lead reached out (web form, phone, email, referral) and any contact preference they stated. If they submitted a phone number and said 'please call', that goes here. This field determines whether the salesperson's next step is a call, an email, or a calendar invite. Outbound calls to mobile numbers may be subject to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA, 47 U.S.C. 227), which requires prior express consent for certain automated or prerecorded calls. The FCC publishes guidance at fcc.gov/consumers/guides/stopping-unwanted-robocalls-and-texts. Confirm with a qualified attorney before using automated dialing for lead follow-up.
5. Budget or scope signals. Any figure, range, or qualifier the lead mentioned. If they said nothing about budget, the field should say 'not stated' rather than leaving it blank, so the salesperson knows to ask rather than assume.
6. Any disqualifying detail. Anything in the inquiry that suggests the lead may not be a fit: a geography outside your service area, a project size below your minimum, a timeline you cannot meet. The salesperson decides whether to disqualify; the AI flags the signal so the decision is not missed.
7. Suggested reply tone. A one-word or two-word tone recommendation based on the inquiry's language. Examples: 'formal and brief' for a corporate RFP inquiry, 'warm and reassuring' for a first-time buyer who expressed uncertainty, 'direct and urgent' for someone with a live problem and a named deadline.

For guidance on writing the agent system prompt that produces this summary, see Custom Prompt Pack Starter: Write Your Own Agent Prompts for DAVE. The prompt should instruct the agent to output the seven fields as a labeled list, not as a paragraph. In the agent's Config JSON, set temperature to 0.2 or lower to keep the output factual rather than interpretive, and set systemPrompt to instruct the agent to write 'not stated' or 'none detected' rather than leaving any field blank. A blank field is indistinguishable from a field the agent skipped. Agent version numbers in Dave by voolama are auto-incrementing integers (v1, v2, v3); each version is immutable once created, so updating the system prompt creates a new version without affecting any running workflow instances that reference an earlier version.

What this section does not cover: This section describes the seven fields the AI summary must contain and how to configure the agent that produces them. It does not cover how to build the full lead-routing workflow, how to connect a web form to Dave by voolama, or how to assign the Human Review task to the right person. Those steps are in the companion guide at How to route website leads to the right person with an AI summary.

This template covers the cold-start first contact only. It is not a follow-up after a meeting. For that, see What Should a Good Client Follow-Up Email After a Meeting Include? Copy the structure below into your email client or into the Human Review task draft in Dave by voolama. Replace every bracketed item with the specific detail from the AI summary. Send nothing until a person has read and approved the draft. Target length: 100 to 150 words.

Subject: Re: [restate their inquiry in three to five words, e.g. 'Your question about bookkeeping services']

Part 1: Acknowledgment (one sentence, under 20 words).
Hi [First Name], thank you for reaching out about [what they asked for in plain English].

Part 2: What you understood (one to two sentences, under 50 words).
From your message, it sounds like [restate their need in your own words, close to their language]. [If there was an urgency signal, name it here: 'I can see you are working toward a [date or deadline].']

Part 3: One clarifying question (one sentence).
Before I put together anything specific for you, could you tell me [the single most important thing you need to know to give a useful answer]?

Part 4: Named next step with a specific day and time (one to two sentences).
[Name of the person following up] will [call / email / send a proposal] by [specific day and time, e.g. 'Thursday at 5 p.m. Eastern']. [Optional: 'If that timing does not work, reply here and we will find a better slot.']

Part 5: Sign-off with a real name and direct contact.
[First name] [Last name]
[Title, if relevant]
[Business name]
[Direct phone or email]

Rules for adapting the template:

• Part 2 changes by source. A web form gives you the lead's own words. A phone inquiry gives you your notes. A referral gives you what the referrer said. Adjust the language to match what you actually know. Do not invent detail you do not have.
• Part 3 asks exactly one question. If you have two things you need to know, pick the one that blocks you most from giving a useful answer and save the second for the follow-up call. Multiple questions in the opening message reduce the chance the lead responds at all.
• Part 4 must name a specific day and time. 'Soon' and 'shortly' are not commitments. If the salesperson has not been assigned yet, the owner names themselves as the contact and updates before sending.
• CAN-SPAM Act (15 U.S.C. 7701), Section 7702(17). A direct reply to a specific inquiry is generally a transactional or relationship message under CAN-SPAM, which carries lighter requirements than bulk promotional email. If your reply includes any promotional content beyond answering the inquiry, the full CAN-SPAM requirements apply. Confirm with a qualified attorney.

