You have auto responders on your Web sites, right? These bits of stored text go out automatically when you get an email inquiry from your sites. I have seen hundred of auto response messages during the course of my Web site evaluations, and most say something like this:
“Thanks for your inquiry. I am out the office and will get back to you shortly.”
If you were a consumer and got such a message, would you:
A) Feel very, very special, needed & loved?
B) Feel as if you are not really that important?
If you chose “B,” you are thinking like a consumer, a crucial aspect of your Web site strategy. Most agents, unfortunately, have auto responder messages that reflect this lack of concern for the consumer.
Think about your auto responder message and see if you can come up something that conveys the message that you a cut above the average agent and that do indeed care about him or her. Additionally, compose a message that will let you know whether the emailer is a sincere prospect or not. In short, try something along these lines:
“Thank you for your request for a relocation request. My staff is at work personalizing it for you and will get it out shortly. In the meantime, may I ask:
- Are you familiar with our area?
- Are you currently working with an agent?
- Do you have any special needs when it comes to a new home?"
Don’t have a team? That’s ok…the mention of a team adds cachet to your message. As for the three questions, they are just three that I use: you might come up with better ones. Questions such as these are designed to get a reply from the emailer. If you get a reply, you do indeed have a prospect, and it is time to institute an aggressive campaign to convert him or her into a buyer.
If you do not get a reply, all is not lost. Even inquires that do not respond should be put into your drip email campaign so that they hear from you at least once a month. You never know when they might turn into a “live one”! (Programs such as RealProSystems, MyHomeManagementClub and Rainmaker e-Central are invaluable when it comes to staying in touch with no work on your part, and every active agent should use one of them.).
Do yourself a favor: take a moment and send yourself an auto response from your Web sites and see what impression they make on the consumer. If changes are needed, that is your primary task for today.
It’s a great day here in San Diego where I will attend my granddaughter’s birthday…hope it’s a great day wherever you are, too!
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I really like the auto responder message that you posted. It makes the consumer feel as if you're right on it, even if you aren't yet. And the questions get them engaged a little more. The more information we have the better. Great post!