Home : Blogs : Jim Mazziotti of EXIT REALTY BEND : Jim 's Blog

Do You Email New Listings To Fellow Realtors?

Fellow Realtors....I need your help. You see, I am a Principal Broker and Owner of a real estate company in Bend, Oregon. I am constantly working for my clients to make sure that their listing with me receives the very best EXPOSURE possible. I use the traditional methods to "get the word out" on every one of my listings....and the one I value the most is the very one who is actually working hard to STOP ME from informing more than 1000 local Realtors directly by email that I have a new listing!

Let me set this up for you. I am a member of our local Board of Realtors and a part of the MLS. Our MLS, like yours, has a website ( www.centraloregonrealtors.com) that provides services for each member Realtor (ours uses Rappatoni). So, when I list a property it appears on the MLS.... and for the Realtors each new listing shows up in a new listing section of the MLS site and on a hotsheets section as well. Get the picture?

Here is where I "part ways" with the requests of our local board. When I secure a new listing I immediately send a direct email to some 1000 local Realtors alerting them to my new listing. My email is delivered in a very professional presentation that highlights my property for each viewer. Are you with me on this? My intention is to make sure I do everything to be sure every Realtor know's of my listing. I do this because I believe many Realtors may not check the local Realtor site for new listings each and every day.....check the hotsheets that come out each day.....or check the "New Listings" section of the site everyday. I know from personal experience that there have been times I have received an email or even a "new listing" postcard that I somehow....someway missed on the local Realtor website. I have actually found and SOLD properties because of a notification outside of MLS! How about you?

Here is what blows my mind as a Realtor. Many REALTORS don't want my email notifications of new listings! They are insulted! They get angry! They don't have time to, if they choose not to read, click and "delete" my email when it arrives in their box! They sometimes ask to be removed from my email list.....and I ALWAYS honor their requests and remove them. But what is the story here folks. Are they THAT BUSY? Are YOU that busy? I am stunned!

Think about this for one minute. We constantly work to "legitimate" the POWER OF REALTORS to our clients. Right? I tell my clients that I network in every way possible with Realtors to make sure they know that "their home is listed." I SELL them the POWER OF REALTORS by making them aware that our REALTOR network is powerful. You see, a huge number of people question the POWER OF REALTORS. Many think that there really is little benefit of working with REALTORS. I tell my clients that there is simply no more of a powerful way to market their property than to go to the most powerful sellers of properties in the world. It's not the newspaper, it's not colorful billboards, park benches, shopping carts, door hangers, postcards or television and radio....IT'S REALTORS! For goodness sakes folks.....we have the power here. When I list a home I always say, " I will use a number of tools to market your property, but none is more powerful than my communication with Realtors!"

Isn't it strange that many REALTORS don't want to be "bothered" with new listing emails? Good Gaud!!!!! That is our business! And now, the local board is asking for those of us using email to notify Realtors of our listings to stop. I tell my listing clients, "folks, I don't have all the buyers for your property, but I make sure every REALTOR in our area will know your property is for sale....they are the ones who have clients looking for your home....so, you can be sure every REALTOR will see your property tonight!"

Sometimes I scratch my head and wonder why REALTORS are so poorly respected as professionals. Maybe it is deserved. Gee whiz.....it's a strange world out there! Get with it REALTORS! Ir tell me...maybe it's me?

Posted by Jim Mazziotti of EXIT REALTY BEND on 04/29/2007 06:06 AM

Comments (52)

fsbo, email, emails, marketing, realtors, clients, real estate marketing, real estate agents

Post is included in group: EXIT REALTY ACROSS NORTH AMERICA

52 Comments on Do You Email New Listings To Fellow Realtors?

APR

2007

Who are your really sending that flyer for? To tell your clients that you mailed it to every agent in your area? Our MLS allows us to set up automated listings that go to our buyers when anything new comes on the market or there is a price change we are notified immediately. I have all my searches saved and check them as needed for my current clients. Why do I need an email flyer for a listing that is also going to pop up in my search list before you get the flyer out? I'm afraid that I do consider all the flyers that are hitting my inbox these days to be spam. Sorry but I would put the money you are spending on the flyers to a better use.

