Every day we all do the same thing. We tweet, re-tweet, blog, like, comment, LinkIN and Branch out. But, are you doing these things selfishly or are you playing fairly?
It's exciting to see your numbers increase isn't it? You check every day to see how many people are following you, who has subscribed to your blog, who has recommended you on LinkedIn, how many have invited you to Branch Out, commented on a Face book post, and who has tweeted or re-tweeted you and so on.
BUT......
What have you done for your followers? I just started using Twitter (@PREFERREDTITLE) more diligently this month. In the short time since I have begun "tweeting" and "re-tweeting" I have been blessed by a number of people from far and wide who have begun to "follow" me. I am so grateful to these people for their follow because from them I can learn a lot and I have been able to expand my network of people to whom I can MAKE A REFERRAL. That is our goal is it not? To enable us to refer business to one another?
This month I have :
Referred a client to a local realtor. The client needed an expert local Realtor well versed in short sales. From my now vast list of contacts from many different social media sites as well as from personal knowledge I was able to refer this client to a seasoned professional who met the needs of the client. They are working together now and I believe that they will be successful in thier mutual goal of selling this property. This realtor does a lot of business in my local area. I have no doubt that when his next buyer needs a referral for a title agent he will think of me.
I also made a referral to a group of people with whom I have become associated who specialilze in acquiring distressed property nationwide. This group is always looking for good sources of funds for their acquisitions. I referred a new friend, one I met via Facebook, to this group and I believe they will be able work some deals together. My Facebook friend is a local loan officer who has a great product available for investors. He was trying to get the word out and I was glad to offer him an assist. He is, as I said, a local loan officer. He sent me a referral yesterday to handle a refinance transaction for one of his clients.
I referred a local business to another NEW Facebook friend who needed a cleaning service for a residential property that he had just leased, but it needed some TLC before the new tenant could move in. He needed someone who could accomodate a very tight schedule. Remembering that a small independant cleaning company had "friended" me on Facebook I made the referral. The parties met, came to an agreement on price, date, time, etc., After the job was completed my friend sent me a lovely thank you note for getting him connected with this cleaning crew. They will be working together more often now. He has more than 30 properties that he leases out.
Whenever someone follows me, subscribes to a blog, comments on a post, friends me, recommends me, etc., I DO THE SAME FOR THEM. In this way both our networks grow and we are better able to make recommendations to others within our network.
I can only hope that those people I follow, whose blogs I subscribe to, who's work I have recommended, etc., will think of me one day when the opportunity comes up for them to make a referral for title services in Maryland.
Social media is a great tool. Be fair in your use of this tool. Recriprocate the kindness of others and it will come back to you many times over.
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