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Free Marketing Ideas any business can use to grow their business

My 3 New Years Resolutions

1. Form partnerships with like minded people
2. Think big, go for it - try new things - not be afraid of failing
3. Provide exceptional customer service

How do my new years resolutions relate to the topic of "free marketing ideas?" Well for one they're free but more importantly they're things that I know I can follow through on. Yes, it will take time and effort on my part to make it all happen but in the long run my clients and business will both benefit.

As I said in a previous post, we have the tools right there in front of us and sometimes just need to be reminded of what's truly important - to our clients (and our business)

-Customer Service

If you're good at sales you can sell a home or service to anyone at least once, but the key is to have them come back to you or to refer people to you again. It's all about creating a relationship, after all good customer service is the lifeblood of our business. Some of the key things to focus on when thinking customer service are:

Listen more than you speak
Only make promises you can actually keep - enough said.
Be Available in all ways
Address issues, complaints and be one step ahead - focus on solving your clients' problems, easing their pain and achieving their goals - it's about them - not you.
Go the extra mile

-Provide Value

All too often many people in business forget who they actually work for - our customers. The key to success is providing those customers what they want. What will help you stand out to your potential clients? Providing them with unique, quality content, information and advice via your blog and website. What this does is builds a relationship that is based on trust that will inspire them to reach out to you - talk to you, encourage the people they know to visit your sites and hopefully buy the home or services you are offering.

-Provide testimonials

Working with a fellow agent or stager? Why not post a blog about their services and your experience of working with them. Put a link on your website back to their site along with reasons why your readers and clients should want to work with that person.

-Keep in Touch/Consistency

Every month that we fail to reach out to our clients, we lose more of our influence. By staying in touch via cards, phone calls, emails, newsletters we are increasing our customer loyalty. Do you want to be part of the very sad statistic of being an agent that clients forget about because you didn't stay in touch with them?

Don't we all want to feel appreciated and recognized? Ever notice the great feedback you get in touch with someone simply because you acknowledged them with a note? When we commit to stay in touch we are not only building on that relationship but increasing the chances of having relationships with all the people that person knows.

By providing great customer service and value, you are establishing your reputation, which will ultimately and naturally build relationships and your business.

Simply offering "good" or "average" services to your clients is not going to get you noticed or talked about. Being honest, sincere, genuine will speak volumes to your clients. Every time you interact with a client think to yourself is this the best I can give? Would I feel special if I were the client?

What are you going to do and provide for your clients that's worth talking about?

If it's not evident to you by now, consumers are very knowledgeable and computer savvy and are using the Internet to not only search for homes but for real estate agents and real estate professionals who they feel are like minded and can lead them to the results they are looking for.

As we all know, there are only 24 hours in a day to get it all done...are you focusing on the right stuff to grow your business and meet your client's needs? Contact us today to get started!

Posted by Anne Marie Malfi, Real Estate Marketing Consultant/Virtual Asst, Bucks County,PA on 12/18/2008 03:05 PM

Comments (51)

Marketing Tips in the ActiveRain Channel

marketing tips for realtors, customer service, providing value, testimonials, keeping in touch, growing your business, malfi marketing solutions

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51 Comments on Free Marketing Ideas any business can use to grow their business

DEC

Thanks for this attractive informative post. My new year emphasis will include re-connecting with all past clients on a personal level, including visits and coffees.

Hi Anne...Great Post! You hit the nail on the head when you say Listen..Zig Ziglar once said" You'll increase you income by 50% by listening"

Cheers, thanks for sharing your Story .

Good Advice Anne Marie, it is 90% human relationships and 10% knowledge.

Hugs...and Merry Christmas...Shawn

Thanks for the very informative post! It had some very useful tips.

Hi Anne Marie~ Thanks for sharing. You are exactly right. We need to keep in touch with our clients and customers regularly! I hope you have a very Merry Christmas! Vickie

Relationships are not easy for some. Just saying hello can make someone's day that was hoping to get noticed.

Hi Anne;

I do appreciate you very encouraging post, to stay in business we all need to stay in touch with our current and past clients. Great Post! Happy Holiday!

Hi Anne Marie,

Great information in your post and you are so right...we need to keep in regular contact with our previous clients. Reading this reminded me of a few clients that I need to send a Christmas card to that I had actually forgotten about.

Thanks for the information.

--Anne Rains

www.TheRainsTeam.com

http://ladyofrealty.blogspot.com

http://annerains.blogspot.com

Very good post, well written and informative. Thank you!