hey Jim,

I too send out updates to local realtors about my new istings and price changes with photos and links to the home's website. Prudential has a great tool for this! It also has an opt out box. I can track who sees the email, how many times they viewed it, and they can also send me comments. I do have a lot of realtors opt out. Many think this is spam, but if I'm selling a house and you have a buyer, I see it as a business email. Keep sending them out - the more people who see you homes the better in my book. Sherry

Houston is a HUGE area and I have so many of those emails clogging my in box it is hard to see anything else. When I am specifically looking for something I set myself an automatic search up and have found quite a lot of homes for my clients doing that. I used to advertise sending out the advertisements by email but when it started annoying me I decided that I was annoying people also so chose other methods to get the word out. ALL of our listings are on our local MLS so I have been putting great pictures on and have been working on the wording of my descriptions..

Marchel, I must respectfully disagree with you. Just having a listing in the MLS these days won't sell it. Lots and lots of exposure does. This is just one more way to get the home "out there." At least in my market, we can use all the help we can get. Sherry

I am sorry to say that I don't like receiving these emails and do see them as spam. I check our MLS hotsheet at least twice a day. If I have someone who is interested in a property, I will see it.

Sheri

I was sending flyers to my company and got wind that it was upsetting them to see my emails. They have the option to opt out of emails, so I still send them. Less than 20% have opted out.

Our MLS System has a tool for reverse prospecting. The system gives me an email list of agents with their prospects ID numbers. If after a week or so, a new listing is not getting shown, I have used the reverse prospecting to identify Realtors who have prospects set up with criteria that match my listing and have emailed the agnts targeting their matching prospects. I think this is less annoying than getting hundreds of emails a day when you may not have anyone with an interest in a particular listing.

Hi Jim,

You make some good points about the value of joining Realtors together in association to sell listings. That's what an MLS does. And, the greatest part about the MLS database of current listings is that they are all readily accessible when *I* need to see them, not when someone decides I need to see every new listings he takes.

It's a question of edicate and, unfortunately, you're not going to gain points with me if you send me unsolited emails -- i.e. spam. Spend time making sure you have great descriptions and photos. Then, send photo flyers to people who you think might help you sell the listing. However, unwanted intrusions into my email box really do waste my time and I tend to resent them.

Don't allow yourself to become a "spammer". If you have great listings, the agents with buyers for that type of property will find them. I know the temptation, since it's so easy to collect all of the email addresses.

I recently collected 16 agents email addresses (off the MLS) for an east side sister company's office, then I sent them a special invitation to an agent tour house I was hosting. I spent an hour or two putting together a "Top 10 Reasons our Company loves your Company" kind of piece, then invited them to come see the house I was hosting on an agent tour. Two people showed of those 16. Fortunately, they were two of the top producers in the whole office and one was amused by my "Top 10" piece, which made her want to come. While I was there, I called the 14 other agents whom I had "spammed" that morning. (That beat just sitting in the open house and doing nothing). Finally, to cap off the effort, I sent these same 14 a color flyer of the property thru our courier service.

All of that and I don't know that I've gotten a single showing from the effort. This was a "trial run" for me, yet the more I thought about it later, the more I realized that one runs the risk of offending another agent when you populate their private email box with something that was unsolicited. I won't do it again. I think some of the others who posted here are correct -- there are better ways to invest your time, even though it's so easy to send them out once you have collected the addresses.

Let the auto-notification option advertise your listings for you. You focus on presentation and price and the rest will take care of itself. You're a go-getter but maybe just a little much like the Energizer bunny -- we have that in common.

Sending listing emails to your MLS participants does not add any exposure to a listing. My email provider enables me to delete all unwanted emails with 2 clicks. I never see them. time spamming your MLS participants could be better spent loading the listing into AR and letting RSS feeds do the work.

Thanks so much for all of your comments. I find them of interest.....but let me ask those of you who disagree with my method of sending emails a question. How many Realtors are like YOU? I mean, how many are at the top of their game and check the hotsheets twice a day, or use the MLS to it's full potential? When and IF I open an email it takes me 3 to 5 seconds to decide if I want to go further....are emails DIRECTLY RELATED to what you do ( sell homes) really that much of a distraction?

Most of the REALTORS I know do check the hotsheet daily, at least. I have it set to "custom" so that I can see any changes that were made since the last time I checked...so if I forget to check it today, when I go on tomorrow it will show me everything that was added, pended, closed, withdrawn, etc. since the last time I logged in.

