How to Unlock More Instructions and Predict Your Future Sales Pipeline

In every high-performing estate agency, there’s usually one consistent theme behind their success — predictability. The ability to foresee where your next instruction is coming from isn’t just a luxury; it’s a necessity. Estate agents often ask, “How can I get more property listings?” or “What’s the best way to build a steady pipeline of homes to sell without waiting for the phone to ring?” The answer lies in a concept we call The Maybe List — a strategy rooted in action, foresight, and being uncomfortably proactive.

I remember running morning meetings back in the day, standing in front of buzzing sales teams who all thought they were the next Jordan Belfort, setting lofty goals to book ten viewings, two appraisals, or a few financial services appointments — usually just one more than the next person to stir the pot. It was a lively ritual, but something changed the moment we introduced a simple question that shifted the entire mindset of the room: “Great… how?”

Suddenly, we weren’t just throwing numbers into the air — we were planning how to achieve them. That one question forced the team to articulate the actions behind their ambitions. “I’ll call back yesterday’s viewings. I’ll follow up with the couple who said they’d sell once they found something.” This turned empty goal-setting into focused, results-driven strategy. And it’s this mentality that now underpins The Maybe List — a working system that moves you from hope to control when it comes to getting more listings.

So how can this apply to your estate agency? Well, let’s imagine you already have a number in mind — how many properties you’d like to bring to the market this month. Maybe it’s ten, maybe twenty. Okay… how? What’s your plan? Because if you’re waiting around for vendors to call, you’ll always be at the mercy of the market. But if you start identifying where your future listings are already hiding, you begin to build a far more stable, scalable agency.

This is where your Maybe List comes into play. You start by making a list of every property you’ve recently carried out a market appraisal on — ideally from the last three to six months, but you can go back even further. Then next to each property, you write the reason why they didn’t come to market at the time. Divorce? Can’t find their onward purchase? Waiting for probate? These are the blockers. Your job now is to go from passive to proactive — and find ways to solve them.

Some issues are out of your hands, sure. You’re not a divorce lawyer (though, if you fancy retraining on weekends, be my guest). But many problems are solvable. If someone’s hesitant because they can’t find a property to move to, you can leverage off-market opportunities, write VIP buyer letters, or use your social media to uncover that perfect next home. You’re not just an agent anymore — you’re a deal-maker, a problem-solver, a proactive matchmaker between stock and demand.

Think about this: for many agents, the deal dies when the vendor says, “We’ll wait until we find something.” But the elite agents? They go find the thing. They don’t take “maybe” as a dead end — they treat it as an invitation.

Now, some obstacles are subtler, like when only one half of a couple attended the market appraisal. That’s a red flag. The absent partner could be the decision-maker, and if they’re not engaged, chances are you’ve already lost to the agent who did get in front of them. But what if you solved that too?

Here’s a game-changing tactic. Record a quick 5-minute video after your valuation — just you on Zoom, screen-sharing local comparables, recently sold listings, marketing strategy, price recommendations, and how you plan to secure the best result. Send it with a message like:

“Thanks for your time today. I know your partner couldn’t be there, so I’ve put together this quick video walking through everything we covered. This way, you can both review it together and feel confident in what comes next.”

That’s next-level service. It works wonders in situations like probate where decision-makers are spread across the country, or in sensitive divorce cases where both parties can’t be in the same room. You’re not just another agent quoting a price and a fee — you’re demonstrating expertise, clarity, and a genuine care for the client experience. And believe me, no other agent is doing this.

With your Maybe List in place, not only do you have visibility on your potential future listings, but you’ve also got the power to accelerate them. You’re identifying the real reasons instructions are being delayed — and taking ownership of removing those barriers. This kind of proactive estate agency is how you stand out in a saturated market and win more instructions.

Over time, your Maybe List becomes a powerful forecasting tool. If you know, for example, that one in every five properties on your list typically comes to market, you can start predicting how many listings you’ll bring on in the next few weeks or months. Got 15 potentials? Expect about 3 new instructions soon. Only got 4? Time to ramp up lead generation. This simple conversion ratio gives you insight into your pipeline and your performance.

This method isn’t just about plugging the gaps this month. It’s about smoothing out the feast-or-famine cycle that so many agents fall into — a couple of big instruction weeks, followed by radio silence. Instead, your Maybe List gives you consistency. Predictability. Momentum. And that’s what turns good agents into top performers.

Remember, estate agency is a contact sport. The agents who win aren’t necessarily the ones with the flashiest boards or the lowest fees — they’re the ones who consistently stay close to their pipeline. They’re not just relying on inbound calls or passive marketing — they’re actively curating their future business through every “maybe” conversation.

By using your Maybe List as a daily or weekly tool, you keep your focus on the people who are already halfway there. You’re not starting cold — you’re building on warm conversations and recent valuations. Combine this with a consistent long-term marketing strategy (like we’ve laid out in other free resources at The Estate Agent Consultancy), and you’ve got both short-term wins and long-term growth sewn up.

So next time you sit down to plan your week — don’t just set goals. Ask yourself, “How?” Then pull out your Maybe List, identify your low-hanging fruit, remove the obstacles, and do what you do best: make things happen.

Because the estate agents who grow faster, charge more, and win more listings aren’t lucky — they’re intentional.

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