In all my years as an agent, working in PropTech and coaching others in the industry, one thing I’ve been consistent on is consistency itself.

Direct mail and canvassing work for estate agents. But if you’re expecting long-lasting results from a one-off flyer drop or a single big campaign, you’ll be disappointed. The agents who win are the ones who are seen—and heard—regularly. That means shouting about every sale, every instruction, and helping buyers find their dream home. Visibility builds familiarity, and familiarity builds trust.

Once you’ve got your marketing moving—letters going out the door and into the homes of potential sellers—it’s easy to mentally tick it off and move on to the next task. But let me borrow an old sales adage: in any market, 20% are ready to buy, 20% will say no outright, and the remaining 60% are open to being convinced.

Now, those numbers might not map perfectly to estate agency, but the principle holds up. The people who are ready to instruct you? They’ll call straight away. The ones who aren’t moving? They’ll ignore it. But it’s the middle ground—those open to being convinced—that needs your attention. And before you can persuade them to take action, you need to know who they are.

That’s where Lead Magnets come in.

These tools—often similar to online valuation tools—typically sit on agents’ websites. Great if your website gets strong traffic. But if it doesn’t, are they really doing their job?

By including a Lead Magnet on your canvassing letters, you create a passive way for homeowners to raise their hand. They may not even realise they’re doing it, but they’re signalling interest. Whether it’s a market update, a local property report or something else entirely, the goal is the same: to turn casual curiosity into actionable data. The best Lead Magnets give you early insight into the people quietly preparing to move.

These are the prospects that sit in your “convince” bucket—the ones you can’t afford to miss.

And if you're targeting properties already on the market, the opportunity is even bigger than many agents realise. Based on the data Propalt has collated, approximately 18.5% of properties sold in the last year were not sold by the agent who originally listed them. In other words, nearly 1 in 5 vendors switched agents before selling. That’s a significant number of potential instructions hiding in plain sight.

So, how do you actually link your letter to a Lead Magnet? One silver lining from the start of this decade is that the entire nation now knows how to use a QR code. There are plenty of free generators—QR Code Monkey, Canva, or often your Lead Magnet provider could create one for you.

Once you’ve got your QR code, add it to every canvassing letter you send. Put it near the top, use a bold border, and give it a clear call to action. Don’t assume people will know what to do. Spell it out:

"Curious what your home’s worth? Scan the QR code to see what’s happening in your area."

From there, depending on your Lead Magnet, you’ll start building a list—either automatically within whichever platform you’re using or via email—of people who’ve scanned or entered property details. This is your goldmine. These are your likely movers in the coming weeks or months. Treat them as such.

I remember speaking to an agent who told me his Lead Magnet “didn’t do anything.” I was curious, so I took a look. Not far down the list, I spotted a property that had just come to market—listed by a competitor of his. I asked the agent if he’d ever followed up with that lead. He hadn’t. And there ended the debate.

To wrap up: canvassing is about consistency—staying visible and relevant, especially when you're talking to the right people (tell 3-bedders about your latest 3-bed sale). But if you want to be laser-focused on who to follow up with, start putting a Lead Magnet on your letters. You’ll be surprised what bubbles to the surface.

Simon

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