Now, it has over 60 managed units and currently operates across South East England - with plans to expand across the UK with the help of its technology-based approach.

"The pandemic has had an impact on the way people transact and the way people communicate with one another. Landlords and tenants are looking more to technology for solutions to problems, and more commerce is becoming tech-based," says David Phillips, Director.

The problem to solve: Paperwork and admin

Setting up Propfinity just after the pandemic allowed the agency to consider what currently holds the lettings industry back: a reliance on paperwork.

Even agencies that already use technology to help run the business would tend to spread the load across multiple platforms, from managing referencing to registering deposits and switching utilities - making the whole process less effective than it could be.

"A lot of letting agencies still can't complete their process without people coming into the branch office to sign papers," says David.

The pivot to a technology-based approach

Starting an agency with first-hand experience of what works in lettings helped David recognise the necessity of integrating technology into his business from the outset.

Yet the use of a pre-tenancy platform had not crossed his mind before he stumbled across Goodlord. "It was never part of the plan to have a pre-tenancy solution - I didn't even know it existed."

This discovery helped him to overcome the inefficiencies of multiple platforms to complete simple lettings tasks, with Goodlord's merging of various steps in the lettings process. But the decision also helped him to understand the opportunities available in a tech-based approach.

"Goodlord opened my eyes to the possibilities," says David. "It started to make me think of more innovative ways to manage my business and make it more tech-based, streamlined, and easier for our tenants and landlords."

The result: Business benefits

Implementing technology into your business and having steps completed at the click of a button not only gives landlords and tenants that better experience, it also saves time.

"To set up a tenancy now takes me two minutes," David explains. "You click send and it's done, the offer letter's sent. To pay a landlord takes a second, it's a click of a button."

Those minutes add up, reaching around two to three hours of time saved per day, according to David.

Not only can that time saved offer a business owner like David a better work life balance, it can be put to good use elsewhere in your business - including winning landlords.

"With Goodlord, there's just more time to actually generate business," he says. "More time to build relationships with our clients, to communicate with them. Being too bogged down with admin and paperwork to speak to our clients is a thing of the past."

Product spotlight: Lettings Accounts

For a new business owner, taking on the task of managing client accounts can be a lot of work, often managed by a full team in a larger lettings business - and that burden can be daunting.

"It almost made me give up on owning my own business," says David. "I thought, I'm going to have to get a client account, deal with money, make sure I accurately send it out. And I knew it was going to be hard work."

A tech-enabled lettings accounts system was the solution, offered as part of Goodlord's lettings platform, to help collect rent from tenants as well as manage payments to contractors and landlords.

"Goodlord's client accounts and rent collection service makes it all easy. Landlords get their rent paid," he says. "All I have to do is log onto the platform, then press pay. I don't have to log into another account.

"It all works through algorithms, and is tech based so everything's accurate, and sent to the right account. I honestly love it."