I will say that a portion of the agents don't "opt out" simply becase they are clueless as to HOW to opt out. Others simply do what I do - create a label or filter and route those emails elsewhere. One agent had me set up a folder so that all the MLS emails go directly to the folder and I know her well enought to know that she has never checked them since, probably because she doesn't know how to get to teh folder! LOL!

I created labels and have the MLS emails sent to a different email address, where I go when I have time to peruse them all (I have several newsletters going there too.) It's not a junk folder but it's not a high priority one either.

If every agent in the MLS did this I think the system would overload and DIE! And nobody would read the emails!

They really serve NO purpose because everyone goes to the MLS anyway! If my people are looking for a home in a particular price range, then I'll find your house if it meets their criteria.

I like getting emais about listings that are with in an hour of me, however when I get an email regarding property in another state, I just shake my head.

E mail E mail E mail as much as you want. If you get the one co broke showing it helps and if it gets the job done then thats great for client. I do so much of it I get complaints from unknowns saying I have read your e mail three times! I tell them do I know you still don't have a buyer? Market changes everyday and I say go for it.

I always get a few horrible responses when I send out an e-mail about a listing. So now I only do it for properties that might not show up in a typical search for one reason or another. If everyone did it all the time, it would be a real mess- but I do it maybe once a year.

Jim your responsibility is to your clients. Every Realtor here does that and we all appreciate it. If that is what it takes for you to get the word out then do it brotha.

APR

2007

Jim - ok I am in the same association so let me take the other side of the table. I am a broker at Sunriver Realty - our office provides our us with email which is on a network - we have a limited amount of storage space - you and others like you are sending me information that is available online and taking up valuable space - besides half this gets put into spam - this was just addressed on the opening page of Rapatoni this weekend.

Now - I personally could care less if you mail me or not - sometimes I look at them sometimes I do not... but... it is against what we have been asked to do - you might also note that this weekend they also announced that we are to use unbranded virtual tours -

I would LOVE to get new listings emailed to me by local agents. You never know when a buyer will pop up, and if I'm ahead of the 8 ball by having the ease of new listings at my fingertips, without having to dink on the mls site, it just makes me look better...

I do not. I do add agents that list with me to the junk mail list. I wonder if I ever do a transaction with them if I'll have to do all sorts of juggling to get their email. It seems a bother to me so I junk them.

Yes, all of my new listings get emailed to every Realtor in our MLS. We do get those who ask to be removed and generally, I think they are folks who aren't very internet saavy or those who work very infrequently. But all in all, I truly appreciate getting new listings. Some of our new listings are sent from the Realtor Board and I often think it would be helpful if they could incorporate all of those into 1 general email notification, thus cutting down on the number of emails received.

Hi Jim,

I also tend to "scratch my head" when I hear similar stories. In our MLS, we have a "reverse prospecting" tool that allows us to send properties whose features MATCH another REALTOR's buyer clients directly to the other REALTOR. Sort of a "wake up call", if you will. We do not have access to who the buyer clients are...only the broker...and the email that goes to the broker then has the client's name for their reference. I think it's great, but I have also gotten the same reaction that you seem to have gotten when I simply send direct emails. With our MLS system, the parameters are more clearly defined than a simple blast email and that may be the difference.

Regards,

Jay Burnham, VP
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
North Shore, Massachusetts

Jim, I just delete them immediately. It's such an inefficient way for me to find homes. My inbox gets overloaded and it makes it easier for me to overlook a really important email.

I have created special lists of agents who I might send a new listing brochure to. I make a list of all the agents who have sold or listed a home in a particular neighborhood in the last two years. I personalize it and make it a special invitation for them to attend an exclusive open house. Even these have gotten some agents upset.

I don't like getting all those e-mails of new listings. If I don't have a buyer in that area or price range, I don't want them. I would say I get atleast 15 or more of those per day. I check the hotsheets daily and listings are automatically e-mailed to my clients as they come on the market, price reductions, contingencies, back on markets, etc.. I set all my clients up for this service as soon as I get their specifications.

When I take a listing, our MLS allows us to do reverse prospecting for agents who have buyers that meet my listing criteria. Those are the only agents I send any kind of e-mail to and it's a personal one referencing the MLS#, their client ID# and the listing information, not a flyer.

