Let’s face it, in real estate seller leads rarely – if ever – crop up by chance. The most successful individuals and businesses in the industry use elite-level lead generation tactics – the product of years of toil and innovation.
Agents are faced with the need to ace their social media marketing, form lasting relationships with prospective sellers, and master the art of cold-calling. This can be quite overwhelming for any agent, especially beginners. Therefore, many real estate agents struggle to form a coherent game plan.
So, we’ve devised a list of 9 crafty tips to strengthen any real estate listing lead strategy.
1. Content is Key
A well-calculated content marketing strategy will not only boost your online presence – both on search engines such as Google and social media – but also, successfully establish your company as the "go-to".
Starting a blog is a great way to inform and engage potential leads. Tackle questions relevant to all sellers, such as: “When is the best time to place my home on the market?” By providing industry-specific information, trends, and data you are offering genuine value to prospective sellers. This act will not go unnoticed in your sphere.
Lead capture pages that include free home valuations are wildly efficient in generating more listing leads. This is a win-win as your potential client is receiving something of value (free home evaluation), and you are receiving the lead's contact information (lead capture form on the landing page). You should absolutely re-target these leads with a drip-email campaign using the email address provided.
2. Target EXPIREDs
Expired listings are a potential goldmine if you know how to exploit them. Remember: Expireds have already shown a desire to both sell and co-operate with an estate agency. Your task is to present them with a vision showing you have the marketing experience or knowledge to showcase their property in an attractive way within the current market.
Real estate tech companies such as Offrs.com make it easier to access a comprehensive list of expired listing leads, to make the dialing process a lot easier.
So, start cold-calling or knocking at the door – never be afraid to reach out.
3. Automate your Outreach with a CRM
By incorporating automated outreach, real estate agents improve their efficiency enormously. CRMs also ensure that no listing lead slips through the crack and save agents valuable time – which they can then spend pursuing other lead generation avenues.
Sophisticated CRMs, including Market Leader, consistently target seller leads by sending out personalized text messages and emails on specific dates. For a comprehensive overview of CRMs and the best ones on the market right now, check out HubSpot's blog: "The 30 Best Real Estate CRMs".
4. Share Successful Sales and Happy Clients
Try to regularly post content of thankful clients on your social media and website. Friends and followers will take note of what a great service you offer.
You might even ask sellers for a testimonial about their experience working with your agency. Potential leads will appreciate a positive, honest opinion from a member of the public. In this way, you turn clients into local champions of your brand.
A platform that nails this strategy on the head is Reach150. Reach150 is a systematic and simple way to grow your business through referrals. So not only are you generating new business through referrals, you are eventually receiving all business through referrals. This is arguably the #1 long-term lead gen strategy.
5. Implement a Customer Loyalty Program
If you make your existing clients feel special, you’re more likely to be rewarded with repeat and referral business.
Run past client events every one or two years; they are a great environment in which to drum up conversation and discover new listing leads. At the very least, send referrers personalized messages and a small gift every time a past client notifies you of a potential selling opportunity.
6. Improve your Listing Presentation Skills
How can you ultimately convince a potential seller to work with you? Your pitch. Unfortunately, not enough industry professionals choose to regularly refine their listing presentations.
Listing presentation gurus, like Ricky Carruth and Tom Ferry, share hordes of insightful – and free – information on YouTube. Learn the psychology behind an effective proposal and give yourself the best chance of cultivating warm leads. Another great real estate resource is Kevin Ward. Check out Kevin Ward's Live Listing Presentation Role Play for a detailed insight on how you should present yourself to your potential clients.
7. Form Mutually Beneficial Partnerships with Local Businesses
By co-operating with established companies in your community and agreeing to recommend each other’s services, you will establish a new and cost-effective source of seller leads. Word-of-mouth advertising still reigns supreme, especially in small communities.
Be smart about the kind of businesses you approach. Law firms specializing in divorce cases and moving companies often work closely with home sellers.
8. Target Inherited Homes
It is normal for people who inherit property to sell it within a short period of time. For example, the home might be in a poor location or require expensive maintenance costs. This means that recent heirs often represent warm listing leads.
So, how to find them? Inheritance court cases can always be found on the internet – start by looking for recent cases in your immediate area. Aside from that, you could pay for a social media ad aimed at users discussing inheritance. Lastly, there are companies that compile inheritance lead databases and charge users of the product a fee.
9. Buy a Lead List
If you are looking for leads today and don't have the time to ramp up your listing lead generation strategy, buying a list of high-quality curated seller leads may be the solution for you.
Real estate companies such as Offrs provide predictive seller leads. To boil down exactly what Offrs does, they are a farming tool that uses past data from homes in your neighborhood to predict which homes are most likely to sell within the next 12 months. On top of this, Offrs has been able to predict 70% of the entire nation's listings using their proprietary algorithm.
This is beneficial to any agent, beginner or veteran, who is looking to save time and money. For example, you save time as the list is already prepared for you and includes high-activity homeowners. Furthermore, you will save money as you are not targeting the 95% of homeowners who aren't going to sell their homes this year, you are marketing to the 5% who are, therefore reducing your marketing dollars drastically.
Want to know the stats Offrs has on your zip code? Click here to find out which homes are going to sell in your neighborhood in the next 12 months.
Summary
There you have it, a selection of 9 disruptive and fresh ideas to help you generate listing leads and level-up your real estate lead generation in the new year. By taking advantage of software developments, meeting the right types of clients, and building a comprehensive marketing strategy, you’re sure to hit the ground running.
