The Real Estate market is on fire, and I am
sure that your schedule is full working with clients. If not, is that by
choice, or do you need more prospects? If you are swamped, congratulations, but
it is always a good time to take a look at your business to make sure that
continues.
It is always wise to not wait until you're thirsty to dig your well.
Where do you find your prospects? How do they find you?
Agents who are struggling, or are brand new, are often generating leads from no more than one to three different lead generation pools. Mid level producing agents tend to use four to six different lead generation systems, while top producers are likely to use more than ten different lead generation systems. It is critical to have several ponds to fish. How many do you have? Are you interested in learning about more areas to look?
First of all, understand that leads have no value. They only have possibilities, and what has value is an appointment. You should strive to have one appointment every day. Even a lousy appointment is better than none at all. What is an appointment? "A meeting with someone you like who can have a positive impact on your business right now on in the very near future."
Try wearing your Real Estate name tag whenever you're out so that people might ask you "How's the Real Estate market?" Learn an "elevator speech" where you can give your message on "How's the Market" whenever asked. Never say, "great" or "bad" because there is no place to go from there. Say, "How's the market? That depends, are you looking to sell, buy, invest, or lease, as each one is very different.?" Then have some stats memorized on your market. If they are interested in something, book an appointment to go over it.
Most agents are most challenged by a lack of consistent lead generation. On again off again is not going to help you stay consistent with your business or income. There is an excellent book that articulates just how powerful doing the little things can be, and how damaging not doing them can be. Check out Jeff Olson's "The Slight Edge."
Now, let's look at 8 possible lead generation buckets.
1. Broker Provided Website/Lead Generation Tool:
Does your Broker or your Brand give you a website? How are you using it? What are you doing to maximize your SEO to get it found in searches? Does your company have a lead generation system? Most national brands have these features for you at varying costs. The Reology companies, Century 21, ERA, Better Homes and Gardens, Sotheby's, and Coldwell Banker all use the Lead Router system. Keller Williams has brought on a new service called E-Edge. The Brookfield companies, Prudential and Real Living are likely to settle on one system, but for now, I know that Prudential has a lead system that comes through the broker and then allocates to the agents. The cost to the agents for these leads seem to vary, but seem to be similar to a relocation lead.
Obviously, I know the RE/MAX LeadStreet system best. All leads generated from your own listings are given to you, without exception, and you are put into a rotating metric where you are virtually farming up to six zip codes. The average RE/MAX agent has been getting about eight of those rotating leads a month. All leads through LeadStreet have no fees attached.
Be sure that if you are not using your website and lead generation tools to their full advantage, get with your Broker or your IT department to help you do so. The most amazing use of the internal system I have seen was by Sam Ferreri, who has taken this to an art form. You will see he isn't sophisticated in his message but is doing a great job with the tools provided him. The proof is in the pudding, Sam closed more than 200 transactions last year, with 56% coming from new business, with zero dollars of advertising. He builds a new website within his LeadStreet account every morning, all driving traffic back to his LeadStreet site.
http://www.samf.remaxtexas.com/lead-street.aspx
What are you doing to maximize your own? If you don't know how, check with your broker or IT department to help you.
2. Facebook:
You need to have a Facebook strategy, the more "friends" the better, how many eyeballs can you be in front of? Create a way to have a massive connection and how to be a valuable information source by forwarding articles that people can find useful. Be yourself. Whatever you are passionate about, let people know you. Being out of sight is being out of mind. Try adding 100-200 new Facebook friends in the next 90 days. Focus on Friend of Friend marketing. When you post on a friend’s wall you have also posted it on all their friends walls as well.
Stop being a Secret Agent make it clear on your information that you are a Realtor. I find it amazing how often I am on an agent's Facebook page and have no idea if they are in the business or not.
3. Make a List:
Find an old Yellow Pages and have someone ask you "Who do you know that is an Accountant, Bee Keeper, to Zoologist." Just write down the names. Do not prequalify, just put them down.
Past Client and Sphere of Influence:
How many people in your database?
Do you have them categorized?
How many do you call?
How many don't receive calls from you?
How many mailing addresses do you have?
How many emails do you have?
How many friends are on your Facebook, Twitter, Linked in, or other pages?
Is your database organized?
