Real Estate Internet Leads can be tricky.

Hi Jack,  Great insight into the difference between the two types of buyers andalso the timeline.

Jack, great information.  We need to adapt to the changing world.

Jack, thanks for sharing your story.

If you are a broker, training your agents to work with internet leads is the key. Internet leads are different from your "old school" leads and require somewhat different approach although many classic rules still apply, so here we go...

The most important thing - get your agents to call the leads as soon as they arrive. You actually need to call them, just emailing is not ok. Calling is important because:
1) agent can qualify the lead, are they serious?
2) find out what they are looking for and send relevant information
3) ignite a relationship, they'll remember the agent they talk to, not someone who just emailed them

For sure, you cannot call a lead if you don't know her phone number (and that's why leads with phones work much better). Sadly, we've seen too many agents not calling the leads even if the correct phone number is on file!

Having a system to have anything organized is important as well. Once you have more than a handful of leads, burring them in your inbox is not an option anymore! Get a proper lead management system and don't let them fall through the cracks.

Good post and good comments. You really put your money where your mouth is.

You are quite correct.  To make the leads work one needs to pounce quickly and hang on like a junkyard dog!

Great post and helpful comments;  in today's fast paced world, people DO expect us to be available when convenient for them.  I don't need business badly enough to answer the phone at 1 a.m. but someone will and kudos to them.  Internet leads need to be cultivated and responded to, sometimes it does take them a while to make a move, but it does often happen.

You still have to weed out the spammers and all those trying to get into your hardware

Definitely not easy leads to convert, really following up and not getting discouraged that a lot of emails and phone calls will not be replied to is good advice.

Jack,

This is some great timely advice as I begin to invest big time online.

Thanks!

Great reminder Jack for me not to be discouraged about the lack of response. I need to just keep sending emails and making follow up calls! As competitive as the market place is for realtors to convert the leads before someone else does is the tough part... Inspiring read for me as I grow! Thanks for the post! I hope to not let you down!

Jack - Great internet lead tips to get to them, hold onto them, and convert them!

I do a lot of internet lead generation as well and these are points I've always followed, including that I never "give up" on a lead until they stay STOP!

So far, unless they are MY Internet leads, I have not purchased any. To handle such a quantity, you need a team that will actually follow your list of what to do.

The challenge is to engage, at least, weekly with a diverse and informative drip campaign I have been told.  Great article

I think part of the key next to patience is to provide information. Once they see you are a great resource, slowly but surely you become their sole resource vs multiple people. Eventually as you have mentioned when they are ready, your goal is to have an established relationship that pays off! 

Jack, great information! Thanks for sharing. On a similar note, you're invited to join Ryan Owen, CEO at Zurple, for an interactive webinar on "How to Get More Deals from Your Online Leads". Register now to reserve your spot: http://go.zurple.com/rsvp

Let me know if you need anything else!

Hi Jack Solloway checking in to see if you've come across any best practices, new systems, advice this past year in the ever changing online lead generation space?

As a good post, an interesting story to read. Per Zillow's own admission, less then One half of 1% of all leads convert. That's because most leads are simple inquiries or forced contact info and sold to multiple Realtors. I love the story of the eight-year-old that was checking Zillows site looking at houses and getting Realtor calls for him.