Jim, I understand your enthusiam and commitment. You have a passion, others have a job. Not all will share your desire to know everything about the local market like you do. From my experience agents don't 'need' to even use the MLS until a buyer gives them their shopping list of home desierables.

I compare it to a local chamber I am a member of. I get 3-4 emails or faxes from this chamber a day. The emails cost me nothing but time, the faxes cost me paper and ink. Even though I love being a member of this chamber, I really am not interested in knowing every single function that is happeing during the week, nor am I interested in the many advertising opportunities. Some members are I am sure.

An easy solution to your dilema is to set up a yahoo email group for local realtors that share your mind set. You can set it up and include a link to join in your next mass email. Those who share your passion will gladly join, those who don't will appreciate your creative solution that will leave them off your list. When setting up this list you can define rules, like new listings only and help to manage the group.

Ditto everything Laura just said. We have over 5000 agents in our MLS and if everyone did this, it would be awful!!!! The MLS alerts us to new listings or price changes that meet the saved searches we have for clients. I check it several times a day. Don't need or want your spam. One agent in our office of 80 agents did this last year, and man, did he catch a BUNCH of flack!

You must remember that Realtors® get thousands of spam emails each week, including those from affiliates. Your flyers often get caught by all the spam filters set up by our brokers or our ISP's. If your spam makes it through, you've just alienated an agent who you may want to have a good relationship in a future co-op.

Do a good job with your MLS data and photos and agents will find your listing.

I agree with those that feel these emails are spam. I don't open them and consider them a waste of time. Do you think that I won't show your property if I have a client, do I need your help. I am receiving emails now from Brokers in New Jersey, Florida, Upstate New York in towns I have never heard of, etc. It is a waste of my time. I know my job, don't need help from listing agents with unsolicited junk mail. Sorry but I find this practice really irritating. Even having to spend time opening and opting out is annoying.

Hi Jim - while I applaud your efforts to blast your area with your new listings, you must also think about those on the receiving end of that kind of 'spam'. And it really is spam to those who don't want it. I get loads of those kinds of emails daily, and I really must say I dislike it and resent it as well.

Unlike some of the comments above that have said those who don't want these emails must not be either internet savvy or hard workers in our profession, I work very hard and I spend many hours on-line working as well. If I want to know about listings, I know how to find that information. I don't need or want agents emailing me with every one of their new listings, nor do I want emails telling me of their every single public open house.

If it were only that one agent who was the only one sending out emails for every new listing, every price change, every public open house, etc., it likely wouldn't be that all bad to deal with. But it's not just ONE agent doing this - it's many more, and then you add those numbers up, and that's too much invasive email to have to deal with on top of the junky spam most of us already get anyway.

I AM a savvy internet user and I DO work full-time in my PROFESSION, but I do NOT want these kinds of email messages in my in-box. Put those efforts to presenting your new listing in its best light in your MLS, and if your system allows for reverse prospecting, utilize that as its meant to be used. We have agents here in my area who spam blast all of us in our MLS and they have no clue what others think of their efforts and what gets said about them.

My two cents worth, since you asked. ;-)

Ann

To Andrew Lietzow- thanks for the comment. As I'm reading this whole thing, what jumps out at me is your statement that only the TWO TOP PRODUCERS responded. Now, what does THAT tell you, if it doesn't demonstrate that top producers want to be fully market savvy? I'm going to start sending emails of listings to our area, ignore the whiners that have time to complain, and cross my fingers that the BEST respond (with 90% of the business being theirs, who cares about the other 10%)?

Jim,although your intentions are commendable...it is spam to send your listings, open houses and reductions to Realtors. A savvy Realtor is quite aware of what is happening in the Real Estate market. If they are working with a buyer, they already have notifications from their MLS coming to them as well as to their buyer. The Realtor certainly does not need to hear from you again. Spend your time and effort reaching potential buyers and not other Realtors.

Not interested in email unless it is unlisted

Jim,

I target market my new listing emails to the following:

Fellow RE/Max agents in my office because we no longer caravan
Top producing agents who regularly work in the area the listing is in
Agents who have shown properties, again in the same area, that are in the same general range
RE/Max agents in the adjacent metro area with whom I refer customers and vice versa.

