A fly on the wall analysis of how and why successful technology companies solve big problems for small estate agencies in the UK
Every successful business starts with a problem. For Prevou, that problem was not discovered in a boardroom or during a strategy meeting. It began around a kitchen table. Founders Robert Horwood and his wife, Houda, (Houda Chelli) had spent years investing in property. Like millions of buyers before them, they found themselves repeatedly scrolling through property websites, applying filters, filling in enquiry forms, and then waiting—sometimes hours, sometimes days—for estate agents to respond. It was a frustrating and repetitive process.
One evening, after yet another property search, Houda, who comes from an IT background, posed a simple question: “Wouldn’t it be great if, instead of endlessly searching websites and filling in forms, you could simply tell the website what you’re looking for, and it found everything for you?” It was not intended as the beginning of a new business. It was simply an observation. But it planted a seed.
As artificial intelligence was beginning to evolve beyond simple chatbots into genuinely conversational technology, Robert and Houda realised that perhaps the traditional way people searched for property was about to change. What if buyers and tenants no longer had to search websites? What if they could simply have a conversation? That simple idea became the starting point for what would eventually become Prevou.
(Pic – Robert Horwood co-founder Prevou)
A Lunch That Changed Everything
Excited by the concept, Robert and Houda shared the idea with Sam, (Sam Bowles – Director) who had a background in estate agency. They expected him to focus on how buyers would benefit. Instead, he looked at the idea from a completely different perspective. “It’s a great idea,” he said. “But you’re only solving half the problem.”
He explained that while consumers would undoubtedly appreciate a conversational property search experience, estate agents faced an even greater challenge. Every month, estate agency operations invest significant sums generating enquiries through portals, websites, and marketing. Yet many of those opportunities are lost simply because buyers and tenants expect immediate engagement.
Because, today’s consumers rarely enquire with just one agent. They enquire with several. Whoever responds first often has the greatest opportunity to build the relationship. That conversation fundamentally changed the direction of the business. Prevou was no longer simply about improving the consumer experience. It was about helping estate agents convert more of the leads they were already paying for.
(Pic – Houda Chelli co-founder Prevou)
Finding the Right Team
With the vision becoming clearer, the next challenge was obvious. Someone had to build it. Finding that team took six months. The founders met developers, software companies, and AI specialists, but refused to compromise. They were not looking to create another chatbot. They wanted to build a conversational assistant capable of understanding natural language, discussing property intelligently and guiding people through the buying or renting journey.
Eventually, they assembled a team that combined experienced AI engineers, including people with backgrounds at Google, Amazon, and leading AI companies, with practical knowledge from within the estate agency sector. Looking back, Robert believes waiting for the right team was one of the best decisions they made.
The Reality of Building AI
Like many technology startups, the founders assumed they were only a few months away from launching. Reality proved quite different. Every new feature seemed to create another challenge. Every milestone revealed another improvement. Each time they believed they had reached their minimum viable product, another idea emerged that simply had to be included. Eventually they learned a lesson familiar to many founders. Perfection is not the goal. Progress is.
Rather than trying to build every feature imaginable, they focused on creating the strongest possible foundation before allowing real customers to shape the product’s future.
Bringing Madison to Life
One of the biggest surprises was not the technology itself. It was the personality. The team had already decided their AI assistant would be called Madison. Finding the right voice, however, proved far harder than expected. Then came an accidental breakthrough. While testing the platform, Houda got frustrated and began speaking to Madison in French (her native tongue).
Without being prompted, Madison understood the conversation and responded fluently. What began as an unexpected moment quickly became an exciting discovery. The founders suddenly realised they were not building a product purely for English-speaking buyers and tenants. Multilingual conversations could become a major advantage for estate agents working with international clients.
Another amusing lesson arrived when Madison was taught how to arrange viewings. Initially, she became almost too enthusiastic.
“Would you like to book a viewing?” seemed to end every conversation.
The team laughed that they had accidentally created the world’s most enthusiastic salesperson rather than a helpful property assistant. Teaching AI, they discovered, was not simply about giving the right answers. It was about understanding timing, personality, and human conversation.
(Pic – Sam Bowles Director Prevou)
The Breakthrough
For Robert, one development still stands out above all the others. The moment Madison could understand a buyer’s requirements and instantly present matching properties within the conversation itself, complete with photographs, descriptions, and key property information.
There was no endless scrolling. No repetitive filtering. No multiple enquiry forms. Just a natural conversation. It was the first time the founders felt they had genuinely created a different way of searching for property.
The First Customer – ‘Why are we jumping daddy?’
Technology can be tested endlessly. Businesses cannot.
Eventually there comes a moment when someone outside the company has to decide whether they would actually buy it. Prevou’s first live demonstration became that moment.
The presentation deliberately avoided talking about artificial intelligence. Instead, it began by showing the estate agent their own website and asking a simple question: “What if there was a better way for your customers to engage with everything you have to offer?” After seeing Madison in action, the agent fell silent. Eventually Sam asked, “So… what do you think?”
The response surprised everyone. “I’ll have it.” After further discussion, the customer replied: “It does not matter. I have seen enough. You do a trial, don’t you?… I will have it. It is brilliant. It is nothing like what I expected.”
Later that evening Robert and Houda celebrated at home. Their four-year-old daughter joined in the excitement before asking, “Why are we jumping, Daddy?” For Robert, it remains one of the happiest moments of the entire journey, not because the work was finished, but because someone outside the business believed in the idea as much as they did.
Solving the Commercial Challenge
As development continued, the team returned to the challenge first identified during that lunch conversation: speed to lead. Prevou evolved to respond instantly to portal enquiries, allowing conversations to begin within moments of an enquiry being submitted. Rather than waiting until office hours, buyers and tenants could immediately ask questions, receive property recommendations, explore alternatives, and arrange viewings while their interest was at its highest. It was this evolution that transformed Prevou from a conversational property assistant into a lead conversion platform designed specifically for estate agents.
Looking Ahead
Robert believes the future of estate agency will be increasingly conversational. Consumers are becoming accustomed to instant answers, natural conversations, and personalised experiences. Rather than replacing estate agents, he believes AI will allow them to focus on what they do best: building relationships, negotiating deals, and delivering expert advice, while technology ensures that no enquiry is left waiting.
Looking back, it is remarkable that the journey started with one simple observation around a kitchen table. A casual comment from a wife frustrated by the way people searched for property has grown into a business with a clear mission: ‘To help estate agents engage every enquiry, start every conversation instantly and convert more of the leads they are already paying for.’
If you would like to find out more – here are six ways you can get in touch with the Prevou team today.
- WhatsApp number: 07748310202
- Email: info@prevou.com
- Book a demo page: https://prevou.com/demo
- Sam LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-bowles-2306513b5/
- Houda LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prevou/
- Prevou LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/prevou-ltd/posts/?feedView=all
