Generating leads as a realtor can be tough. Let’s face it – without leads and referrals, the majority of agents would truly not survive in the current market climate. However, even though that’s the case, a vast number of agents have what’s considered, a “love-hate relationship” with leads because they can be so difficult to generate. So, asides from the “old-school” door-knocking & cold-calling methods; what tools can aid in generating leads as a Realtor? At NB Elite Realty, we have some solutions for that!
Utilize Your Social Sphere of Influence!
Most Realtors utilize social media to some degree. In today’s new climate among the global pandemic that we are currently facing, why not incorporate social media as a tool to be able to gain referrals? There are some specific ways we can do this. First, be sure to keep your sphere of influence (FB, IG, or TikTok Family/Friends) reminded that you are a Realtor. You’ll want to post useful content that is helpful to your audience at least 2 times a week. It may be related to market information, home improvement ideas, or funny/witty posts regarding being a Realtor. Be sure that you integrate these posts along with among your normal, NON-REALTY social media posts. This is important because your social media sphere of influence may see you as that “old pushy salesman” if you only post Realty content. Who wants to be friends with someone who is literally, ONLY there to generate leads as a Realtor? Not too many people!
Paying for Social Media advertisements
Having a “Sponsored Ad” on social media is definitely now considered a tried and true friend to some Realtors. However, when utilizing this method be sure to research what your target audience is and how much you are willing to pay PRIOR to paying for the ads. You also must be careful of the content. Assure that it is strictly adhering to the rules of the Social Media Platform that you are utilizing. Otherwise, you run the risk of the Ad being blocked or not even posted at all.
Open Houses with a Twist!
Another tried and true method of generating leads as a Realtor is to have “open houses”. However, many Realtors have been hesitant to hold open houses due to Covid-19. This can be resolved with a slight twist! Hold it Virtually! Be sure to let your social media family know that they can tour; at least 2 weeks in advance by sending out the invites and posting the date on FB, IG, TikTok, etc. You can get the amount of traffic to your Virtual Open House up tremendously, by offering a gift card or prize drawing for the attendees! Generating leads as a Realtor is easy utilizing this method because it allows your audience to see you in action as a Realtor, and it also allows them to picture themselves in their dream home – possibly the same home that you are showcasing! Be careful that you are NOT advertising a “coming soon” listing. The home MUST already be listed on the market in order to advertise it to the general public, according to NAR’s newest Clear-Cooperation rule.
Don’t be a secret agent
Generating leads as a Realtor will be more difficult than ever if no one ever knows you are a Realtor! That’s why it is so important to wear your badge everywhere you go. In times of Covid-19, this has become especially critical! Those who have a deep concern of catching the virus tend not to want to touch many surfaces; therefore leaving your business cards or brochures in businesses hoping for them to be “picked up” by someone hoping to sell or buy a home is truly out of the question in these circumstances. Therefore, instead of leaving paper business cards, wear your badge and have a picture of your business card that you can text message anyone that asks you that all-time favorite question, “How’s the market?”! This allows you to capture the person’s phone number to occasionally text them and interact with them providing useful information!
The “Golden Rule”
Remember that old Golden Rule that we were all taught as kindergarteners? Well, how would you like to be treated, if you were to send over a referral to a friend? Would you prefer a plain old “thank you” phone call; or would you rather a handwritten card along with a small gift? Perhaps a gift card to a restaurant, Amazon, or even a socially distanced pop-by of flowers or artwork left on the front porch will undoubtedly go much further. The people who sent those initial referrals will truly feel appreciated and they will go above and beyond to look for more opportunities to refer since they knew that you had amazing service and truly showed appreciation for their referrals. At that point, once you have shown great service and appreciation for referrals to a number of people, then generating leads as a Realtor will truly become more automated. They will continue to send referrals repeatedly to you! Be sure to ALWAYS reward them with something thoughtful, consistently, EVERY TIME they send over a referral.
Be Consistent
Remember, generating leads as a Realtor is not always easy! Sometimes, our clients and referrals are NOT as fruitful as we want them to be. However, if you stay consistent and continue utilizing these strategies, you will reap the benefits. At NB Elite Realty, we recommend that each Realtor should have a “Bucket of Strategies”. This means employing at least 4 or more lead generation methods. Allow a minimum of 90 days to see the true results of these strategies. Figure out which one worked out best for you and possibly dedicate 50% of your total lead generating hours towards that strategy and then 10-20% out of your total hours dedicated for lead generating to each one of your remaining strategies.
Get Support
A bowtie to all the above strategies is utilizing a good CRM! At NB Elite Realty, we offer our agents an amazingly low price for kvCORE! This is extremely helpful when trying to keep track of exactly what marketing you are utilizing, for which clients! It also has an amazing capability for additional marketing tools such as websites and drip marketing! While these are just a few of the lead generation strategies, we have many more that we educate our agents about! We welcome you to contact us, to discuss a customized strategy and additional ways of having success, with generating leads as a Realtor!