How to reply to a supplier pitch you do not want
Once your business has a LinkedIn page and a public email address, the pitches arrive. Agencies offering more leads, software companies offering a demo, suppliers offering a better rate, recruiters offering candidates you never asked for. Some are polite and relevant; many are neither. Replying to all of them takes time you do not have, but ignoring a supplier you might need one day can feel rude. This guide helps you decide which pitches deserve a reply, gives you short replies for each situation, shows how to say "not now" without inviting ten more follow-ups, and explains how to set up an AI agent so it sorts pitches from real customers and never ends up negotiating with a salesperson on your behalf.
The short answer
You do not owe every pitch a reply. Answer the ones from real people that are relevant or come from someone you know, with one or two polite sentences that give a clear answer: no, not now, or send me details by email. Ignore obvious mass messages, unsubscribe from lists you never joined, and keep your AI agent to customers so it never engages with sales sequences.
Replies you can adapt
Change the details to match your business. Names, prices and times are examples.
| When | Reply |
|---|---|
| A clear no | Thank you for getting in touch, Mark. We are well looked after on this already, so it is not something we need. I wish you well with it. |
| Not now, but maybe later | Thanks for the message. We are not reviewing suppliers this year, but we may look again in the spring. Feel free to send a short overview by email and I will keep it on file. |
| You might be interested | Thanks, this could be useful. Could you send a one-page overview with prices to hello@example.co.uk? I will look at it this month and come back to you if we would like to talk. |
| They keep following up | Thanks for following up. As I mentioned, we are not looking for this at the moment. Please take me off your list, and I will be in touch if that changes. |
| A recruiter you did not ask for | Thank you, but we are not hiring for this role and we only work with agencies we have a terms agreement with. Please do not send CVs, as we would not be able to accept a fee for unsolicited candidates. |
| An existing supplier offering more | Thanks, Jen. We are happy with what we have from you for now. If our needs change, you will be the first person I ask. |
| Someone you know personally | Good to hear from you, Ali. It is not right for us at the moment, but I am glad things are going well. Let us catch up properly soon. |
| An email list you never joined | Please remove this address from your mailing list. We have not given consent to receive marketing emails. |
What to avoid
- Saying "maybe" when you mean no. It guarantees a follow-up every few weeks.
- Booking a "quick call" to be polite. It costs you half an hour and the seller a wasted lead.
- Replying angrily or publicly shaming the sender. A short no, or no reply at all, is enough.
- Clicking links or opening attachments in pitches from people you do not know.
- Letting an AI agent reply to sales sequences. Many are automated too, and two machines can go back and forth.
What to tell your AI agent
- Tell it to sort incoming messages into customers, suppliers you already use and sales pitches.
- Tell it to leave sales pitches unanswered and list them for you once a day or once a week.
- Give it your short "no thank you" reply, to send only when you ask it to.
- Tell it never to book calls, ask for prices or show interest on your behalf.
- Tell it never to click links or open attachments in messages from people you do not know.
When a person should take over
- Pitches from existing suppliers, partners or people you know personally.
- Anything you might genuinely want, so you decide whether to take it further.
- Messages that look like fraud, such as fake invoices or "urgent" payment changes.
Why a clear no saves everyone time
Salespeople are usually trained to follow up until they get an answer. Silence often means more follow-ups; a vague "maybe later" means a reminder every month. A clear, polite no is often the fastest way to stop the messages, and most good salespeople are grateful for it.
If you think you might want the service one day, say when. "We will review this in the spring" is much better than "not right now", because the seller knows exactly when it is worth trying again.
Moving the conversation to email when you are interested also helps. A one-page overview by email is easier to file and compare than a long LinkedIn thread.
