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Portable Filing Cabinet

By Alamo City Homes Magazine

Services for Real Estate Pros with Alamo City Homes Magazine

June 23, 2007 02:48 AM

Good Weekend My FOUR Readers..

Well, I have Saturday phone duty, so I have no excuse to be able to make a few posts today. Since I had to go back to my old full time job due to my wife and baby needing medical insurance. I find it hard to make time to build my sucessful real estate career. Usually, agents might hate Saturday phone duty days. But I'm excited about it. I can't get away with spending eight hours at home on the computer like I do here..

Anyways..

I've noticed a habit that I have. I'm marketing to FSBOs and I always seem to take 5 days to get everything together to mail it off on a Saturday morning. By which they've been contacted at least 5 times more than likely by hungry agents.

So, this week I was thinking. I need to have everything together that I send the FSBO in their initial packet. And all I have to do is put everything together, mail it within the next 24 hours.

So, I did that. But my briefcase was getting heavy with all the copies. I could leave the copies at home, but I wouldn't have access to it if I saw or found a FSBO away from home. Same thing about leaving them at work. And since my office is open to everyone when I leave at 11am, I don't feel safe leaving it anyways. So, I need to leave it in my car.

But I'm not the most organzied person right now. Going to one office at 7 in the morning. Leaving from that office to my other job from between 11 and 12. Working till 9pm and getting home at 930. My car can be filled with suits, shoes, ties, lunchboxes and realtor magazines I don't have time to read. So, as you can tell, it won't be the object of tidy.

So this morning, I decided to get a filing cabinet for my car. That way all the letters, flyers and info for my mail outs won't get covered by suits and lunchboxes.

The traditional one will not be very user friendly in a car. Hey, they have those plastic ones at Target. But, I can't justify spending money on that just yet. What else can I use?

Getting my daughter up this morning, I had my answer..

My daughter's LUVS diaper box.

Not the most professional looking piece of realtor equipment, but, it is doing it's job already.

So, this is one of my ideas to contribute to that struggling agent who wants to save some money.

Have a Blessed Day and..

HUZZAH!!

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Christina Lackey

Coldwell Banker Prime Properties - North Syracuse, NY

Syracuse Central New York Real Estate

Great idea! Maybe you could cover it with paper and let her color it too! Then it will be something that makes you smile every time you get out something... and you could even have that to explain to potential clients. They love baby stories! LOL Thanks for the great idea.

Jun 23, 2007 02:58 AM

William Johnson

Retired - La Jolla, CA

Retired

I have a question for you. Are there enough FSBo's in your area that if you got a few of them as listings, 1. would they sell, 2. If they did, would you be able to become full time.

While you are about putting the FSBO packets together, market to about 50 homes all the way around each FSBO. Ask the FSBO to use your special sign ( not your company sign-you need to produce a for sale by owner sign with your name and company on it ( maybe the back is best). Ask if you can help them hold it open. Create extraordinary Flyers with just a very small compliments of ( your name ) at the bottom. Keep it small.

Ask the FSBO if you could do an Open Listing on their Property. ( Get your Brokers permission and the exact way to approach this). Then seek to do a Brokers Open House, invite all the agents in your office, friends in the business and ask them to help you try and get the listing. If they do help you, give them a small gift at closing. They will appreciate that you remembered. The object is, to get your signs plastered all over the place marketing the Open House for the FSBO. In time, your name will be known around the neighborhood. Ask the FSBO if you can have a special neighborhood invite. This gives you something else to pass out in the neighborhood and use your signs on the day of the Open House for neighbors.Don't do the invite with Flyers. Do it hand written and addresses invitations. You might get to meet a Buyer passing by.

The key is not that any of these ideas are that good or even useful for you. The object for you is to try to optimize the situation for FSBO and yourself at the same time. They only care what's in it for them , so try to find ways to provide something that is useful for them.

Think about it. They don't need your FSBO package, they want a Buyer. Help them try and get one. Make visits every couple days to talk about how to optimize their efforts. I hope something resonates here for you.

Sincerely,
William

Jun 23, 2007 03:23 AM

Alamo City Homes Magazine

Alamo City Homes Magazine - San Antonio, TX

Thanks William..

My FSBO packet has the following..

A non threatening intro letter.. Stating that I'm not pressuring them to list with my company or me. A CMA to help them set the right price. A professional looking flyer with my info at the bottom.. And a form to get free internet advertising on my website and others I can put it on..

I was going to discuss this later in a blog to get feedback..

Thanks for yours

Jun 23, 2007 05:11 AM

Dawn Coulter

eXp Realty, LLC - Bloomsburg, PA

Helping clients say "Hello" to a "Good-Buy"....

You actually give a FSBO a CMA prior to getting the listing????? What?! I guess I need to learn to think outside the box, huh? I was told to NOT give the CMA till the ink is drying.

Something to think about! Thanks for the eye-opener!

Dawn

Jun 23, 2007 01:40 PM

I don't tell them what it should be priced at.. I just let them see that 9 time out of 10.. It's seriously overpriced..

I try to come across that I'm helping them without being pushy..

Jun 24, 2007 01:30 AM

Jennifer Steck

Rocky Mountain Homescapes, Keller Williams, Denver Colorado - Denver, CO

Denver Real Estate

Eric, Good luck with all your efforts. Keep it up and they will come. I loved alot of William's ideas. I may use a few of them myself.

Jun 24, 2007 01:45 AM

Portable Filing Cabinet

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