Tony, I make no bones about telling sellers why I don't feel OHs are particularly effective for them.

One in one hundred.  Beats zero in a hundred- yes, I'm a successful open house-er, and it isn't to pick up clients.  It's to benefit the property owner to whom I've promised full participation, regardless of the "odds".  You're as good at them as your own personal success- some just aren't too good at it.

We do not do open houses - all too often there are no visitors or the visitors that come are just lookie lous and are not in the market to buy.

With that said, we are considering starting open houses again but not typical ones and our buyer's agents will be sitting them.   Additionally, we will only be doing them on vacant homes so as not to inconvenience sellers. 

It depends ..you dont need an open house if the house is priced right. Yes, I do open houses if the seller request or if there is no activity on the home. I have had good luck on open house, i have some that has flopped as well.

The price and location has to do with it. I tell my sellers that

I'm with Laurie on this one. I believe OHs work. In the last 7 weeks I have sold 2 homes directly from someone going through the home at an OH. 

WOW!  I have never sold anything from an open house.  I too tell my sellers that open houses generally are for the agents to try to pick off buyers. I believe that only about 2% of all homes sold nationally  are sold from open's.....but if it has worked for YOU I would keep doing it! 

I have never sold a house I've held open when I lived in a larger metro area.  It was always to keep the seller happy that you were TRYING, and to pick up new leads.  In the rural area I am now in, it doesn't work because of the way this area is laid out.  

Well, I'm trying a grand experiment conducting a 'virtual open house'.

Two nights, two times each night, viewers can go online and take a virtual walk through (via video) of the home, then meet, interact and ask questions of the agent and possibly a mortgage broker live, also via video.  Viewers can be anonymous, no pressure.  It'll take an hour of the brokers time sitting in his OWN kitchen...

We'll see....   It'll be happening in a couple of weeks...... 

Jim. The first client came through an OH I held for another Realtor® who was away on vacation. The client (I had previously met her at one of my own OHs ) liked what she saw and asked me to be her Buyer's Rep. in the transaction. It was the fewest number of showing yet for me to get a deal.

The second one happened at my own OH. The Buyer came through the property with her 2 children and loved the place. The next day her rep. contacted me to get the husband through the house and the next thing I knew we had an accepted offer.

This may be exceptional but I'll keep doing them. 

If it works in your area, by all means keep doing them. We used to do them successfully, but in the last few years serious buyers - in our area - would rather view the properties on line, and make appointments at their convenience to see the possibilities.

Yah, you betcha, open houses are for agents and for neighbors who watn a peak and for people who have nothing better to do on a Sunday afternoon than look at houses.