This why I just love Active Rain. We have the pieces of information we all know but need to be reminded from time to time. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Add tag line "think big... work small" and I am on board. I often hear someone say "I want to sell xx homes" or "I want to be a senior housing specialist, first-time homebuyer specialist" or "I want to expand to..." I like the big ideas. But I think it is the focus that matters. I would rather be the best at one thing than to be be average at three things. Happy holidays!

Ann Marie, have you found Jennifer Allan yet? If not, you'll enjoy her stuff.

My "pre-real estate" job was sales support for one of the most brilliant, respected salesmen I ever hope to meet. His goal on every sales call/phone call/email was to build the relationship. A "sale" was a secondary thing to him. Relationships are where the "sales" are.

Great post.

Great tips! and FREE! Santa came early this year!!!!

I agree that customer service is key, and keeping in touch with everyone you possibly can will only benefit you in the long run. Those two things alone can go a long way in generating a successful year, and like you said, can be done for free for the most part.

I agree that taking care off you clients is the key to a good business. You must keep in touch ,or keep your face in front off them. thanks and have a great holiday.

Great info!

Merry Christmas!

Anne, Thanks for the free advice, and an informative post. I agree, all too often many people in business forget who they actually work for - our customers.......SO TRUE!

I'm working on several of these. The service has to be exceptional, and we have to stay in front of our clients.

Hi Annie,

What a lovely post and so true! I think the part about like-minded people is awesome. You clearly are my kind of person.

Thanks!
TD

You hit all of that on the head!

Happy holidays, Randall Sandin, 843-209-9667

http://www.charlestonpierpartners.com

Thanks for the great post. Nothing like great FREE advice.

Thank you for sharing.

I am a huge believer in relationships. The times I have built great relationships, the referrals keep coming. If the relationship is not built, I dont get any business. The best part, building the relationship is free. Excellent well written post!

Thanks for the encouragement, I am setting new goals for 2009 and this helps

Hi Anne Marie~ This is a great goal planner for 2009 and always..its so easy to let things like this slip away when it should be #1. Great post, as usual;)

Great Post...I have a few things to add to my growing list of things to do and improve on. I really wish I could get the listening more thing down....It's the hardest!

Thanks for the reminders, we often need to hear it again and again.

Great, encouraging post!... I am also excited for 2009!

Anne -- good stuff! The reason I became a real estate agent was to get out and connect with people and not just sit behind a desk all day. Your recommendation to keep in touch and get out there and build on existing and new relationships is the key to a successful business... and one that is at the top of my list for 2009.

Anne Marie -- As usual your post is a great reminder and one we need to commit to and make part of our new years business plans -- two ears = listen twice as much as you speak . . .

Thanks for the positive and encouraging words!

Thanks so much for sharing Anne Marie, you are so right and things I just seem to forget at times.

Great information. Thanks for sharing your resolutions and making us think of our value proposition.

Great advise here.. We all need to stay in touch with our past clients and always offer something of value to stay on their mind.

Anne Marie - There's never been a more important time to show the value to your clients!!! If you don't, someone else will bend over backwards for the chance to! Great post :-)

DEC

Very well said.....Sometimes it is good to here what you know your should be doing from the mouth os some else. Sometimes I just need my own advice.

Anne Marie, the following sentence sparked my interest

"1. Form partnerships with like minded people"

I defintely believe we're on the same page with this one :)

Best of luck to you and your business endeavors in 2009 and we look forward to connecting more with you. All the Best-

Active Castellum

Anne Marie - good post and good reminders. Listening is a learned skill and so important. It can help to make a list of provocative questions so that you are listening to helpful information. Here's a couple of my top questons: Are you already working with a Realtor?, Do you have a best friend or a family member who's a Realtor? If I find you the perfect home today, are you ready to buy today? Have you been preapproved?

Thanks for taking the time to post these wonderul ideas!

Average or anything short of exceptional in this market will find agents looking for other careers...as well they should. Waiting for the phone to ring has never been our style....and folks who have done that have hung up their licenses. Happy Holidays !

Hi Anne - You make a lot of great points that we all can pay attention to. Customer service is key when working with consumers; they appreciate it even more at a time when customer service is less that what most of us remember. People want to know that you care and that you will take care of them; treat them fairly and with respect and they will be customers for life. They will also be enthusiastic about referring you to others they know.

Anne Marie,

Trying new things ought to be in everyone's playbook. That's how you find out what will work and what won't considering your particular situation. Experiment, experiment, experiment.

Thank you for reminding everyone about the basics that can help any terrific salesperson succeed. Our company WAV Group has just published a white paper about reputation marketing which touches on many of the topics you mention in your article. The paper can be downloaded FREE at http://www.wavgroup.com/reports/yourreputation.

