How do top real estate agents follow up every lead?

What top agents do, in one line

They reply instantly, then they follow a planned, multi‑channel cadence for weeks. That means an auto SMS and email within 0–60 seconds, a personalised follow‑up 1–2 hours later with something useful, then 3–5 touches across days 2–14. They tag the lead, set time‑ and event‑based reminders, and stay in the loop until the person is ready. Australian sources say the same thing in different words: act immediately, mix channels, keep a structure, plan it before the appraisal, and nurture until it converts. See Reapit’s follow‑up guidance, Domain’s reminder advice, and an Australian automation example that spells out the exact timing above. For why speed matters, read real estate lead response time and how to respond to every portal enquiry within minutes.

What top agents actually do: the 7‑part follow‑up SOP

Strip the marketing. Here’s the sequence you can run tomorrow, mapped to what Australian advice says works.

1. Reply in 0–60 seconds with SMS and email. Leads go cold fast. One Australian automation vendor recommends an immediate text and email within a minute of the enquiry, with a clear next step. If the enquiry lands from realestate.com.au or Domain, your CRM can trigger it on receipt.
2. Send a personalised follow‑up 1–2 hours later that adds value. The same Australian example recommends you include similar listings, a suburb report, or a booking link. Make it relevant to their enquiry, not a blast.
3. Run a short 3–5 message cadence over days 2–14 across channels. Reapit’s local advice is blunt: use email, SMS, and calls, not just one. Keep it tight for two weeks, then fall into long‑term nurture.
4. Plan your follow‑up before the appraisal. Reapit advises setting the plan, scripts, and reminders ahead of time so every appraisal that does not convert has a scheduled path.
5. Tag by intent and timing on day one. Tag every appraisal as Now, 3 months, 6+ months, Investor, Downsizer, First Home, or your own taxonomy. Reapit recommends this so reminders land weeks or months ahead.
6. Use time‑based and event‑based prompts side by side. Domain’s agent advice calls this out. Time‑based = day 2, day 7. Event‑based = price change on a saved property, a new comparable sale, an OFI added.
7. Qualify early, then keep them informed. MRI’s Australian guidance says qualify early, act quickly, use personalisation. If they are months out, move them to nurture, then deliver value until they are ready.

The exact cadence: timing, channels, and message examples

Use this as your base. Swap the copy to your voice, keep the bones.

Instant, within 0–60 seconds: SMS

Hi Jess, thanks for your enquiry on 12 Smith St. I can send a short video tour and book you into the next viewing. Prefer SMS or a quick call? – Sam, ABC Realty. Reply STOP to opt out.

Instant, within 0–60 seconds: email

Subject: Thanks for your enquiry on 12 Smith St

Hi Jess,

Got your enquiry on 12 Smith St. Here’s the info pack and a 2‑minute walkthrough. If you like it, grab a time that suits you this week. If you are early in your search, I can also send similar homes in Smithville.

Cheers, Sam

1–2 hours later: personalised value

Hi Jess, based on 12 Smith St I pulled three similar homes in the same school catchment. Want me to set up a filtered alert so you get them first? Here’s my booking link if a call is easier.

Day 2: call + voicemail if no answer

“Hi Jess, Sam at ABC Realty. Quick one, did you get the Smith St details I sent? I have a 10am Saturday viewing I can slot you into, or a private if you prefer. I’ll text the link.”

Day 4: SMS

OFI times now live for Smith St. Want an early time before the rush? I can hold a spot for you.

Day 7: email with local insight

Subject: Smithville weekly wrap + three new homes

Short note with solds, days on market, and any price changes. Include two similar properties, one stretch option, and the original listing.

Day 10: call

Reconfirm intent and timing. Qualify gently: Are you still around Smithville? Are you conditional? Anything I should factor in before Saturday?

Day 14: SMS

Still keen on Smith St or should I pivot your alerts? If you’re 3–6 months out I can slow the updates so you only see the standouts.

Long‑term, months 2–6: monthly value email

Subject: Smithville price moves this month

Keep, sell, rent commentary. One chart, three bullets, two hand‑picked listings. Invite a 10‑minute check‑in if their timing has changed.

Every message includes a clear opt‑out. Keep the tone helpful. The purpose, as Homely’s agent advice puts it, is to book appointments and categorise leads so you spend time where it counts.

