3 Ways to Streamline Your Property Business

There is a perception that people who work for themselves have a lot of free time, and that idea might well attract people into the real estate business. If you ask an estate agent that, they will probably think you’re crazy, but the notion persists nonetheless. The reality is that when you start up your new property company, you’re more likely to find yourself working a chaotic schedule, including antisocial evening and weekend working hours – and that’s after you’ve already clocked up a full day or week in the office.

Cut the unnecessary stress from your workday by using every tool to help you thrive. Here are three tried and tested ways to streamline your property company to ensure your business is working for you.

Time Management Apps

The work of an estate agent is varied, and the schedule can be hectic. You might find yourself working on contracts all morning, promotions or new clients all afternoon and then start showing properties all evening. With so much variety in your job, you’ll need to be a management ninja to keep your schedule on track.

• To make the best use of your day, it helps to know where all your time is going. We love the Toggl app for tracking how much time you’re spending on individual projects and jobs using a simple, visual design that’s easy to use.
• If you find yourself overwhelmed by the sheer number of tasks you have to face each day, that can have a devastating impact on your effectiveness. Automate your prioritisation with the MyLifeOrganised (MLO) app. By targeting your top-priority actions, it will show you where you should be focusing to meet your goals.
• To ramp up your time-keeping chops, have a look at Timecamp which can be used to track team productivity. Even better, it can integrate with more than 50 other apps, including Evernote and Slack. The free tier supports a single user, but the bottom of the paid tiers offers unlimited users.

To nail your efficiency, check out our time management tips for estate agents.

CRM Software

As an estate agent, you’re going to get busy really fast without some good CRM software to streamline your business and maximise your efficiency. CRM stands for customer relationship management, and it’s a tool used to maintain your collaborations with customers or partners as well as to track your client lifecycle through their whole relationship with you – from initial enquiry to completion.

The best CRM systems will have the following features:

Lead and pipeline management – capture leads, either manually or by automated import from other digital sources like your email list. You can then track the progress of each one through to closure.

Document filing – maintain neat records of all your electronic documents so that you can find what you need when you need it.

Automated workflows and marketing – standardise your working systems and procedures and automatically send emails and other correspondence to your contacts.

Correspondence tracking – all your communication with your contact is recorded in one place for easy reference so you can keep track of exactly where you are with your client at any time. No more searching emails or notes.

Accessible through the cloud – retaining all your important client documentation and correspondence securely on a web-based server will save you hours and pounds. You’ll be able to access all your records – and even update them – at any time, wherever you are.

Connection with the major property portals – connect quickly and easily with 50+ online property sales sites, including the top companies Rightmove, Zoopla, OnTheMarket, Prime Location and Gumtree.

Top 3 CRM Systems for Estate Agents

Keeping all the features of the best CRMs in mind, these are our picks for the best client tracking software for your business.

1. 10NINETY – Top marks for ease of use, portal access and its impressive list of features. This CRM for estate agents is ideal for mixed-use property management as it can handle sales, management and rentals. It’s fully customisable, offers social media marketing and rates highly with reviewers for its customer service. Unusually among its peers, 10ninety advertises a simple pricing structure starting at £70 per month with a £100 set-up fee.

2. ACQUAINT – This system is also good for both sales and rentals. Comprehensive training and unlimited support are both available, and users report that it’s intuitive and easy to use. There are no installation fees and no minimum term, but it does have a complicated pricing structure. Prices start at £40 + VAT per month for one user with additional features starting at £4 per month.

3. ALTO – A powerful all-rounder with a wealth of features to help your business, including prospect-property matching, custom checklists and advanced filtering. Part of the Zoopla group, this software was designed by estate agents, so you can expect attention to every little detail in your sales workflow.

Automated Key Management

One of the best time management tools for estate agents is an automatic system for tracking keys, like the one provided by Keyhive. Is anything more frustrating than losing your keys? Well, you can multiply that by a thousand when you’re running a property business. Keys are the key to your success and misplacing them costs you valuable time and money.

Developed especially for property management professionals, the online key tracker lets you say goodbye to wasted time and effort in managing your keys. The real-time tracking dashboard shows you exactly who has a key at any moment; and if someone forgets to return it on time, they get an email reminder. It’s quick and easy to use with a tap out and in and offers convenient features for your contractors.

The property business is a competitive field. Automate where possible to streamline your processes, maximise your time and stay ahead of the curve.