So my list is not huge. But it balances my duty to my client and my desire not to waste the time of fellow agents.

I would much prefer an email to a phone call. It's my choice to read or delete. And I do both.

AND I am trying to start a practice locally to only give feedback on showings via email. Nothing worse than getting a dozen phone calls wanting feedback on Monday's showings on Tuesday while you've still got the out-of-town buyers in the car. But that's a whole 'nother topic.

Jim, Our MLS allows "reverse prospecting" however, I find the e-mails I receive from other agents just get deleted. I have access to the same information from my "hot sheet" if my buyer is interested in a showing I will call the list agent.

Sorry Jim, I don't want emails of new listings. Too many agents too many listings. I will blacklist an agent or company that keeps sending listings. I do like the emails from builders because they are local and not in mls.

I don't send these emails out. I for one, don't want to receive them and don't want to "spam" the rest of the real estate community. If you have contacts that you'd like to point the listing out too, I would pick up the phone or fax them. The other agents usually appreciate the call and heads up... Too many agents in my area to compile such a mass email

Desiree, please don't call me about a new listing unless you know I have a client for it. I also don't like to pay for paper, ink and electricity via fax. It just kills more trees. An email doesn't cost me a dime and I can read it, respond in my own time or quickly hit delete. Sherry

Let me clarify my previous comment... I call agents with new listings if I see they have shown something else of mine in that same "criteria". I do a huge amount of condo's and town home resale, so those calls can be easily determined by the activity on my other properties.

I agree with many of the above comments about the mailing coming through as spam. A better way in our area might be to send a personal copy to selling and listing agents who did a deal in the last 12 months in the surrounding neighborhoods. They might at least have a prospect for your listing neighborhood.

I'm with you on this one!

NOBODY likes Spam! But! It is our profession-I think the REAL concern is that we have too many part -timers. That's a big component of the perception of how we are viewed : as indifferent,uncaring and unprofessional.Those of us who are dedicated and committed to this profession see it as a business and treat it as such. E-m broadcasting is possibly the best medium (currently) in todays' technologically advancing Society.It's certainly part of our Target Marketing program-so Rock on ,Brotha-take care of your clients the best way you see fit!

Sandrew Montgomery

Chairman,NorBARLeadership

President,the "SandKat" Team

www.SandKatTeam.com

800 338 0270 (202)

I check the hotsheet 3 times or more a day....I am pathetic....

I will say I would prefer an email over an unsolicited fax.

It is the business. In sending out emails for a property, I have received some very nasty emails back from realtors. I say that if you aren't interested in looking at them, you shouldn't be a realtor. To play the devil's advocate I would argue that a savvy internet user, which I consider myself to be, doesn't need to get these emails because they saw the home on the hotsheet already. I also question the effectiveness of the emails. But, my general stance is that people who worry about these emails need to find something else to worry or complain about.

I'm with the 'don't send' group. In our profession 80% or more of the business is done by 20% or less of the people. Those 20% know the market, know how to keep up with what is going on, and don't need clutter in their inbox. Clogging up my inbox with information I already have or can keep track of on my own is spam. If I'm out of town be it vacation or remote property, there is a limit to how much mail can pile up before the quota is used up.

DO NOT SPAM REALTORS

www.RealtorSpam.org

While I understand that most realtors ( myself included) check the hotsheets more than once a day...I think that sending a new listing to out-of-area realtors is a terrific tool to bring them to the listing, let them know that you will cooperate with out of area brokers and that you will --- help them show the property --- if they do not belong to the mls in your area. One never knows...who is looking for a home and out of area realtors are a great place to send new listings or price adjustments...Then, you are not hitting the same people, again.

Thanks for the post... I wondered about this myself... ;) P

Great points each way on this one! Great post!

APR

2007

Jim, like many here I just hit the delete button. Really I don't have time to read through the multiple emails that I receive from others about their listings.

What really annoys me is listings that are sent to me from other states? What I am not working with a client that is relocating to Boca Raton and your 3% co-op doesn't do me any good... Sorry on a rant!

Anyway, in the beginning I too sent out listings to other agents. Then I realized that our local MLS is where agents are going to be searching for properties for their clients. If they have taken a client to view my property in the past and there has been a change I will send them a note advising other than that - I don't bother anymore.