Turn it into a Workflow inside AgentBox, Rex, or VaultRE

You do not need another inbox. Use the CRM you already have. The goal is zero manual drag: the instant reply goes out automatically, the 1–2 hour follow‑up personalises itself from the enquiry, the 14‑day cadence schedules itself, and if nothing lands, the lead falls into long‑term nurture with the right tags.

• Capture: make sure realestate.com.au, Domain and website enquiries create a contact against the right listing automatically.
• Instant reply: use your CRM's automation to send the 0 to 60 second SMS and email from templates with merge fields for property, suburb and a booking link.
• Cadence: build the 14-day sequence of SMS, email and two call tasks, then move unconverted leads into a slower nurture plan.
• Tags and reminders: tag timing and intent at creation, and set reminders at 30, 60 and 90 days for longer timelines.

AgentBox, Rex and VaultRE all have automation tools for this; the names and setup differ by CRM and plan, so check with your provider. We compare the three in the best real estate CRM in Australia.

Time‑based and event‑based prompts that actually help

Domain’s Australian advice is clear: use both. Here are the ones that do the work without annoying people.

• Time‑based: Day 2 confirmer, Day 7 wrap, Day 14 pivot. Month 2 and Month 3 value updates for longer‑term buyers.
• Event‑based: OFI added, auction set, price change, a new comparable sold in their chosen suburb, building and pest available, contract pack updated.
• Buyer‑triggered: They click the video tour twice, save the property, submit a question. Treat these as green‑light micro‑events. Call.

Every event message should be useful. “Price changed by $X.” “New comparable at 15 Brown St sold on Saturday, here’s what it means for Smith St’s guide.” That is value, not noise.

Qualify early. Tag always. Hand off cleanly.

MRI’s local guidance says qualify early and personalise. Keep it short. Five questions max.

• Are you looking in Smithville only, or nearby as well?
• What is your timing, roughly?
• Are you pre‑approved, or would you like an intro to a broker?
• Are you buying to live in or invest?
• Anything non‑negotiable we should focus on?

Tag what they tell you. This unlocks the right nurture. It also makes the handover clean when a colleague shows the property on Saturday.

Common ceilings, and how top teams avoid them

Every team hits the same ceilings. Here is how to spot and fix them.

• Speed ceiling: manual replies. Fix it with an instant auto SMS and email on lead creation. The Australian automation example recommends 0–60 seconds. That is your bar.
• Single‑channel ceiling: only emailing. Reapit’s guidance says mix SMS, email, and phone. Build your cadence across all three.
• Dirty‑data ceiling: duplicates from Domain and realestate.com.au, or multiple agents touching the same buyer. Deduplicate by mobile and email, and log every touch to the same timeline so context is never lost.
• “Who owns this lead?” ceiling: two agents call the same person. Assign ownership on creation and show it on the listing dashboard. Share the timeline, keep one owner.
• Compliance and consent ceiling: texting without permission. Get SMS consent where you can, always include opt‑out language, honour opt‑outs across your CRM, and keep the messages helpful and expected.
• Task rot ceiling: follow‑ups die in a task list. Convert tasks to booked times. Use calendar holds and daily briefings so the next action lives on a real day and time.
• Context ceiling: a buyer’s story gets lost over weeks. Put notes into one conversation timeline. Before you call, read the last three touches and their tags. Then call with a point of view.

Where Briicky, the AI Chief of Staff, fits

You can run this by hand. Or you can have one AI Chief of Staff run it for you across SMS, email, and voice. That is Briicky by Briick.

• Instant replies without logging in: Briicky watches your Domain and realestate.com.au leads as they land in AgentBox, Rex, or VaultRE. It sends the 0–60 second SMS and email, then schedules the 1–2 hour personalised touch with the right property, suburb insight, and your booking link.
• One cadence, any channel: Briicky orchestrates SMS, email, and a voice AI agent for call attempts. It tags intent, books OFIs, and updates the contact record in your CRM.
• Talk to your data: ask, “Who is Jess M and what did we send her last week?” Briicky answers, pulls the last touches, and drafts your next message. No dashboard. You just ask.
• Pre‑meeting brief: before every call or OFI, Briicky posts a 360 brief into Slack, Teams, or WhatsApp: timeline, tags, objections, finance status, last listings viewed.
• Own your AI infrastructure: you keep your client data safe. Briick is built for data sovereignty. Your customer data lives in your AI database so context is remembered without handing your IP to a black box.
• Done‑for‑you, not DIY: we set up the Briick Workflow, wire in AgentBox, Rex, or VaultRE, and run it with you. No new software to learn.

