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Why most agencies can't respond fast enough
The agencies in the bottom quartile of our dataset — those with average response times above 4 hours — weren't staffed by lazy or indifferent people. They were staffed by people doing their jobs: taking viewings, on calls with solicitors, out of the office, or simply not working because it was 9 PM on a Sunday. The problem isn't motivation. It's coverage.
The top-performing agencies — those with average response times under 8 minutes — had one thing in common. Not more staff, not better training, and not a more aggressive follow-up culture. They had automated the first response entirely, using tools that could acknowledge a lead, qualify it, and book a viewing without any human in the loop.
What the 22% do differently
The agencies converting more than 75% of their enquiries into viewings shared three characteristics. First, they responded within minutes rather than hours — often within seconds. Second, they used the initial response to start qualifying the lead rather than just acknowledging it, asking about budget, chain status, and timeline. Third, they offered specific time slots in the first or second message, rather than asking the lead to call back at their convenience.
That third point is significant. Our data shows that the conversion rate when a first response includes specific available viewing slots is dramatically higher than when it simply invites the lead to get in touch.
Response time | Conversion to viewing | Sample size | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Under 5 minutes | 91% | 1,840 | Lead still actively engaged |
5–30 minutes | 62% | 2,610 | Significant but rapid decline |
30 min – 2 hours | 34% | 3,200 | Competing agents have responded |
2–12 hours | 18% | 2,880 | Lead typically no longer warm |
12 hours+ | 9% | 1,470 | Follow-up largely ineffective |
of leads that went unanswered for more than 30 minutes never converted. Across all agencies in the study, enquiries that received no response within half an hour had a conversion rate below 4%.
The five-minute window
The data shows a sharp drop-off curve. Within the first five minutes of an enquiry being submitted, the lead is in its most valuable state — the buyer or tenant is still actively thinking about the property, still has their phone in hand, and hasn't yet moved on to the next listing. Response during this window produced conversion rates between 88% and 94% across the study.
After five minutes, conversion begins to fall. After thirty, it falls off a cliff. After two hours, you're not following up a lead — you're chasing someone who has already found an alternative, and your call is an interruption rather than a service.
Want to see what Treiva's response time looks like on your actual Rightmove leads? We'll run a 15-minute walkthrough using your lead sources and your calendar.
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