The Hail Mary Email That Turned “Dead Leads” Into Gold

Some leads, no matter what you do, feel truly gone. Cold, churned, and buried. 💀

But what if those dead leads still had some powerful lessons to share?

That’s what happened to Close recently when Desiree tried a bold experiment—a Hail Mary, if you will. Could she send out an email to some of our old-and-churned “free trial” leads using our old standby, the 1-2-3 email hack?

The goal wasn’t necessarily to win customers back. Yes, that would have been nice. Instead, Desiree wanted to try something different: a low-friction, light-hearted approach to re-engage people who were still in our CRM.

Here’s what happened—and why you should consider throwing a Hail Mary like this to your churned leads. 

A Refresher on the 1-2-3 Email Hack

It’s probably a good time to step back and do a quick primer on the magic of the 1-2-3 email hack.

The hack is designed to resurrect those old leads who simply won’t respond to you anymore. You don’t want to poke them into a response for the sake of a response—otherwise, you could alienate them and do serious damage to your brand. 

Instead, you want to use this email hack to give them the most frictionless possible reason to reply.

• Email them with a question, then lay out three options for your answers. You want to get to the bottom of their objection or pain point. Ask them: “Why didn’t you respond? Was it option number one? Number two? Three?”
• Ask them to only reply with a number. Zero work on their end, except a single clack on the keyboard and a quick reply. The whole interaction couldn’t be more frictionless if it was soaking in motor oil.
• Keep it easy and light. Don’t ask for an essay response. Use a light tone so they know you’re not taking it too seriously and expecting more than a number.

Originally, the 1-2-3 hack was for cold outreach or unresponsive leads. But Desiree had a new idea. Here’s the email she sent:

The reframe was simple: use curiosity and ask for feedback. It's not a hard sell, and this approach lowered the stakes. 

You already walked away, so why not one last, easy chance to tell us why? If you have the time.

The “choose-your-own-adventure” style of the 1-2-3 email hack works because it does something many emails won’t do: it respects the prospect’s time. And it’s got less ick factor for the sender, too. You won’t feel so intrusive if you’re following up with old or churned leads. 

The Three Styles of Replies

Naturally, this list of old leads didn’t turn into a list of sizzling-hot leads overnight. But replies did come in. And they went surprisingly far beyond the simple, frictionless replies Desiree had asked for. People responded with genuine insights and surprising anecdotes. And many of them fell into one of three camps:

1. The Competitor Convert (Objection: The Big Brand Name Is Safer )

One prospect replied to Desiree and said they chose a major competitor with Close. That isn’t new—competition happens all the time. But the reason they chose a major competitor struck Desiree as a unique objection:

This churned lead said he thought it would be easier to hire people who already knew the more-established CRM.

That was a new one: . Someone might choose a CRM because they wanted it to be as easy as possible to hire and onboard new sales talent?

But that would be a priority for a decision-maker. If you have a growing company, you want to make everything as simple as possible, including hiring. 

So the “1-2-3 email hack” in this case didn’t just rehash the obvious objections, like price or features. It uncovered hidden reasoning.

The customer was happy to share feedback and some frank thoughts. To Desiree, this alone was a great reason to talk to old churned leads—some people have great insights, but rarely get the opportunity to share them.

And it’s very likely this churned lead was happy to have his opinions heard by someone who wanted to learn from him. Win-win (even if the win wasn’t a sale). 

2. The Not-So-Dead Deal (Objection: Price)

Another prospect came with a different response. I’m about to sign with a competitor.

Translation? They were still shopping. The deal wasn’t over yet. A surprising twist of fate! (This is, after all, why you heave up those Hail Marys at the end of games. You might be surprised what you catch.)

Desiree’s follow up soon revealed the reason this prospect was about to sign with the competition. Pricing. Okay. Familiar territory. Close is no stranger to the price objection. 

The unique thing here, though, is that the customer wasn’t aware of Close’s recently updated pricing. Newer, lower tiers. Enhanced features. Not a completely free product, but still—a price cut that is nothing to sneeze at if you’re budget-conscious.

Desiree could therefore re-engage with this new information in tow. Hey, if pricing is still the hangup, you might want to learn a little bit more about what’s changed since you took the free trial. 

And Desiree also realized: “dead” leads aren’t always dead. Situations change. Leads might go to a competitor based on a pricing concern, never swinging back to Close’s pricing page for a double check. After all, why do they? They’d visited it before and they’d run the numbers.

That was the key takeaway: when you get a response, don’t just say, “thanks for your time!” when you realize it’s not going to be a deal.

Probe with deeper questions. Keep the conversation going. You never know what the next question will uncover. 

It might be a new objection, one you’d never heard. It might be an old objection, but in a way that casts that old objection in a new light. 

This response had been simple: “We’re going with [competitor].” Desiree could have left it at that. But she wanted to keep asking as many questions as the conversation would allow. And why that competitor? What was the key point of change? 

Only on his second reply did the price come up.

That’s how you learn.

3. The Brand Champion Without Power (Objection: Decision-maker dynamics)

One reply started with two great words: “Loved Close.” But she  went on: the CEO made the final call to go with a competitor.

This is the brand advocate—someone who was a fan of Close, but ultimately didn’t hold the decision-making cards.

Still, there was a hidden win here. That person was still left with a positive brand impression. If they ever changed companies, if they ever found themselves in the market for a CRM, who would they remember? 

The conversation sparked by the 1-2-3 reachout only solidified Close CRM as a brand with a human, conversational approach to its sales process. Ultimately, that cements the trust and loyalty you win in the marketplace.

Why the 1-2-3 Hack Still Works (and How to Use It on Cold Leads)

Ultimately, the 1-2-3 hack is just a spark. It’s an excuse to reignite conversations. 

You can use it on churned leads, or you can use it on active leads you’re working—warm or cold. Think of it as an invitation to keep the conversation going.

But you also have to make sure that you don’t end the conversation thanks to one initial reply. The value comes after that. Keep the conversation alive. Like a dying fire, keep throwing sticks on it. You never know what’s going to be the spark that enlightens the entire campsite.

Why the 1-2-3 email hack works so well:

• It reduces friction, making conversations a possibility rather than an obligation.
• It feels playful and human: prospects don’t feel cornered.
• It signals honesty: by including a “no” option, you show you can handle hard truths, and prospects are willing to share them.

How to apply this yourself:

• Don’t let churned or cold leads rot in your CRM. There’s always value there, even if it’s just keeping brand awareness alive and well.
• Pull a small segment of old trials or no-response leads so you can test a 1-2-3 email. Think of it as your “Hail Mary” list, stored away for some key lessons one day.
• Frame your options around your product’s common objections. Price? Missing features? Then, see what else you can learn from there.
• Always include an option to say “no.” This way, your ask feels safe and non-pushy.

Every reply is a win. A yes is a shot at re-engagement. A no tells you there’s feedback you need to learn. Even silence tells you that—yep—this batch truly is cold, and you can move on.

Not Every Throw is a Touchdown, But You Should Keep Throwing

These are “Hail Mary” plays for a reason. A lot of prospects who have churned won’t buy from you. But with the right approach, they can help you learn why other people might buy from you.

Ready to learn how Close can help you connect with customers (new or old) more effectively? Start your free trial today.