How do you get it organized? How about making five calls a day, asking to make sure you have current numbers, addresses, emails, etc, and then give them a quick market update. As you do, put the information in an Excel or other electronic spreadsheet. There was a mortgage broker who was just put on this system, in two weeks had two new loans paying $3,000.00 each. That breaks down to about $400.00/hour or an extra $156,000.00/year if he continues throughout the year with similar results.
Would that help your business? How about having that updated electronic database to use?
Eight Strategies for generating more repeat or referral business from your Database:
1. Send one or two monthly direct mail pieces. "How's the Market Report"
2. No marketing is more powerful than you making a personal call, see above.
3. How about a Happy Birthday video from Facebook on their wall with you singing Happy Birthday to them. By doing so, every one of their friends will see you and who knows who might ask about that Realtor singing to them. How about texting them Happy Birthday?
4. Email your database with Market Update (max twice a month) Maybe a video blog once a month.
5. Deliver a CMA to your Past Clients and Circle of Influence twice a year. Don't try to do all at once, do a few every week.
6. Host two Client functions a year.
7. When you close a transaction, consider all sides of it. Have flowers delivered to their office, or show up with a basket of goodies on moving day.
8. When you receive a referral, immediately reach out to that person and thank them.
4. Open Houses:
Open Houses work, if you work them. The key is getting people to come.
There are two kinds of people who come to your open houses; they are the nosey neighbor and potential buyers.
Your open house success is determined long before you show up. Be sure to choose wisely which home to hold open, not just what you have listed.
a. Select the right property, homes in bread and butter price range. Select your next weekend's open house on Monday.
b. Email your database of interested buyers a video of home you will hold open.
c. Door knock the neighborhood and give a personal invitation.
d. Have your open house promoted through your company's advertisements, websites, etc.
e. Promote on Craigslist. If you aren't posting every 45 minutes they are gone.
f. Place as many Open House signs as possible. Not just at entrance of community, but in wide grid driving them to it, try 20-30 open house signs per open house.
5. Social Media for Success:
Expand your online presence.
Facebook, Zillow, Twitter, Trulia, Foursquare, Yelp, Linked in, Flickr, Active Rain, Realtor.com, Klout, Google+, etc. Do you have a presence and are you searchable on Google?
1. Decide on a niche.
2. Select key words you want to dominate online, use a long-tail strategy. Google Adwords is very helpful here.
3. Select your blogging medium, do you like to write? Do you prefer video? You can also be a DJ where you push forth other people's information, articles, etc. with your two cents added on.
4. Create content consistently.
5. Create curiosity in the headline.
6. Google recognizes consistent key words being used and clicked which creates "relevancy" which drives you up in the ranks at Google.
What kind of content?
Try to think what your clients might be interested in. How about interviewing local business owners, school principles, politicians?
6. Expired Listings:
What if you determined an area and price range you were interested in marketing and reach out to any expired listings that fit that search. Connect with a service such as RedX to scrape the BLC/MLS to give you the expired listings every day. What if you called just two to three a day?
When you call an expired listing you will find one of three things: a client who has already decided on another Realtor or to relist with their current one, one that wants to take if off the market a while and lick their wounds, or someone who is looking for an agent that can prove a Degree of Separation of what makes them different.
7. Distressed Properties:
How do you reach out to those who are in distress? Where do you find them?
How about posting information on a short sale you sold on Facebook and mention "another successful short sale" and ask if anyone knows of someone who might need help, please email me privately.
Reach out to your Past Client and Sphere to let them know you are an expert in dealing in Distressed properties, if in fact you are. If not, check into getting training and a C.D.P.E designation.
You can search Notice of Defaults, or you can target communities built a few years ago at the top of the market that you know are upside down and market to them.
8. FISBOs:
Who are the FISBO's?
Ex-Realtors, Do it Yourselfers, They think selling it will be easy, A financial situation where they don't think they can afford to pay an agent, or had a bad experience with a previous agent.
What can you offer them?
Access to larger buyer pool, great knowledge of the market and how to sell, ability to negotiate.
How to reach them? How about knocking on their door? Phone calls? Mail?
There are many ways to build your resources of leads. You don't need to do them all, but you want several to feed you as the market fluctuates. What are you willing to do? Create a game plan.
