When the Going Gets Tough. . .

. . .The survivors go marketing.

One thing that helps keep the survivors going is their optimism and conviction that if they keep focused, and work steadily; things are going to work out just fine.

Their optimism doesn't just come from some kind of Pollyannaish faith, however.  They have a very objective perspective on things that is based on solid facts.  Take a look at what makes them optimistic; I think you'll find some cheer here.

The Demographics Are On Your Side

Year in and year out; homeowners move.  Jobs change.  Families grow.  People retire.  Incomes rise and incomes fall.  Hot economies or cold economies don't stop these life changes.  The changes keep right on happening, and people keep right on moving.

On average, across the nation, 10% of homeowners move every year.  Sure, at some locations the rate is higher; at some locations the rate is lower, but on average 10 out of every 100 move.

That means if you have a database of 200 homeowners, 20 of them are likely to be both selling and buying a home in the next 12 months.  That's a potential 40 transactions, just with the people you already know; not counting the new buyers (and potential sellers) you'll meet from working those listings.

If you are keeping in close touch with these people, the news gets even better.  Each of them is 1. Related to; 2. Works with and 3. Is friends with at least three other homeowners.  So at a minimum, that's 200 in your database times 3 = 600 more homeowners who are only one degree of separation from you.  That's another 60 homes sold and 60 homes bought in the next twelve months.

So think about it.  Maintaining close relationships with just 200 people can put you close to 160 possible transactions in the next 12 months.  What kind of year will you have, even if you miss 90% of those?

The survivors know that you don't have to be very successful, to be very successful.

Relationship Marketing Works Best

Every year the NAR surveys show that relationship marketing works best.  I consolidated a bunch of those surveys on a spreadsheet to see what additional insight I could squeeze out, after a little sorting and number crunching.

The chart below shows the results.  (You can see the whole presentation on my Web site at http://cobel.com/html/marketing_optimization.html)

Two big insights came out of this exercise.  First, relationship marketing is by far the most productive kind of marketing.  Second, 80% of the most productive kinds of marketing can be done effectively on the Web.  That means lots more marketing at much lower cost and much less effort.

Marketing Communications Are In Place

The Internet is such a common feature in most homeowners lives that it's become the very best place to distribute agents marketing materials.

Besides listings, of course, your Web site can have lots of reports, tip sheets, newsletters, local information, virtual tours and much more that is of great interest to both buyers and sellers.

If you've got a good Web site in place, you've got the foundation for launching some pretty high powered marketing campaigns.

Marketing Systems Are In Place

"If you build it, they will come."  Yah; but only if they know that it's there.

Having a great Web site in place is only the foundation for high powered marketing campaigns.  You've also got systematize and automate the distribution of touches that will keep bringing people back, again and again, to your Web site.

Gary Keller's book "The Millionaire Real Estate Agent" confirms the key statistics.  If you touch and "Unmet" (i.e. a farm) database 12 times per year, you can expect one transaction for every 50 names in that database. 

If you touch a "Met" database 33 times per year, you can expect two transactions for every 12 names in the database.  That's eight times better results from marketing to people you already know.

Granted, that's a lot of "touching" to keep up with, but it's not a big deal at all when you've got your marketing systems in place.

The Numbers Even Get Better For Survivors

The long-timers have definitely seen this all before.  The market gets hot and everybody and their mother gets a real estate license.  These newbies sell a few houses to their immediate family and friends, but they rarely sell much more than that.  Why?  Because these newbies aren't really in the "business".  They're just dabbling.

Then, inevitably, the market goes the other way.  (Markets do that you know.)  The newbies leave in droves and the survivors pick up the pieces.

Remember, the newbies (who've left the business) still have relatives and friends who are buying and selling houses, and those people still need help from somebody (and that somebody can be you).

Consequently, the spoils, when times get tough, are even larger than they might otherwise be for the survivors. 

So don't listen to the people who are leaving the business, because they were never really in it anyway.  Keep your optimism alive.  Do what the survivors do. . .and thrive!