We all know that responding promptly to enquiries from potential clients is important when looking to generate new business, but new mystery shopper research by lead generation specialists, Homeflow, has shown that 39% of estate agents are missing out on potential clients by not responding in a timely manner.
The study revealed that the average response time was 229 ‘business’ minutes, which is almost four hours, with the slowest response time being 2,260 ‘business’ minutes, or almost five working days!
Only half of the agents who responded to the sales enquiry did so within an hour, and just two agents were fast enough to acknowledge the opportunity within a four-minute window.
Response times to portal leads on rental properties were better than to sales enquiries. Some 70% of rental enquiries generated a reply from agents, with 40% of all responses within an hour. However, the average response time was only marginally shorter at 218 ‘business’ minutes.
“Home sellers now place a higher value on response time than ever before”, said Nik Chotai, Homeflow’s MD. “It’s the key to winning instructions in a competitive market, and it’s essential for building trust and loyalty in a digital age where time is of the essence.”