There is no wrong way to meet a new client. Just get out there, and quit being a secret agent.
It is always wise to not wait until you're thirsty to dig your well.
Where do you find your prospects? How do they find you?
Agents who are struggling, or are brand new, are often generating leads from no more than one to three different lead generation pools. Mid level producing agents tend to use four to six different lead generation systems, while top producers are likely to use more than ten different lead generation systems. It is critical to have several ponds to fish. How many do you have? Are you interested in learning about more areas to look?
First of all, understand that leads have no value. They only have possibilities, and what has value is an appointment. You should strive to have one appointment every day. Even a lousy appointment is better than none at all. What is an appointment? "A meeting with someone you like who can have a positive impact on your business right now on in the very near future."
Try wearing your Real Estate name tag whenever you're out so that people might ask you "How's the Real Estate market?" Learn an "elevator speech" where you can give your message on "How's the Market" whenever asked. Never say, "great" or "bad" because there is no place to go from there. Say, "How's the market? That depends, are you looking to sell, buy, invest, or lease, as each one is very different.?" Then have some stats memorized on your market. If they are interested in something, book an appointment to go over it.
Most agents are most challenged by a lack of consistent lead generation. On again off again is not going to help you stay consistent with your business or income. There is an excellent book that articulates just how powerful doing the little things can be, and how damaging not doing them can be. Check out Jeff Olson's "The Slight Edge."
Now, let's look at 8 possible lead generation buckets.
1. Broker Provided Website/Lead Generation Tool:
Does your Broker or your Brand give you a website? How are you using it? What are you doing to maximize your SEO to get it found in searches? Does your company have a lead generation system? Most national brands have these features for you at varying costs. The Reology companies, Century 21, ERA, Better Homes and Gardens, Sotheby's, and Coldwell Banker all use the Lead Router system. Keller Williams has brought on a new service called E-Edge. The Brookfield companies, Prudential and Real Living are likely to settle on one system, but for now, I know that Prudential has a lead system that comes through the broker and then allocates to the agents. The cost to the agents for these leads seem to vary, but seem to be similar to a relocation lead.
Obviously, I know the RE/MAX LeadStreet system best. All leads generated from your own listings are given to you, without exception, and you are put into a rotating metric where you are virtually farming up to six zip codes. The average RE/MAX agent has been getting about eight of those rotating leads a month. All leads through LeadStreet have no fees attached.
Be sure that if you are not using your website and lead generation tools to their full advantage, get with your Broker or your IT department to help you do so. The most amazing use of the internal system I have seen was by Sam Ferreri, who has taken this to an art form. You will see he isn't sophisticated in his message but is doing a great job with the tools provided him. The proof is in the pudding, Sam closed more than 200 transactions last year, with 56% coming from new business, with zero dollars of advertising. He builds a new website within his LeadStreet account every morning, all driving traffic back to his LeadStreet site.
http://www.samf.remaxtexas.com/lead-street.aspx
What are you doing to maximize your own? If you don't know how, check with your broker or IT department to help you.
2. Facebook:
You need to have a Facebook strategy, the more "friends" the better, how many eyeballs can you be in front of? Create a way to have a massive connection and how to be a valuable information source by forwarding articles that people can find useful. Be yourself. Whatever you are passionate about, let people know you. Being out of sight is being out of mind. Try adding 100-200 new Facebook friends in the next 90 days. Focus on Friend of Friend marketing. When you post on a friend’s wall you have also posted it on all their friends walls as well.
Stop being a Secret Agent make it clear on your information that you are a Realtor. I find it amazing how often I am on an agent's Facebook page and have no idea if they are in the business or not.
3. Make a List:
Find an old Yellow Pages and have someone ask you "Who do you know that is an Accountant, Bee Keeper, to Zoologist." Just write down the names. Do not prequalify, just put them down.
Past Client and Sphere of Influence:
How many people in your database?
Do you have them categorized?
How many do you call?
How many don't receive calls from you?
How many mailing addresses do you have?
How many emails do you have?
How many friends are on your Facebook, Twitter, Linked in, or other pages?
Is your database organized?
