There is no single right number, but there is a right way to work it out. Start from the commission you want, not from what you can spare.
Work backwards from one deal
Say your average commission is R60 000. If it takes roughly 10 qualified appointments to close one deal, and roughly 10 leads to book one appointment, one deal sits behind about 100 leads. At a realistic South African cost per lead, that gives you your monthly number.
What leads typically cost here
- Broad buyer-interest leads: often in the low double digits of rands each.
- Seller and valuation leads: considerably more expensive, but far higher value.
- Retargeting your own audience: usually the cheapest traffic you'll ever buy.
A sensible starting range
Most individual agents in metro areas like Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and Durban get meaningful data from a starting budget of roughly R5 000 to R15 000 a month. Below that, the platform never gathers enough signal to optimise. Above that, you need systems to handle the volume, or you're buying leads you cannot answer.
Spend is only half the equation
Two agents can spend identical budgets and get wildly different results. The difference is almost never the ad — it is the follow-up behind it. Ads that generate 100 leads a month are worth nothing if 70 of them never get a phone call.
How to know it's working
- Track cost per booked appointment, not cost per lead.
- Give a campaign at least three to four weeks before judging it.
- Watch your close rate on ad leads separately from referrals.
If you'd like your own numbers mapped out — budget, expected appointments, expected commission — that's exactly what a discovery call is for.