Filling the Funnel

Real estate opportunities are in each relationship we have. Whether in a first encounter with a consumer or with a long time friend, all people need a place to live. Not only do all people need a place to live, many people invest in real estate. Some invest in residential rental properties, while others purchase residential properties to rehab and then sell for profit. Both of these residential transactions, in addition to the lease opportunity, may include at least one real estate agent. This limited approach in real estate does not include any commercial transactions or development though each is attractive income generation options.

The question that comes in mind when considering all the opportunities to generate an income helping people buy, sell, lease, or develop
real estate is, “How do I find people who have a need in real estate?”

The word used to find people to work with is called prospecting. It is how real estate agents come into contact with consumers who have an interest in buying, selling, or leasing real estate.
The goal in prospecting is to find as many consumers as possible who are interested in transacting real estate. Reaching out to friends, acquaintances, neighbors, and others is like filling a funnel. The more prospects that are placed in the funnel through prospecting, the more likely a steady stream of income flows out the bottom of the funnel. The income level is dependent upon the volume of the flow and usually the dollar amount of the transaction. Assuming though a constant dollar amount of the transactions, the only way to increase income then is by increasing the number of transaction which is dependent on the amount of prospects reached. Reaching more people to make more money sounds simple. Yet many real estate agents fail at an alarmingly high rate. To have success, real estate agents need to have a plan about how to make contact with consumers and then follow their plan.

There are many ways to reach consumers to fill an agent's prospecting funnel. When creating their plan, agents can choose their prospecting methods by determining which are their favorites and their own strengths.
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Prospecting through social media

Social Media is Relational NOT Transactional

In creating a set of business objectives, we tend to look at number of contacts needed to create one appointment or one revenue share. Though textbook planning, this doesn’t necessarily lend itself to the essence of social media: creating a network of people who share about themselves.

Looking then at the goal of Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites, I am enthused by the potential of online relationship building. Wow, social media creates the perfect platform for personal branding!

Often people question which social media platform yields the greatest results? The answer varies greatly depending on the preference of the media user. Though many people believe Twitter, for example, is more B2B focused, it provides ready opportunity to build hyper-local market interest. Facebook, on the other hand, is commonly considered a business to consumer media source. Neither social media platforms, however, will produce prospecting results unless they are worked consistently to deliver relevant market contact.

Easy steps in making money with social media:

Choose your favorite platform. If you like Twitter, use it. If Facebook is your favorite social media platform then become a Facebook professional. Learn your social media platform’s tools and posting methods.

Identify your content strategy by understand your target market. This could be a geographic group like in the old neighborhood farm days or it could be an interest group like model railroaders.

Research and “friend” or “follow” your target market.

Identify daily tasks. These are 4 to 5 daily posts of information that are of interest to your market group.

Manage the delivery of the information through a realtime drip marketing program. Just like neighborhood farming, you can’t send out a year’s worth of postcards in one day. Sites like www.hootsuite.com, www.tweetdeck.com, and http://www.socialoomph.com deliver scheduled posting opportunities. Most blogging platforms like Wordpress and Blogspot do as well.

Keep posting! Growing a group of faithful followers who know, like, trust you takes time. Success is dependent on consistent longevity.

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Four Sales to SUCCESS

I was trained to look at each contact with a prospective client as a SALES opportunity. Don't try to do one sale before you have completed the sale before it.

The first sale is the initial phone contact with the prospective client . . . Sell the Appointment. Don't let them make you do your presentation over the phone. Give them enough info that they want to hear more. You want to give your presentation face-to-face.

The second sale is your Presentation . . . Sell the Sizzle, not the Steak. If you want to meet them in their home or office, ask for a specific amount of meeting time . . . I usually ask for 30 minutes because it is not too much time out of their schedule and yet it is enough time to make a quick evaluation of their interest in your presentation.
• first 10 minutes is the "ice breaker"
- If you know them already, talk about something you have in common
- If they are new to you, look around the room quickly to see what they are interested in . . . pictures, trophies, golf clubs in the corner, fish tank, etc. . . . and ask about that. They will want to talk about their passion and that will loosen them up.
• next 20 minutes - your presentation
• last 10 minutes - wrap it up and set up next appt. . . . when you reach the end of the 30 minutes, look at your watch and tap it with your finger and say, "Well, our time is up, so I will . . . (reaffirm what you agreed to for the next meeting). Many times, if the client is really interested in what you are saying, they will say, "No, you don't have to leave yet . . . I want to hear more about . . ." (or something like that)

The third sale is the Close . . . this may take more than one meeting.

