A Better Way of Finding Hot Real Estate Leads

A Better Way of Finding Hot Real Estate Leads.
If you’re a real estate agent, you must have said this more than once:

“There has got to be a better way for finding leads.”

And you are not alone. Every single agent’s mind has crossed this idea

for the simple reason that looking for leads is about the most tedious

task there is in the real estate business. Unfortunately, it is also

the first step in getting any business. Without leads, you would have

no business at all.

You probably have had more than your fair share of frustration in

building your network and exhaustion in creating as much connections to

as many people as you can. You also probably worry over avoiding the

$11,000 penalty that comes with the “Do-Not-Call” Rule. With this new

rule alone, you’re probably asking yourself, how can you possibly find

leads then, let alone viable ones?

Fortunately, there are solutions that address these concerns. They help

you build an extensive network, maintain your contacts and save you

from the DNC rule while getting you reliable leads that are a stone’s

throw away from a closed deal.

This is called response marketing, which is getting buyers/sellers to

respond to an ad you placed and having them initiate contact with you.

The fact that these buyers/sellers are responding to your ad puts them

in a mindset ready to do business. This is a huge difference from cold

calls where it’s usually a hit-or-miss when it comes to whether they

want to do any business at all.

Another plus is that since these leads made the first contact, you are

free to call them without having to worry about the DNC rule.

How does it work?

You start off by placing an ad that’s designed to make prospects want

to respond to it. (More on this later.) You then provide a means for

these prospects to contact you, usually in the form of toll-free

numbers.

“Wait a minute,” you may ask. Will I be the one to answer each and

every call that’s made? Wouldn’t I have to hire a whole lot of

representatives to answer these calls for me?

The answer: Yes and No. The person who will answer the phone every time

an ad respondent calls will be you – in the form of a recorded message.

It is personal in that it is your voice the respondent hears. But it is

detached enough to make it comfortable for the prospect since he/she

does not have to worry answering probing questions during the first

contact.

The respondent has the general options to leave you a voice message or

even calling you directly through a call transfer feature. Should they

want more to know more before they call you, they have immediate access

to information you want to share through a fax-back option. This

feature is particularly useful in sharing documents like

company/personal profiles, floor plans, brochures, maps and even

helpful tips in doing business in real estate.

By allowing your prospects access to such information at this level of

ease makes them more inclined to do business with you. Experts and

consultants in the industry have noted that nearly 75% of prospects end

up transacting business with the agent they made first contact with.

For an agent, that means doing what you can to make sure you’re the

first person a prospect would call.

Every time a prospect calls your hotline number, you are notified right

away of the call through your fax, email, cell phone and/or PDA. This

immediate notification is essential since as mentioned before, leads

will most likely transact with the first agent they come in contact

with. The sooner you make your own response to theirs, the sooner you

establish rapport, the more likely you will be able to close a deal.

And now, some words about your ads
The ads you place must be designed to compel a reader to call you

first. You do this by offering something a prospect wants to have. The

nature of being a prospect shows that they are interested to know more

about the real estate business. So why not offer information you feel

they need to know?

Also, make it clear how you can help your prospect. They’re more

interested in that than reading about how you are one of the top

sellers in your district. Showing that you can and want to help makes

you more inclined to be called.

Same business, some new tools
The things mentioned above do not in any way replace the trusted

methods of establishing rapport, conscientious follow-up and genuine

character building. In the bigger picture, this accounts for the

closing more than any other fancy tool.

Finding leads through these means simply save you the time and the

effort in mining for new leads and allows you to devote your energies

to more enriching tasks both for yourself and your prospects.