That must be what some folks are thinking. Scan any real estate magazine, or run through a list of email addresses at your local board, and it's amazing what you'll find! They range from the sublime (professionally speaking) to the ridiculous (also, professionally speaking!)
Here's my point: your selection of email address definitely influences the number of email leads you'll get. Imagine yourself in the shoes of a prospective buyer or seller, with countless agents offering their services. If the following were the email addresses you were invited to contact, who would be your choice? And which would you write off?
- Jimmy917589@aol.com
- IMAQT@homail.com
- realestatemagazineleads@punxsutawneyrealestateforsale.com
- Jim@JimAnderson.com
- Ann@AtlantaHomes.com
I'm betting that one of the last two went to the top of your list, and the first three immediately became "also rans."
I'd like to propose Four Basic Email Address Rules for Realtors:
- KISS! As in everything in life, "Keep It Simple, Stupid" is a good rule! So forget those long, number-filled addresses at aol and yahoo, as well as using any name or URL that's long and impossible to spell.
- Keep it professional! That pretty much rules out CutiePie@anything.com (unless the profession is not real estate!) It also means to avoid freebie accounts at hotmail or gmail! If you really like those addresses, get a different, more professional-sounding email address and forward it to your hotmail account.
- Make it easy for folks to remember. You@YourName.com is usually good, unless your name is something like Harlequin Hotzenpfeffer, and then you'd be violating rule #1! You@YourWebsite.com is another good bet, unless your website name is also unwieldy.
- It should be permanent. Don't use Me@ColdwellBanker.com if you think you might soon be moving to a ReMax office; all those lovely leads will go either into the ether or to one of your erstwhile colleagues at CB!
Laura Warden
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