The fourth sale is to get Referrals . . . if they liked what you did for them they will give you 2 or 3 referrals. If they cannot think of anyone, don't tell them that you will call them back. Have something to prompt them with. You can interchange the questions or come up with new ones.
• Friends - Do you have any friends who have outgrown there current house and are talking about buying or building another one?
• Neighbors - Have you heard any of your neighbors talking about getting transferred?
• Relatives - Do you know any of your relatives here in Houston or Texas or other states that are thinking of selling their house or buying/building a new one?

Guest Blogger David B. Atkins is a Sales Associate with Coldwell Banker United, Realtors in Houston, Texas and owner of Bulldog Shipping

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Sale slumping or nonexistant?

Sales can be a discouraging and frustrating business when you look at each potential customer one at a time. Remember when Tom Hopkins and his quarters? This is a contact sport frequently requiring many attempts before obtaining a sale. I’ve seen statistics that show 100 contacts make 5 appointments that make one signed agreement. To create a signed agreement (buyer rep or listing agreement) you’ll need to hurry the process along by making more contacts every day.

Here’s what I mean, you’re right FSBO’s don’t want to pay commission. They’ve got their guard up because they know you’re going to ask. We know, however, that 70% of all FSBO’s give up and list with a real estate agent. Create a relationship with them through multiple contacts. Statistics show only 4% of prospects sign agreement after the first contact. This increases to over 80% after the 8th contact. Review your FSBO plan and keep calling. Don’t give them pricing info. That’s what they get when they list with you. It’s your expertise.

Now, how else are you going to fill your funnel? Open Houses? Expired listings? Social Media? What about your Sphere of Influence and the 7 Second Presentation? Revisit your business plan.You can do this. If you lost it or didn’t make one then ask and I’ll give you some templates. The bottom line is simple mathematics. If you want a signed agreement each month you’ve got to be making 100 contacts EVERY WEEK.

Make the act of prospecting your goal so you can have some immediate success. Here’s what I learned as a new agent: “I don’t expect you to sell a house every day. I expect you to do the ACTIVITIES necessary to get in front of people.” In other words I had to teach my wife and kids to stop asking me if I sold a house today and asking me if I did my prospecting activities. Get it?

You still get to ask for the business with your contact it just isn’t as imperative to make business with every person when you’re following up with 100 or more people.

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Video Blog for Authentic Marketing

Video in blog posts can take many forms. From fun and whimsical to informative and serious, video creates authentic marketing opportnities for those who use it. Youtube is the second largest search engine in the US with millions of minutes of video posted everyday. Use this to your advantage. Create a youtube channel and link back to it as often as possible from your blog. Embed video into your blog when possible as well. Here are a few helpful video blgging tips to get you started.

• List topics you wish to explore


• Research to find others who have created videos of the same topic to help gather ideas


• Share links to others' videos


• Make your own videos


• Create a small studio using ample lighting

Here is an example of a fun video from Realtors in Canada

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Use Video to Innovate Your Marketing

Using video to prospect has several benefits for marketing and prospecting for new business. Consider these:

• First page Google: Video helps move you up the search engines. Video helps create a dynamic website that encourages comments vrom viewers.
• It's Fun!: Creative outgoing people can quickly crank out a video to involve viewers in their website.
• Viewer Friendly: More and more people are willing to spend a few minutes watching a short video than reading a market summary. Do yourself a favor and capture a larger audience by posting a few short videos.

Here are a few ideas to get you started.

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Listening is a Lost Art

"Those forced against their will, are of the same opinion still." Dale Carnegie
Its better to be liked, than right. You can corner someone to seeing your side of the issue as correct- you have summarily presented the facts, made your arguement, and have proven your point! But why didn't you win the other person over? Surely, they are just stubborn. YOU'RE RIGHT, and so are you - it's human nature.

For instance, a new referred client wanted to know why I was going to list his home $100,000 less than his previous agent? I listened to him, and understood he wanted to move near his grandchildren. I listened to him talk about his grandchildren. Did I argue with him? Of course not. The value he put on selling his home, is the time he gets to spend with his grandchildren. So, instead, I said we would go look at similar houses in the neighborhood, what has actually sold recently and make a determination based on that. When we revisited price after our viewings, we discussed his goals. You see, selling the house ws the means to his goal and not the goal itself. Afterwards, he agreed with the original listing price I came up with.

Try to see things from your client's point of view, and help people save face, as well as serve them. What is it they want? To move near their family? To wait and get the best price for their home? To downsize and save money? Try asking yourself, what is it your customer wants - and then you will be able to do what many salespeople cannot - EMPATHIZE.