As a real estate agent, business is only as good as the next lead interested in your services. The more interest and word of mouth you can create the better. But are you tired of getting leads that never seem to turn into sales? Want to increase your business and establish yourself as an industry expert? We suggest taking a step back and refocus on the basics when it comes to real estate lead gen.
5 winning tips for real estate lead gen
1. Start a website & blog
Research states that roughly 90% of property transactions begin with an internet search, as the average home buyer searches online for 11 weeks before they connect with a real estate agent. So it makes sense that you need to have a website to be found. Having an online presence is a must in today's digital age. At the very minimum, list your services and an add a form to collect user data for further marketing. Don't just market yourself as an agent. Use a blog to promote your community and why someone would want to move in. Become a trusted source of information and the leads will come in on their own.
2. Start social networking
Make sure that you are not only visible on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube & LinkedIn, but also interacting and being active in the social conversation. This will expand your sphere of influence and in turn reach a broader demographic. Don't have a lot of time to do this? Automate some of your messaging with automation software.
3. Start lead nurturing
The keys to successful real estate lead generation are providing useful information and being consistent. If you decide to send a monthly newsletter, make sure you send it at the same time every month. From this newsletter, you can set up different workflows to engage readers based on what they do. This is called lead nurturing. Set up follow up emails on particular topics or reminder emails to bring people back into the mix. Drip marketing is one of the simplest, non-confrontational, and least expensive ways to generate real estate leads.
4. Start getting to know local businesses
Refer your clients to local businesses in complementing fields that you trust and they are more likely to do the same for you. Really push the local angle and build relationships to help expand business. Examples include contractors, bankers, mortgage brokers, inspectors, and movers. If you have ever used an agent, you know they have "their people" and are more than willing to refer you.
5. Request referrals
If you have happy clients, ask them to refer family and friends to you. Lots of great leads come from past clients. Always keep in touch with past clients so that you are fresh on their minds to refer when they can. If you have their data on file, you can set up automatic campaigns to email happy clients annually just to check in. Keep your services top of mind so when they are buying or selling, they don't even have to think twice.
Put these 5 practices in place and don't forget to follow up on those leads. Real estate lead gen is not hard when you focus on having happy clients and making your services easy to find online.
Want to start using customer flow communication to streamline the entire lead generation process? Contact us for more information and sign up to use SimplyCast 360 for free for 14 days.