Anne Marie, What great reminders. I think your new years resolutions are right on target. You have to set audacious goals (Think big, go for it - try new things - not be afraid of failing), value the right relationships (partnerships with like minded people) and then keep those relationships strong (good customer service). I think my resolutions will probably look very similar!

Anne, I very much like your theme of being the BEST in all you do.

DEC

That committment to being customer-centric is something that we all forget from time to time. Sometimes its hard to think like that all the time when you are swamped with business or having personal issues. Its all about being a professional.

DEC

Hello to everyone and thank you for all the fabulous comments. Sorry it took me so long to respond - I have been under the weather the last few days and still fighting something but wanted to come out and comment back to all of you. ~Anne Marie

Vickie - thank you and that's wonderful that you are making reconnecting with past clients a priority and I like the way you're going to go about it.

Fred - I agree - thanks for emphasizing that point about listening - it's so important and appreciate your comment.

Shawn - thank you and you are so right - it's all about the relationships - Hugs and Christmas cheer to you too.

James - thank you and happy they were helpful.

Vickie - thank you my friend - you are so right! Merry Christmas to you too.

Heath - I couldn't agree more - those little things are what I feel make all the differrence.

Anthony - thank you and I do try to write posts that encourage - Wishing you a great holiday too.

Anne - So happy that my post could be a helpful reminder.

Tony and Darcy - thank you and appreciate your comment.

Lynn - I agree - I love the Rain and always love the great information I receive out here - thanks for stopping by to use my post as a helpful reminder.

Ryan - hello my friend - I love having big ideas too but you have to break it all down so it's not so overwhelming and so you will stick with it. I couldn't agree with you more - Happy Holidays to you too - looking forward to connecting in 2009.

Heather - hello - no I haven't but I will - thank you, that's so nice of you. I couldn't agree with your comments more - wishing you a great holiday with your family.

Sassy - love the name! and yes, I love free too.

Troy - You said it my friend - keeping in touch is what will be the key to success.

Patt - Like many others you know that keeping in touch is the key to success. Hope you have a wonderful holiday too.

Andrea - thank you and Merry Christmas to you too.

Rebecca - you're so welcome and yes, we all work for our customers.

Christine - You got it right!

Tamara - Wow, what a sweet comment and I so appreciate connecting with like minded people - I'll be sure to check out your posts.

Randall - thank you and wishing you the same.

Dan and Amy - thank you and I agree - free is good!

Joel - you're so welcome

Jason - thank you and I agree - it's all about the relationships.

Michael - thank you and so happy this was a helpful post for you. Good luck in 2009

Laura - thank you my friend - we can all use some help and focus for 2009.

Tara - thank you and yes listening can be hard but it's necessary to deliver great service.

Sonny - you're so welcome.

JB - thank you and I am too! Bring it on!

Kerry - thank you! Sounds like you're going to have a great 2009!

Hi Margaret! Thank you my friend - I like it - 2 ears - lol. So true isn't it.

Charles - thanks and yes, sometimes we just need a simple reminder.

Maria - thank you and you're welcome.

Roland - thank you and so true - stay on their mind with the little things.

Christine - thank you and I couldn't agree with you more - someone else will provide it if you're not! Great point.

Bobby - LOL - thank you and yes, a simple reminder can go a long way.

Castellum - hello my friends. Yes, I would say we are as I feel we have a like minded approach to all we do. Wishing you much success in 2009 and looking forward to connecting with you even more.

Judy - thank you and you are so right - it can be learned. Like your questions too.

Evelyn - you're welcome and thank you for commenting.

Sally and David - great point - don't wait for it to happen or you'll be waiting a long time. Happy Holidays to you too.

Jon - thank you my friend. It's so true - people want to know they are important to you and it can be done in small, personal ways.

Esko - Experimenting is key - find what works and go for it!

Marilyn - thank you for stopping by to comment and for the mention.

Andrew - thank you - and here's hoping your 2009 is a great year. We'll have to keep each other on track with our goals!

Gary - thank you! Yes, that will certainly be a theme that I stick with in 2009.

Morgan - It's so true - we can caught up in our day to day that we forget being customer focused.

DEC

Hi Anne Marie - great ideas in this post! wishing you a prosperous and joyful holiday season and new year! Cheers!

JAN

Great ideas in this posting. It is imperative to keep yourself in the mind of your potential customers. Regular correspondance is truly important.

Thanks so much for this post. It's a great way to start a new business year!

JAN

Teresa - thank you, so nice of you to stop by to comment - wishing you a great new year too my friend.

Georgia - thank you and I appreciate you stopping by.

Susan - I agree!

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