You're working a pipeline in Follow Up Boss and a name from last month slips down the list. The deal stages are tidy. What's missing is the second, third and fourth touch for the people who aren't ready yet. A CRM can hold all of that, but it only helps if you build and tend the follow-up yourself.
Follow Up Boss describes itself as more than a CRM, a central hub for building the systems your business needs. Per their public pricing page (checked October 2026), Grow is $69/mo per user billed monthly, and the page lists texting, automated drip emails and Action Plans. If you already use Follow Up Boss and like it, there's no reason to leave. You may only want an extra layer for the people you've decided to stay in touch with.
That's where Keystone fits. Keystone is follow-up software, not a full CRM, a transaction manager, a website builder, a dialer or a lead source. It works next to Follow Up Boss and doesn't connect to it. There is no live sync. You export a spreadsheet of the people you want followed up with, import that CSV into Keystone, and choose a sequence that's already written.
Follow Up Boss keeps the pipeline. Keystone runs the follow-up across email, text, call prompts, printed letters and handwritten cards, as a Today list with each message drafted. If your team or brokerage supplies your CRM, check their policies on client communication and mailing before adding an outside tool. For a side-by-side look, see the Keystone vs Follow Up Boss page.
A practical way to start: pick one slice of your pipeline, such as contacts you've decided are worth a long, patient follow-up. Export only those, import them, and give it a few weeks before adding another batch.
Stages and tasks tell you where each deal stands. They don't write the fifth check-in to the person who said 'maybe next year.'
Automating follow-up in any CRM means writing the messages and building the plans. That's a project, and it's easy to put off.
Everyone agrees a handwritten card stands out. Almost nobody sends one on a schedule, because ordering, writing and mailing each one is its own chore.
If two systems both message the same person, the lead gets confused. You need a clear rule for which tool follows up with whom.
Export the people you want followed up with from your CRM as a spreadsheet. What you can export depends on your account and permissions, so check what yours allows. Drop the CSV into Keystone and the columns match themselves. Then choose a written sequence.
Each morning, the Today list shows what's due, with every message drafted and filled in. You send it, edit it, or skip it. When someone writes back, their sequence stops and the reply moves to the top of your list. Connect Gmail or Outlook and Keystone sends as you, with replies syncing back both ways. Letters and handwritten cards are built in and wait for your approval, with the exact piece and cost shown first.
Import only the people you want Keystone to message, so nobody hears from two tools. Free for 100 contacts, then $49 to $189 a month. Annual billing is 20% off. Check your brokerage's policies on client communication and mailing before using any outside tool.
Suggested sequence: Stay-in-Touch Layer Beside Your CRM
7 steps over 90 days. Each one lands on your Today list as a draft you can edit or send.
Hi Maria, I wanted to follow up on our conversation. Here's a quick summary and the next step if you'd like one....
Hi Maria, it's Sam. Anything I can look into for you this week?...
Ask how plans are shaping up. Talking points: timeline, budget changes, anything that has moved since we last talked....
A short, plain note on recent sales near what you described. No action needed....
A short handwritten note signed by you. Held for your approval before it ships....
A one-page letter with a market note for their area. You approve the exact piece and cost first....
If your plans have changed, tell me and I'll adjust. If you're ready, I'm ready....
+ more steps in the full sequence
Start on the Free plan. Every message comes drafted for you.