Automation Recipe: Build a Post-Close Borrower Follow-Up System

What This Builds

You'll build an automated email sequence that triggers the moment a loan funds — sending a congratulations email, a review request 3 days later, and a 30-day check-in automatically. Every borrower gets the same professional follow-up without you or your LOs ever manually hitting send. More reviews. More referrals. Zero extra work.

Prerequisites

• Google account with Gmail and Google Sheets
• Zapier account (free tier for basic Zaps; Starter at ~$20/mo for sequences)
• Your funded loans tracked in a Google Sheet (or willingness to create one)
• 2-3 email templates written (from Level 1 guide: "Write a Post-Close Review Request Email")

The Concept

Zapier watches a single column in your Google Sheet — the "Funded Date" column. The moment you type a date in that column for a loan, Zapier automatically triggers: immediate congratulations email, then waits 3 days and sends the review request, then waits 27 more days and sends a check-in. It's like having a personal assistant who never forgets.

The automation doesn't know about mortgage — it just watches for a date and sends pre-written emails to the address you put in the sheet.

Build It Step by Step

Part 1: Set up your tracking sheet (20 minutes)

1. Open Google Sheets and create a new sheet: "Funded Loans Tracker"

2. Create these columns in Row 1:

   • A: Loan Number
   • B: Borrower First Name
   • C: Borrower Email
   • D: LO Name
   • E: Funded Date (leave blank until the loan funds — filling this triggers automation)
   • F: Loan Type (Purchase/Refi)
   • G: Notes

3. Add 3 test loans with real-looking data (use fake emails like test1@example.com for your tests)

Important: Column E (Funded Date) is your trigger column. Nothing happens until you enter a date there.

Part 2: Write your 3 email templates (20 minutes)

Open a text editor and write these 3 emails — you'll paste them into Zapier:

Email 1 (Day 0 — Congratulations):

Subject: Congratulations on your new home, {{Borrower First Name}}!

Hi {{Borrower First Name}},

Congratulations! Your loan has officially funded and you're a homeowner. It was a pleasure working with you through this process.

If you ever have questions about your mortgage, refinancing, or home equity, I'm always here.

Warmly,
[LO Name / Branch Name]
[Phone]

Email 2 (Day 3 — Review Request):

Subject: Quick favor, {{Borrower First Name}}?

Hi {{Borrower First Name}},

I hope you're settling into your new home! I have a quick favor to ask — if you had a good experience with us, would you take 2 minutes to leave us a Google review? It means a lot and helps other buyers find us.

[YOUR GOOGLE REVIEW LINK]

If there's anything we could have done better, I'd love to hear that too — just reply to this email.

Thank you,
[LO Name]

Email 3 (Day 30 — Check-In):

Subject: Checking in — how's the new home, {{Borrower First Name}}?

Hi {{Borrower First Name}},

It's been about a month since your closing! I just wanted to check in — how are you settling in?

If you have any friends or family thinking about buying or refinancing, I'd be honored if you'd refer them my way.

Also, I send out a monthly market update. Let me know if you'd like to be on the list!

Best,
[LO Name]

Part 3: Set up Zapier (45 minutes)

Step 1: Create a Zapier account

1. Go to zapier.com and sign up (free tier works)
2. Click + Create Zap

Step 2: Set the trigger (Google Sheets — New/Updated Row)

1. In the Trigger box, search Google Sheets → Event: New or Updated Spreadsheet Row
2. Sign in to Google → Select your "Funded Loans Tracker" sheet and tab
3. Set Trigger Column to: Column E (Funded Date) — this fires when Column E is updated
4. Click Test trigger — Zapier should show your test data

Step 3: Add a filter (only trigger when Funded Date is filled)

1. Click + → Add Filter
2. Filter rule: "Column E (Funded Date) Exists / Is not empty"
3. Continue

Step 4: Add Email Action 1 (Day 0)

1. Click + → Search Gmail → Event: Send Email
2. Configure:

   • To: Click insert data → select Column C (Borrower Email)
   • Subject: "Congratulations on your new home, " + insert Column B (Borrower First Name) + "!"
   • Body: Paste your Email 1 template; replace {{Borrower First Name}} with the Column B data insert

Step 5: Add a Delay

1. Click + → Search Delay by Zapier → Event: Delay For
2. Set: 3 Days

Step 6: Add Email Action 2 (Day 3)

1. Click + → Gmail → Send Email again
2. Configure with Email 2 template (same field mapping)

Step 7: Add another Delay and Email 3

1. Delay: 27 Days (27 days after Day 3 = Day 30)
2. Gmail → Send Email → Email 3 template

Step 8: Test and publish

1. Click Test Zap using your test data (emails go to test@example.com — safe)
2. Verify each email draft looks correct
3. Click Publish Zap

Real Example: The Full Workflow in Action

Setup: You have 8 LOs closing 15-20 loans per month.

Input: LO Johnson closes a purchase loan for the Martinez family today. You (or the LO) open the tracking sheet and type today's date in the Funded Date column for that loan.

Output:

• Today at ~2pm: Mrs. Martinez receives a congratulations email from LO Johnson
• 3 days later: Review request email arrives in her inbox
• 30 days later: Check-in email with referral ask

Time saved: With 15 closings/month, that's 45 emails you never had to write or remember. If 30% of borrowers leave a review, that's 4-5 new Google reviews per month vs. maybe 0-1 previously.

What to Do When It Breaks

• Zap doesn't fire → Check that the trigger column (E) was actually updated, not just the row; Zapier looks for changes in that specific column
• Emails going to spam → Set up email authentication (SPF/DKIM) on your domain — ask your IT person if you're on a company email
• Wrong name in email → Check that Column B has first names only, not "John and Jane Smith"
• Delay isn't working → Zapier free tier has task limits; upgrade to Starter if you exceed 100 tasks/month

Variations

• Simpler version: Skip Zapier entirely and use Gmail's scheduled send — write the emails manually and schedule them out 3 and 30 days. Not automated, but structured.
• Extended version: Add a Year 1 Anniversary email at 365 days with a rate check-in offer — turns a 3-email sequence into a 4-touchpoint annual retention system

What to Do Next

• This week: Build the Zap and test it with 3 fake borrowers before going live
• This month: Track Google review volume before and after — document the lift
• Advanced: Connect your CRM (Total Expert, Jungo) directly instead of a Google Sheet — many CRMs have Zapier integrations that make this even smoother

Advanced guide for Mortgage Branch Manager professionals. These techniques use more sophisticated AI features that may require paid subscriptions.