How Nested Hackney Reclaimed Hours a Week With AI-Powered Sales Progression

Michael Flynn

Self-employed agent · Nested · Hackney, East London

Michael Flynn runs the Nested Hackney branch in east London. As a self-employed agent, he handles everything: valuations, viewings, negotiations, marketing. Sales progression was the hardest thing to make time for. With Linchpin, he got those hours back without hiring a full-time progressor.

Progression was always the first thing to drop

Running a one-person operation means prioritising. When viewings, valuations and new instructions pile up, the admin that keeps deals moving falls to the bottom of the list. Michael handled progression when he could, but with everything else on his plate, there wasn't always time to stay ahead of every deal.

"The most frustrating thing is finding out about something and then knowing that if I had done more progression, that would have come up earlier and I would have done something about it."

Without consistent follow-up, issues sometimes surfaced later than ideal, and deals took longer to complete.

Finding the right progression model

Michael had tried outsourced progression before, bundled with a solicitor referral package. The service provided a weekly progress report, but Michael wanted more hands-on involvement between updates.

"They just give a weekly progress report. Coming up next. Completed last week. I don’t think they’re going to contact us if something happens in the middle. That’s not proactive. They’re not sorting out stuff."

A full-time hire wasn’t feasible for a self-employed agent. The market lacked an option that was both affordable and genuinely hands-on.

Working with Linchpin

Michael started working with Linchpin after a recommendation from a fellow Nested agent. The proposition was different from what he'd seen before: AI-powered progression that was hands-on and a fraction of the cost of alternative options per completion.

"It sounded like you were doing something different to others; it's panned out pretty well, to say the least."

Linchpin’s progression communications (chasing solicitors, gathering updates, following up with buyers) are written by AI. Michael had initial reservations about the approach, particularly whether the tone would land with solicitors.

"When I first saw some of the emails, I worried they were a bit wordy, but you always get responses because that's the way solicitors are used to talking to each other. Very detailed and methodical."

Keeping deals moving

On one leasehold sale, a buyer had stalled. They were only taking action on weekends and consistently unable to reach their solicitor during the week. Without proactive sales progression, the deal would have drifted.

Linchpin's consistent follow-up kept the buyer moving through each step. Michael is candid about what would have happened otherwise: "I wouldn't have been so proactive on it. I would have just let them sort of sort it out." The deal completed weeks earlier than it would have without active progression. And in a chain, that matters: "You have no idea what's going to happen with the seller's onward if it gets delayed by another few weeks."

The result

Michael estimates he saves 3 to 4 hours a week on admin, time that goes directly back into winning new business.

"If another agent asked me whether to use Linchpin, I'd say do it without question. You tick all the boxes as far as knowing how the game works and the obstacles you need to overcome as a sales progressor."