If you want to see it in your world, ask for the Briick for real estate agencies walkthrough. Or go straight to Briick pricing for plans.

Implementation checklist: 90 minutes to live

Block an hour and a half. Do it once, then let the Workflow run.

• Connect portals to your CRM: confirm Domain and realestate.com.au leads auto‑create contacts with listing context.
• Create two templates: an instant SMS and an instant email with merge fields for property, suburb, viewing link, and a booking link.
• Draft one 1–2 hour follow‑up email that adds value: similar listings, a suburb report, or a short video.
• Build a 14‑day track with 3–5 touches across SMS, email, and two calls.
• Define tags: timing, buyer type, suburb, budget band. Add them at creation.
• Set event triggers: OFI added, auction set, price change. Tie each to one useful message.
• Add monthly nurture for long‑timers: a suburb wrap email with one chart and two listings.
• Decide ownership rules: one agent owns the buyer. One timeline shows every touch.
• Turn on Briicky to run it: instant replies, cadence orchestration, briefs before calls.

Metrics that matter

Measure the few numbers that tell the truth.

• Median response time: aim for under 60 seconds on portal enquiries.
• Contact rate in 24 hours: the share of new leads you reached by any channel on day one.
• Appointment rate: leads to OFI bookings or appraisals in seven days.
• Opt‑out rate: high means your copy is off. Relevance first.
• Lead‑to‑appraisal and appraisal‑to‑list: conversion through the funnel, quarter over quarter.
• Cadence completion: how often the 14‑day plan runs to plan. If tasks stall, automate more.

Citations and further reading

These are the Australian sources that shaped the SOP above. They are worth a read:

• Reapit on follow‑up structure, channels, and planning: The follow‑up formula.
• Homely on the purpose of follow‑up and categorising leads: 5 rules for following up leads.
• Domain on time‑based and event‑based reminders: Why good agents get ghosted and how to stop it.
• Australian automation example with the 0–60 second + 1–2 hour + 14‑day sequence: How real estate agents use automation.
• MRI Software on qualifying early, acting quickly, and personalising: 10 real estate lead generation tips.

The last word

Top agents do not leave follow‑up to chance. They decide the plan once, then run it every time. Instant reply. Helpful second touch. A tight two‑week cadence. Tags and reminders for the long game. Your CRM can do most of this. Briicky runs the lot, keeps the data safe, and gives you back your day. If you want the SOP wired into AgentBox, Rex, or VaultRE without another login to learn, book the Briick for real estate agencies walkthrough or head to Briick pricing.

To see this follow-up running on your own enquiries, book a demo.

Frequently asked questions

How fast should I respond to a realestate.com.au or Domain lead?

Within a minute. An Australian source recommends an immediate SMS and email in 0–60 seconds. Then a personalised follow‑up 1–2 hours later with something useful.

How many follow‑ups before I move a buyer to long‑term nurture?

Run 3–5 touches across days 2–14, mixing SMS, email, and two calls. If they are still early, move them to monthly value updates until their timing changes.

Should I call or text first?

Do both. Send the instant SMS and email on creation. Call on day 2. Local advice from Reapit says mix channels. One channel alone underperforms.

What should I send in the 1–2 hour follow‑up?

Add value. Similar properties in the same suburb, a short suburb report, a video tour, or a booking link. The Australian example that outlines the timing calls out these exact items.

How do I automate this in AgentBox, Rex, or VaultRE?

Use your CRM's built-in automation. Trigger on portal lead creation, send the instant comms, schedule the 1–2 hour follow‑up, then a 14‑day plan.

How do I stop two agents calling the same lead?

Assign ownership on creation and show it on the listing dashboard. Deduplicate by mobile and email. Keep one shared timeline of every touch so anyone can read the context without calling again.

What about SMS consent and opt‑outs in Australia?

Get permission where practical, keep messages relevant to the enquiry, include an opt‑out in every SMS, and honour opt‑outs across your CRM. Keep a single source of truth for consent status.

Can Briick work with our existing CRM and portals?

Yes. Briick's AI employees work with AgentBox, Rex and VaultRE, pick up Domain and realestate.com.au leads, run the instant reply, schedule the 14‑day cadence and post briefs before calls. You keep your data safe and in your systems.