Thing is today - many of us have limited time and to waste time reading through a multitude of unwanted email is just not how we wish to spend our day. Well okay I don't! Just my opinion. Thanks

I also see these emails as spam. I definitely don't want to receive your emails if you are outside my target market because I only work in the market I am knowledgeable in. It is my duty to be educated for my clients and I cannot do that in an area far from me! If your property is not on MLS for some reason, than I do want to see the information if it pertains to my market. Unfortunately, your chances of it reaching me may be slim because I receive so much other spam!
I set up searches and receive email updates from the MLS for properties that fit my buyers, so I don’t need another email from the agent telling me the same thing.

I send the e-mail blasts out as well. I don't spend the money on the e-flyer's but I put them together myself through outlook. Very easy to do with pictures, links, etc. I do have an opt out option and several have done so. I send them an e-mail back confirming that they will no longer be receiving my e-mail blasts and that they have been removed from my list along with all of their listings as well. I can not tell you how many have changed their mind and asked to be put back on. We are all in the same industry and need to work together not against each other.

Sorry, responded to another blog. Deleted it.

MAY

2007

Jim,

Sorry, I don't agree with you. I'm a busy Realtor(R) with long experience and a high integrity to give my clients the best possible representation. I have access to the MLS and am perfectly capable of finding what I need. Realtors who violate our MLS rules and send mass emails of their listings to other agents are clogging my inbox and wasting my time. No offense intended.

AUG

2007

I send flyer's out though mass email and I think it helps. I know it may annoy some realtors, but not the ones I want to deal with anyway. I like realtors who are eager to see the photos of a property that is on the the market, because the want to work. I dont know about you guys but I am tired of lazy realtors. No offense.

I'm not lazy. Trust me, I have already seen the photos and the house because I read the hot sheet daily and look at all the pictures.

That's what the hot sheet is for.

I strive to be efficient. I'm tired of wasting my time on useless, redundant emails... No offense. *smile*

SEP

2008

You know, I keep hearing the word "Spam" here on these comments... I think it's worth it to take a look at what the word "spam" really means... "Spamming" someone is sending useless advertising tidbits to completely unsuspecting e-mail recipients that have nothing to do with what's being sent. (i.e. car sales man to Realtors, India Pharmaceutical companies to car salesman, porn to everyone) This doesn't include and should not be associated with Realtors to Realtors or Car Salesman to Car Salesman or Doctors to Doctors. Speaking of doctors, can you imagine if they didn't share and got upset when something new came through the pipeline in their e-mails from someone in New York or Colorado, or Idaho? I'm unclear as to how you could call a mailing from a fellow Realtor "Spam?"

I have an idea, for those of you that don't like to receive these e-mails from fellow Realtors in your market do this....

Tell all the buyers you're working for that you don't like people e-mailing you the new listings that come on the market as they appear. Tell all your sellers you won't send out e-mails to all your fellow Realtors for the purpose of marketing their home because you're afraid you may offend them. Here's my thoughts...

E-Mail those listings! If other Realtors are offended then so be it. You're not in this game to be "buddy-buddy" with fellow Realtors, you're in it to sell your seller clients home and find other peoples homes for your buyer clients. You do whatever it takes to do so, that's why you get paid the amount of money that you do... As long as you're not breaking any laws, send them!

I thoroughly enjoy "Spam" e-mail, as you call it, and I get around 100 e-mails a day! It takes me about 30 minutes to quickly go through my e-mails send replies and be out the door and on my way. From there, I handle all my e-mailing on my phone while I'm on the run. Good Stuff!

Here's a little personal story about this... While I was out one day last summer I was working with a client that I was showing a list of properties to that I pulled off the MLS. Another agent in an unsuspecting part of my market listed a property that I wouldn't have even pulled up! I got this little e-mail on my phone with a nice flyer, looked at it, showed my buyer client in the field and Viola!! I closed on it in 30 days!

Keep those e-mails coming! For you "Realtors" that don't like to receive updated listing info... take an extra box of Kleenex with you or turn on your spam blockers to filter out a fellow Realtor...

No offense meant here by any of my comments, it's just the way "I" feel about it and I thought I'd share. I just think too many people cry over nothing these days. Turn everything into something positive and you'll be a lot happier, I promise!

Paul

Leave a response…

Name:

Email:
(optional)

Comment:

What does the graphic say?