How To Market Properties And Generate Leads To Grow Your Portfolio
You can grow your business throughout the upcoming year in multiple ways as a new or seasoned agent. We believe in providing consistent, current, and exciting connections between agents and their clients. You will find various products and ideas in the following list to help you engage with your clients and build lifelong relationships to generate those coveted referrals!
1. Introductions
New agents, especially, might be hesitant to broadcast their "newness" in the market and skip the first step to entering a new market. Use this opportunity to share your story about why you have become a real estate agent or why you have chosen to work with this specific neighborhood or farm.
You are in the people business, and that means building relationships. Introduce your family, your pets, any interesting hobbies - like skydiving or spelunking - and keep to no more than 2 to 3 sentences. Brevity will force you to choose your words wisely and stay within the reader's attention span!
Our Agent Announcement postcards are the perfect way to introduce yourself to a new farm, community, or niche market.
What is the difference between a lead and a referral?
A business lead is generated from any number of marketing activities, including direct mail, delivering door hangers, sponsoring events, or posting on social media. They are people reaching out to you who don’t personally know you and still need you to earn their trust. So be swift in responding, listen carefully to their needs, and provide what they need or refer them to someone else who can.
A business referral is a personal recommendation from one person to another about someone they trust and would feel confident in sharing with them. Referrals are more personal and are often more serious about working with you because someone they trusted recommended you. When you follow up quickly with each referral and provide them with the best service, more than likely, they will thank the person who recommended you. And this ensures the person who recommended you will feel confident in recommending you again.
2. Consistent Connections
The second step to a successful business plan for real estate agents is to deliver consistent connections with your desired client base. The easiest way to inform and engage is through our quarterly House Talk Newsletters. These simple yet effective direct mail pieces provide your readers with current market news, interesting seasonal tips, and another reason you would be the perfect agent to serve their needs.
Connecting with your farm consistently throughout the year provides you with many opportunities to answer common real estate-related questions. By answering these questions, you become the community expert they can turn to when they are ready to sell their current home or begin looking for their next home. Remember, each person on your mailing list is a human being. They have fears like everyone else, and they want to make sure they can trust your expertise and count on your to guide them through their entire real estate journey.
The more consistent you can be with various marketing options, the higher your chances of outlasting your competition and earning your new clients’ business. And remember, their business isn’t your only goal. You are also building your reputation to earn their referrals of friends and family.
How can you receive more leads?
But how? - you may be asking. It is actually easy to do. It just takes a while. So, with a bit of patience and consistent business communication practice, you will be raking in more referrals than you can handle! Here are five often forgotten ways of generating more real estate leads for your business.
These five ways include connecting with people during significant life events, using strategic smartphone apps, contacting expired and withdrawn listings, identifying properties that look neglected or abandoned, and using direct mail marketing. Read this article for detailed ideas about using these five strategies to your advantage.
3. Current Market News
The third step is to provide quarterly neighborhood market updates. Your readers can follow their local community home values and begin to depend on you for this consistent flow of information. Don't underestimate the power you have when it comes to helping your clients understand the value of their most valued asset. Our Market Update postcards provide you with an easy and convenient way to share this valuable information with everyone on your mailing list.
Where do most Realtors get their leads?
Most Realtors receive their business from referrals. That’s right, past clients and respected business peers are often the best place to find your future business and are often easier than generating leads from new people you don’t know. To help you receive more leads and referrals, let’s walk through some easy ways to begin staying in touch with your past clients, respected business peers, and community members at large.
Online
The easiest way to stay in touch with people is by reaching them where they already are. So start with the most accessible first - online! Create a quarterly drip email campaign that highlights upcoming community events, real estate tax issues for your area, volunteer opportunities, and current market updates for homes in their area.
Next, keep your social media accounts current and active. This helps increase your chances of people remembering to contact you about changes in local real estate taxes, understanding the home buying process, and why listing with an agent benefits homeowners. Finally, to make this easier on you, sign-up for a monthly subscription to Corefact’s Social Share platform. You can easily pick from various graphics and pre-written content about market updates, seasonal messages, and real estate tips.
