Each year, The Negotiator Awards celebrates the very best in the UK residential property industry. But what’s it really like to enter – and win?

In this exclusive Q&A with David Smith, we hear from one of our most consistent and successful entrants, Martyn Gerrard, who reveal why they return year after year, how their win boosted morale and marketing, and why they’d recommend the experience to any agent serious about standing out.

Why did you decide to enter The Negotiator Awards in 2024?

We’ve been entering The Negotiator Awards for nearly fifteen years because it remains one of the most prestigious awards in our industry and it’s always a fantastic event.

Each year, we see it as an opportunity to benchmark ourselves against our peers and reinforce to both our staff and clients because we continually strive to be recognised as one of the UK’s best estate agents.

Is it the first time you entered and if not, have you won before? 

This isn’t our first entry – far from it. In fact, we’ve taken home an award nearly every year we’ve submitted, not always gold but an award is an award. In 2023, we won Best Estate Agent in London, and in 2024, we repeated that London title and secured the UK’s Best Estate Agent (Medium) award.

For 2024, we also changed our submission approach: instead of a standard written entry, we created a illustrated document showcasing everything we do – our team in action, community projects, client interactions – so the judges could see our story rather than just read about it.

In what ways did winning an award positively impact your business?

Winning has a significant ripple effect both internally and externally. Internally, it boosts staff morale and pride – everyone knows their hard work is being recognised. Externally, we leverage our wins on all marketing material and use them when speaking to the charities and schools we support locally, reinforcing our credibility and community commitment.

The award is a reminder that we must continue delivering exceptional service.”

At the same time, the award is a reminder that we must continue delivering exceptional service so that next year we’re still competing at the very top.

Did you use your award win in your marketing efforts and if so, how?

From the moment the shortlist was announced, to the awards ceremony. When our win was announced we created an award logo and that gets showcased on everything – banners on the Martyn Gerrard website, email signatures, social-media channels, printed brochures, and in-office signage.

While it’s difficult to measure precisely how many more leads resulted, the “UK’s Best Estate Agent” badge instantly elevates trust. Prospective clients see that accolade and feel confident in choosing us. Having that recognition visible across every channel we use has been a subtle but powerful differentiator.

Would you recommend entering The Negotiator Awards to others and if so, why?

Without hesitation. The process of pulling together an entry forces you to reflect on your strengths – cases, team achievements, community work – and turn them into a compelling story.

Even if you don’t win, you gain clarity on what sets you apart. The networking before and during The Negotiator Awards event is invaluable: you meet fellow agents, swap best practices, and learn directly from sponsors.

My main piece of advice is to take your time, cover all bases – because when you do win, it’s absolutely worth the effort.”

My main piece of advice is to take your time, cover all bases – because when you do win, it’s absolutely worth the effort.

What did you enjoy about the awards evening (aside from the win!)?

We regularly have a table at The Negotiator Awards and invite members of our team as a recognition of their contribution during the year. Everything about the evening is superb. The food was excellent, and the entertainment kept everyone in high spirits all night.

When our category was announced, the whole table went wild with cheering and applause, which was a highlight in itself. Beyond the win, the venue and production quality exceeded our expectations, making it a genuinely memorable evening.

How did you find the daytime conference and expo?

We stayed for the full day and split our team across different sessions so that each department could benefit from talks tailored to their role.

Every session we attended was engaging, and we came away with new ideas and software tools to explore, some of which we’ve already started implementing. All the exhibitors and sponsors we met felt relevant to our business, and on the expo floor, we finally met my account manager from Nurtur in person, which was fantastic.

Overall, the conference gave us fresh strategic takeaways for 2025, helping us refine processes, improve our tech stack, and identify new partnership opportunities.

Entries for The Negotiator Awards 2024 are now open. Whether you’re a first-time entrant or returning to compete again, this is your chance to showcase what makes your property business truly outstanding.

ENTER HERE.