Last month, I attended the Keller Williams "Family Reunion," in Anaheim, California. Coincidentally my hotel was about two blocks from where I grew up, in the late 1950's. Of course, I decided to walk over and take a look at my former home.
Wow! Even though there was no one left in the neighborhood that I know, old memories overwhelmed me, surprising me, for I thought they were long gone. The faces and names of boys and girls returned to my consciousness, and I will now look for them via the Internet.
Three houses away from my former residence, I saw a lady trimming the shrubs in her front yard, so I stopped to chit-chat with her. She told me that she would soon be selling her home. Then, I saw a FSBO sign... in her front window. Instantly, the "Terminator" in me kicked in! I was wearing a Keller Williams shirt, so she had known all along that I was a REALTOR®.
After discussing the pros and cons of "Do-It-Yourself" home selling, she asked me if I could help her sell her home. I told her that I was from another state, so I could not directly help her. But, I told her, I was attending a convention with over 8,000 Keller Williams agents, and she asked if I could find one from her area, and have them contact her. She readily agreed, but asked that I wait a few days before having someone contact her, as she was doing some "fix-up" work, before selling..
I did locate a local REALTOR®, at the Family Reunion. She was pleased at the potential referral, and she understood why there was a "built-in" delay.
I stay in contact with the lady in Anaheim, as she has become a "new" friend, in my old neighborhood. She is still "fixing up" her home, and is not yet ready to list it for sale. Now, she has referred a friend of hers from the neighborhood, because "I was so nice to her."
Soon, there will be a very happy REALTOR® in Anaheim, when I send them two referrals. I'll be happy too... but, not simply because of the referral business. I will be happy because two Sellers, in Anaheim, California, will receive the best possible service. I also, 50 years later, have made two new friends in my old neighborhood, though there is one of them what I have not yet met in person.
The lesson? I was not prospecting that neighborhood. I was simply there. I was wearing career apparel. I was friendly with a lady there, before I learned that she planned to sell her home. After she asked me why she should list her home with a REALTOR®, (not me), she asked for my help. I am referring her to a local REALTOR®.
Prospect! Prospect! Prospect! (Even If It Happens By Accident!)
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