Who’s making all the money?
Research indicates that about 20% of agents are making 80% of the money. So what do the successful 20% do? Careful research has gone into studying the business strategies of the successful vs. the unsuccessful agents and in every study the results were similar. Successful agents always do 10 things that unsuccessful agents either don’t do, or do ineffectively.
1. Brand everything
Your brand is your professional identity. It sets you apart from the crowd. Develop a brand that is unique and notable. Every postcard, letter, e-mail, fax, e-card, ad, brochure, invitation or other communication you send out must bear your brand. If you do not have your own logo yet, have one made for you professionally or create one yourself.
2. Let them know you're in business
The first thing to do is to let everyone in your Contact List know you’re in business. Plan to mail an announcement to each person to let them know that 1) you are now a real estate agent, 2) that you would appreciate their business, and 3) that you would appreciate their referrals.
Successful agents ask for business and referrals. Make reference to the unique service you offer. A week later phone and ask if they received your letter. Tell them (again) that you would appreciate their business and referrals. Confirm or get their e-mail address and ask permission to include them in your mailing list.
3. Catch up yearly
Plan to call again at the end of the year to wish your contacts a happy holiday season and catch up. These end-of-year conversations are great for finding out who’s having a baby and needs a roomier house. Don’t omit this step.
4. Create a niche and own it
Target your ideal customers early. Are they young families with small children? Are they retirees ready to move into a 55+ community? Are your customers single professionals looking for urban homes close to the heart of things? You can’t be everything to everyone, and if you try you won’t be anything to anyone. Decide on your niche; learn everything you can about your target customers and market only to them. This type of laser-focused approach is an essential component of the Top Producer’s business philosophy.
5. Leverage the power of the Internet
Internet marketing is inexpensive and very effective. Make this a central part of your marketing plan. While some very established agents may be able to coast on referrals and repeat customers, it is nearly impossible for a new agent to break into the business without a powerful web presence.
First, have an excellent website.
The right website can serve as the cornerstone for your entire marketing plan. Your website should be dynamic and interactive, and should have a variety of lead-gathering and contact management tools. The following are a list of must-have functions for a successful website.
- Grow your mailing list. Make sure your website allows prospects to sign up for your mailing list and newsletter online.
- Have a first class listing manager. It should allow you to feature your listings with room for virtual tours and plenty of beautiful photos. Your listing manager should be easy to use and you should upload listings and photos as soon as you get them. Keep your listings current.
- Have printable listing brochures. It should automatically produce brochures for each of your featured listings so you can print and mail them to customers without e-mail, or so prospects can print them directly from your website.
- Put it on Auto-Pilot with Marketing Robots. This is the single most powerful web marketing tool at your disposal. It takes the concept of “total marketing automation” to a higher level by putting your website on auto-pilot - from greeting your visitor to delivering a targeted electronic marketing campaign over the next few months or years.
- Provide documents and reports online with Documents-on-Demand. Your website should allow you to upload documents and files for your customers and visitors.
- Have several contact forms. Your website should have a variety of forms to encourage buyers and sellers to contact you quickly and easily. Never make visitors hunt around for a contact form.
- Provide MLS Search. Your website should include a framed link to your IDX solution so customers can search the MLS directly on your website. Your IDX solution should be masked; that is, when a visitor views a property, they should never see the name or contact information of the listing agent.
- Stay in touch regularly. Your website should include a newsletter of some sort. You can either subscribe to a pre-published newsletter or you can write your own. The important factor here is that you offer something of value. A newsletter that tells people how great you are will be deleted or worse, the recipient will ask to be removed from your list. A newsletter that includes valuable information each month will be appreciated and your prospects and customers will look forward to it each month.
- Make it easy. Your website should be easily editable so you can keep the content fresh. Plan to update it monthly to keep people coming back.
Showcase your listings on your website.
If you do not have your own listings yet, ask co-workers for permission to showcase theirs. If your website is up to snuff, they will trip over themselves trying to get their listings on your site.
Plan to announce every new listing, sold listing and open house by sending e-mails and e-cards to everyone on your mailing list. Featuring a portfolio of listings on your website will show sellers you’re serious and show buyers you have something to offer.
Grow your electronic mailing list.
Your mailing/contact list is the life-blood of your business. Your goal is to create it, nurture it, and grow it constantly.
Plan two drawings a year (dinner for two, 3 sessions with a personal trainer, etc.) to promote subscriptions to your newsletter. Visit local businesses, such as restaurants, tell them you have a local newsletter and you will feature the restaurant and write a nice review on your newsletter if they will give you two free dinners for one of your subscribers. You can do this with almost any local business.
6. Don’t forget your peers
Plan to market your listings to the top 25 real estate agents in your area that service a similar niche. Send them a letter with your personal brochure and 5 business cards. Introduce yourself, ask for their referrals and assure them of quality service to their customers. Each time you list a property, send them an electronic property brochure.
7. Plan around your budget
What can you do consistently with the resources you have? Have a monthly time and money budget for marketing. You can do a lot inexpensively if you plan ahead. Respect the time you budget for marketing. This is the most important part of your business; so don’t feel guilty about taking a morning off every two weeks, ignore the phone, and concentrate exclusively on your marketing.
8. Use a rich mix of channels and systematic frequency
Make contact using a variety of channels. Let them see you in the newspaper, on the neighborhood supermarket bulletin board, on the Internet, in open houses in your area, in their mailbox, in their e-mail, in their fax machine. The broader their experience with you, the more real you become as a serious business entity.
Additionally, research shows that multiple impressions are necessary:
- 5-7 impressions for people to recognize you.
- 24-36 impressions per year for people to do business with you
9. Be flexible
Keep track of your successful efforts and modify or discard useless ones. If a particular e-card does not bring in the desired results, change the e-card. By the same token, if something is working well, leave it alone! Many agents change a marketing mode simply because something new is available and they derail their marketing momentum. If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it!
10. Establish yourself as an expert
People want to deal with experts. When you provide reports, articles and other resources and information, people come to think of you as an expert in a particular neighborhood or niche. Of course, it is important to learn as much as you can about your niche, but as in all things marketing, perception can be more important than reality. Establish yourself as the only person who knows everything necessary to assist them.
A Marketing Plan for you
Based on the existing body of research as well as independent studies carried out by our Marketing Team, RedG has developed a comprehensive One Year Marketing Plan that will guide you through your first year and give you the kick-start you need to become one of the top 20%.
If your current marketing strategy has been floundering, this is a great Plan for kick-starting your business. It includes instructions for customizing it to fit you perfectly.
Download Marketing Plan Here
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