A worked example
Here is a week of LinkedIn messages for a small marketing agency owner. The AI agent leaves the pitches alone and lists them for her on Friday. Names and details are examples.
| Who | Message |
|---|---|
| Seller, Monday | Hi Nadia, I help agencies like yours get 20 new clients a month. Open to a quick call this week? |
| Seller, Wednesday | Just bumping this to the top of your inbox. Does Thursday work? |
| AI agent to owner, Friday | This week: 2 messages from a lead generation agency (no reply sent), 1 from your printer about new rates, and 1 from a software company offering a demo. Shall I send your usual "no thank you" to the agency? |
| Owner to AI agent | Yes, send it to the agency. Leave the software one. I will reply to the printer myself. |
| Business, Friday | Thanks for getting in touch. It is not something we need, so please take me off your list. I wish you well with it. |
Nadia spent two minutes on four pitches. The agent never showed interest or booked a call, and her printer, a real supplier, got a personal reply.
A note for your AI agent
Sales pitches and suppliers
A sales pitch is a message from someone selling to us: agencies, software, recruiters, lead generation.
- Do not reply to sales pitches unless I ask you to.
- Every Friday, list the pitches: who, what they sell, how many times they wrote.
- Our current suppliers are: Hart Print, Cloudline IT, Ridge Accountants. Pass their messages to me.
- If I ask you to decline, send: "Thanks for getting in touch. It is not something we need, so please take me off your list. I wish you well with it."
- Never book calls, ask for prices or say we might be interested.
- Never click links or open attachments from people you do not know.If you would like to see each decline before it goes, ask your AI agent to hold replies as drafts, and nothing goes out until you approve it.
Watch for pitches that are really scams
Some messages dressed as supplier contact are attempts at fraud. Common signs include an "updated bank details" email from a supplier, an invoice for something you never ordered, urgent pressure to act today, or a link asking you to sign in to view a document.
- Never change a supplier's bank details because of an email alone. Phone them on a number you already have.
- Do not sign in through a link in an unexpected message. Go to the site yourself.
- Tell your AI agent to flag these messages to you and never act on them.
How Spaces fits in
Spaces connects your own LinkedIn account and mailbox to the AI agent you already use. It can read what comes in, tag conversations and give each one an owner, so pitches are kept apart from customers. LinkedIn restricts automation on personal accounts, so read the caveat box above before you connect it. On email, Spaces sends one message at a time to one person and is never used for bulk mail.
Sum up and next step
Reply briefly to the pitches that deserve it, with a clear no, a specific "not until spring" or a request for an emailed overview. Ignore the copy-and-paste ones, and be wary of anything that asks for money or a sign-in.
Give your AI agent the list of your real suppliers and tell it to leave sales pitches for your weekly look. Your inbox stays focused on customers.
Pricing
FAQ
Is it rude not to reply to a sales pitch?
Not for a mass message that was clearly sent to many people. For a personal message from someone you know, or a current supplier, a short reply is kind and keeps the relationship. Use your judgement and do not feel guilty about the rest.
How do I stop someone following up again and again?
Give a clear no and ask to be taken off their list. Most sellers will stop. If they continue, you can stop replying, and on LinkedIn you can remove the connection or block them.
Should I accept connection requests from salespeople on LinkedIn?
Only if you would be happy to hear from them. Accepting a request often opens the door to a pitch straight away. You can ignore requests from people you do not know without explaining why.
Can an AI agent decline pitches for me?
Yes, if you ask it to with a set reply. It is safer to have it list pitches for you and decline only the ones you choose, so it never engages with an automated sales sequence by itself.
What if the pitch is actually useful?
Ask for a one-page overview with prices by email, and say when you will look at it. That keeps you in control and saves you a call you may not need.
How can I tell a pitch from a real customer?
Customers usually ask about your service, a price or a booking. Pitches talk about what the sender does for businesses like yours. Give your AI agent examples of both and ask it to sort them, then check its sorting for the first week or two.
What should I do with suspicious supplier emails?
Do not reply, click or pay. Contact the supplier using details you already have, such as a phone number from an old invoice. If it is fraud, report it to your email provider and to the relevant authorities.