Direct Mail
Next, we move to their mailbox! Quarterly Newsletters are informative and fun for your recipients to flip through and save as a future reference. Be sure to add information about upcoming community events or other necessary activities to motivate them to keep the newsletter. Real estate agents’ expected direct mail pieces are seasonal postcards, but you can step up your game with our Bright Side postcard series with our Home Estimate postcards! Now you will be sharing some laughter and practical real estate information with each card.
In-Person
Finally, you will want to use the personal touch at least once a year, if not twice. This step involves stopping by with a small token of appreciation such as a small box of chocolates from the local shop, a little basket of coffee beans from your local roastery, or a nice bottle of wine from a local vintner or wine store. Also, be sure to include a Thank You note and a Gift Tag. The Thank You note helps the recipient understand why you are giving them the gift, and the Gift Tag presents your business card for future reference!
Here is a sample message you can include in your Thank You note.
“It's the little things that matter most! I appreciate having you as a client and neighbor. Thank you for your support and trust. May you and your loved ones experience every joy this holiday season. Enjoy!”
4. Personalized Home Value News
The fourth step is to demonstrate your value in marketing their home and understanding its actual value. Our Home Estimate postcards provide you with an easy and effective way of sharing a current home estimate value with each homeowner on your mailing list. In addition, we now conveniently include QR codes on the postcard to decrease the number of steps your clients take to view their home estimate.
How do I find seller leads?
The best way to secure seller leads is by providing homeowners with valuable and timely information. One bit of information most homeowners are interested in knowing is their current home value. The interesting part of a home’s value is that it usually isn’t constant. Therefore, this could be useful for homeowners on a semi-annual or quarterly basis!
You will demonstrate your value as an experienced real estate agent by sending your clients what they are most curious about - their current home value. Someone who understands their client’s needs and delivers them will become a trusted advisor.
Whether you have a small or large marketing budget, it is time to create a year-long marketing strategy to continue providing relevant information to your past clients, potential clients, and sphere of influence! Follow along as we share a story about three real estate agents, Jason, Paul, and Monica, and their long-term marketing plans.
5. Exciting and Fun
The fifth step is to remember to have fun! Your clients are people, after all, and including at least two seasonal or fun postcards will brighten their day and remind them that you care about them not only as a client but a friend. Our Bright Side and Bright Side 2 postcards share the lighter side of life and bring a ray of sunshine to your client's day. Our Seasonal postcards focus on the holidays and special times of year that you and your clients may hold dear.
How can I get referrals easily?
As a Realtor, gifts help you strengthen and grow relationships with your best referrers and real estate clients. Here are seven ideas on how you can strategically use drop-by gifts to continue receiving referrals from past clients and business partners. These seven ideas include welcoming new homeowners, congratulating your sellers, thanking people each time they share a referral with you, gift ideas for VIP guests at sponsored events, and celebrating the holidays. Read this article to learn expert tips and inspiring ideas for each reason.
Asking for referrals also helps! Here is a simple yet effective email template you can begin using today to ask your past clients for a referral.
Sending thank you notes after a meeting with clients, after important phone calls with clients, or after receiving good news from a business partner is another great way to stay top of mind and continue receiving referrals. Here are six messages you can begin using today in your thank you notes.
Another easy way to begin seeking out referrals is by boosting your online presence. For example, our Social Share - an online marketing program - instantly provides you with more than 500 graphics that are ready to share with messages. You can also use these four tips shared in this article for growing your sphere and getting more referrals.
Need help?
Our Customer service team is ready to come to the rescue:
Call us: +(866) 777-3986
Monday through Friday 8:00 AM - 5 PM PST
Email: CS@Corefact.com
Related topics
5 Tips on Following Up with Leads
Five tips for following up with real estate marketing leads.
Read More
12 Thank You Notes Guaranteed to Generate Leads
Handwritten notes are a great way to break through the noise in today’s all-tech world. Here are 12 ways you can use thank you notes to generate leads.
Read More
Creating a Brand Identity for Real Estate Agents
Why is your brand identity important? Find out in our guide to creating a brand identity for real estate agents.
Read More