We’re gearing up for 2011 and are sure you’re doing the same! What are some of your goals for the coming year? The slower winter months are a great time to strategize and build your marketing plan and begin implementing it as soon as possible.
You’ve probably embarked on boosting your online presence over the past year and may have mixed emotions on how it’s going. From social media and blogging to a great custom website; you’ve put in the time, energy and money but may not be seeing the results you anticipated.
One of the trickiest things we run into as Real Estate Virtual Assistants is showing the power of social media, blogging and an overall solid online presence to our clients. While creating relationships is priceless, people want to see the hard facts of their online activity.
As of right now, however, you won’t be able to get a print out of the success of your online presence. It can be hard to transition from the data you can pull from the MLS about your current market and your success rate. All the facts are right at your fingertips and you’re never wondering how you’re doing. Online networking is different.
So, while you can’t just pull a report of the success of your website, blog or social media activity; there are some key things you can do to transition your online contact into leads. Star Hall, who is an international speaker, publicist, author and social networking expert, came up with seven tips for helping to accomplish this in the coming year.
1. Focus on Generosity- While you’re not giving away your services for free, you can be generous with the information you provide. Whether you’re blogging about current real estate trends and your community, or have great content on your website that is truly helpful to people; generosity is key. As they go to your site or blog and see that your goal is to help people; they’ll be more likely to trust you to be a great Real Estate agent.
2. Use the 3/3 Rule- So, you want to be generous, but don’t want to miss out on business. Use the simple 3/3 rule which is to only offer 3 calls or emails at 3 minute each per person. After that, it’s time to offer your services and request their business.
3. Don’t Act Desperate- While you want to be a “go getter”, you never want to come across as desperate. Be sincere in how you interact with your online contacts, and they’ll see that you want to help them and are not counting on them for your survival.
4. Do a SPAM Check- This is important to do for yourself- you don’t want to come across as a SPAMMER to potential clients. In this case SPAM stands for: Sales Pitching After Meeting. If you interact with an online contact, you have to set up guidelines for yourself in when to “sell” yourself. The key is building some rapport with the contact and not just pushing your services. They will quickly write you off if they feel they’re being pushed into something.
5. Have a Communication Plan in Place- It’s vital to have a plan for keeping the communication open with your new contacts. One of the best ways is through a customized drip email campaign where contacts are receiving weekly or bi-weekly emails that are bringing them relevant and customized Real Estate information. This will keep you in front of them as well as being generous about providing them with free information.
6. Build Your Social Proof- As we just touched on in our blog Raving Reviews, people want to know what others think about you and your services. Have a testimonial page on your website or post them on social sites such as LinkedIn.
7. Just Be Yourself- It sounds simple enough, but it will make a difference in your work. If you are constantly trying to be someone else such as an agent who excels at landing speaking engagements, or those who enjoy creating videos for their website or blog; if it’s not your style, you’ll quickly burn out trying to keep up. Find your strengths and run with them! Being true to yourself will allow online contacts to see your personality and be able to more fully trust that they know what type of agent you are.
These 7 tips should help point you in the right direction for gaining more clients in 2011! Carve out some time within the next three weeks to really evaluate where you were in 2010 and where you want to be in 2011. Come up with a plan and the steps to get there.
Don’t give up on your online presence because of its’ ambiguous nature, but continue to build relationships into the new year and you’ll begin to see results. Whether you’re being referred through your online contacts or start to stand out as an excellent resource in your community; these long lasting results will come with patience and persistence.
Wishing you all the best for the holidays and the New Year!
Allie Coyle
Marketing & Copywriting Coordinator
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