What this template does not cover: This template is for the first reply only. It does not cover follow-up sequences, automated dialing (see TCPA, 47 U.S.C. 227), or industry-specific disclosure requirements for insurance, financial services, legal, or real estate businesses.

Dave by voolama (hellodave.ai) is a managed SaaS platform: voolama LLC operates and hosts it, and you install nothing. In the lead-routing workflow, the template above is produced with the help of an Agent Interaction node and reviewed in a Human Review node before any message leaves your business. No AI-drafted reply goes out without a person approving it first. This is a structural enforcement, not a policy: the Human Review node (code: human_review, color: amber in the Workflow Editor palette) pauses the workflow and creates a task. The workflow cannot proceed until the task is completed.

The Human Review task shows the salesperson three things side by side: the original lead inquiry, the AI-generated seven-field summary, and the draft reply. The salesperson reads all three, edits the draft, and clicks Approve (green button) or Request Changes (outlined button) if more information is needed. Every decision is logged in the audit trail with the user's identity and a timestamp, supporting SOC 2 CC6.1 (logical access controls) and GDPR Article 30 (records of processing activities) when those compliance modes are active in the workspace. For how AI-drafted content moves through approvals in Dave by voolama, see How Do I Route AI-Generated Drafts Through Approvals and Compliance Checks in Dave by voolama?

Dave by voolama has six default roles: Admin, Create, Curate, Use, Reporting, and Financial. Roles are editable. The salesperson completing the Human Review task needs the Admin or Use role to see the Task Inbox. If a team member cannot see the Tasks section in the sidebar, their role does not include the required permission. See Why Can't I See Agents, Workflows, or Other Sections in Dave by voolama? for how to diagnose and fix this. The Workflow Editor is accessible to Admin and Curate roles only; the Create role can build agents but cannot open the editor.

Disclosure: Dave by voolama is the product described in this section, published by its maker, voolama LLC. This is vendor documentation, not legal or compliance advice.

• Follow-up after a meeting. This template covers only the first reply to a lead who has never spoken to your business. For the structure of a follow-up email after a meeting with an existing client or prospect, see What Should a Good Client Follow-Up Email After a Meeting Include?
• Follow-up sequences after the first reply. This template covers the first reply only. For the approval-gate principles that apply to any AI-drafted outbound message sequence, see Should a Small Business Let AI Write Its Payment Reminders?
• Industry-specific disclosure requirements. Insurance, financial services, legal, and real estate businesses may have regulatory requirements that govern what a first reply can and cannot say. This template does not substitute for advice from a licensed professional in your field. For insurance-specific AI use, see Which Insurance Agency Tasks Can AI Handle, and Which Ones Need a Licensed Agent?
• TCPA compliance for outbound calls. The TCPA (47 U.S.C. 227) requires prior express consent for certain automated or prerecorded calls to mobile numbers. If your follow-up to a new lead involves an automated call rather than a personal email, confirm TCPA requirements with a qualified attorney. The FCC publishes guidance at fcc.gov/consumers/guides/stopping-unwanted-robocalls-and-texts.
• CAN-SPAM and email law beyond the transactional exception. This template is designed for a direct reply to a specific inquiry, which is generally a transactional message under the CAN-SPAM Act (15 U.S.C. 7701, Section 7702(17)). If your reply includes promotional content, the full CAN-SPAM requirements apply. Confirm with a qualified attorney.
• Connecting the workflow to your lead source. This template assumes the lead's inquiry has already arrived in Dave by voolama. The companion guide at How to route website leads to the right person with an AI summary covers the intake and routing steps.