How do you get it organized? How about making five calls a day, asking to make sure you have current numbers, addresses, emails, etc, and then give them a quick market update. As you do, put the information in an Excel or other electronic spreadsheet. There was a mortgage broker who was just put on this system, in two weeks had two new loans paying $3,000.00 each. That breaks down to about $400.00/hour or an extra $156,000.00/year if he continues throughout the year with similar results.
Would that help your business? How about having that updated electronic database to use?
Eight Strategies for generating more repeat or referral business from your Database:
1. Send one or two monthly direct mail pieces. "How's the Market Report"
2. No marketing is more powerful than you making a personal call, see above.
3. How about a Happy Birthday video from Facebook on their wall with you singing Happy Birthday to them. By doing so, every one of their friends will see you and who knows who might ask about that Realtor singing to them. How about texting them Happy Birthday?
4. Email your database with Market Update (max twice a month) Maybe a video blog once a month.
5. Deliver a CMA to your Past Clients and Circle of Influence twice a year. Don't try to do all at once, do a few every week.
6. Host two Client functions a year.
7. When you close a transaction, consider all sides of it. Have flowers delivered to their office, or show up with a basket of goodies on moving day.
8. When you receive a referral, immediately reach out to that person and thank them.
4. Open Houses:
Open Houses work, if you work them. The key is getting people to come.
There are two kinds of people who come to your open houses; they are the nosey neighbor and potential buyers.
Your open house success is determined long before you show up. Be sure to choose wisely which home to hold open, not just what you have listed.
a. Select the right property, homes in bread and butter price range. Select your next weekend's open house on Monday.
b. Email your database of interested buyers a video of home you will hold open.
c. Door knock the neighborhood and give a personal invitation.
d. Have your open house promoted through your company's advertisements, websites, etc.
e. Promote on Craigslist. If you aren't posting every 45 minutes they are gone.
f. Place as many Open House signs as possible. Not just at entrance of community, but in wide grid driving them to it, try 20-30 open house signs per open house.
5. Social Media for Success:
Expand your online presence.
Facebook, Zillow, Twitter, Trulia, Foursquare, Yelp, Linked in, Flickr, Active Rain, Realtor.com, Klout, Google+, etc. Do you have a presence and are you searchable on Google?
1. Decide on a niche.
2. Select key words you want to dominate online, use a long-tail strategy. Google Adwords is very helpful here.
3. Select your blogging medium, do you like to write? Do you prefer video? You can also be a DJ where you push forth other people's information, articles, etc. with your two cents added on.
4. Create content consistently.
5. Create curiosity in the headline.
6. Google recognizes consistent key words being used and clicked which creates "relevancy" which drives you up in the ranks at Google.
What kind of content?
Try to think what your clients might be interested in. How about interviewing local business owners, school principles, politicians?
6. Expired Listings:
What if you determined an area and price range you were interested in marketing and reach out to any expired listings that fit that search. Connect with a service such as RedX to scrape the BLC/MLS to give you the expired listings every day. What if you called just two to three a day?
When you call an expired listing you will find one of three things: a client who has already decided on another Realtor or to relist with their current one, one that wants to take if off the market a while and lick their wounds, or someone who is looking for an agent that can prove a Degree of Separation of what makes them different.
7. Distressed Properties:
How do you reach out to those who are in distress? Where do you find them?
How about posting information on a short sale you sold on Facebook and mention "another successful short sale" and ask if anyone knows of someone who might need help, please email me privately.
Reach out to your Past Client and Sphere to let them know you are an expert in dealing in Distressed properties, if in fact you are. If not, check into getting training and a C.D.P.E designation.
You can search Notice of Defaults, or you can target communities built a few years ago at the top of the market that you know are upside down and market to them.
8. FISBOs:
Who are the FISBO's?
Ex-Realtors, Do it Yourselfers, They think selling it will be easy, A financial situation where they don't think they can afford to pay an agent, or had a bad experience with a previous agent.
What can you offer them?
Access to larger buyer pool, great knowledge of the market and how to sell, ability to negotiate.
How to reach them? How about knocking on their door? Phone calls? Mail?
There are many ways to build your resources of leads. You don't need to do them all, but you want several to feed you as the market fluctuates. What are you willing to do? Create a game plan.
There is no wrong way to meet a new client. Just get out there, and quit being a secret agent.
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