If you have been a Real Estate Agent for any length of time, you have probably discovered that past clients are a great source of future business. There are many ways of staying in touch with your raving fans: newsletters, phone calls, customer appreciation parties, 
market reports, first-of-the-year copies of their HUDs, birthday cards, holiday cards, anniversary (wedding and home-purchase) cards . . . in other words, CONSISTENT 'touches' to keep you top-of-mind.
After more than two decades of practicing my particular art, I have found two things that work well for me. The first is phone calls. Not something that I was particularly comfortable with when I first started in business, I HATED the notion of calling these people with whom I had established a relationship and asking them for business. So I don't. I just call them.
I ask them about their families, about their lives, about how they're enjoying their house (no matter how long it's been), and ask if there is anything that I can do to help them with any particular need they might have at that point in time. Unlike many of my peers who will completely disagree with me, I don't ask them if they know anyone who might be looking to buy or sell a house.
To ME, that puts me in the category of salesman, not someone that they know, like, and trust. It would only take one time for anyone, no matter how close we are, to do that to me before I would let their NEXT phone call go straight to voicemail. I'm too busy to have a conversation with someone, waiting for 'the other shoe to drop.'
When you show genuine concern for their well-being, they'll remember when someone mentions they need an Agent. Besides, they almost always ask how the market is. Bottom line, it's not like they aren't aware of what I do for a living.
The second thing I do that is a little out of the norm is send something nice to people who have referred me, not only at the time of closing, but also AT THE TIME OF REFERRAL. While we can't pay referral fees, we can send a small gift of 'thanks' to those who help to promote our business. I want them to be excited about sending people my way, and to keep me front-and-center in their thoughts when someone they know mentions real estate.
I usually send them a nice Gift Certificate to Mimi's Cafe (go figure) right after I get a call from the person that they've referred. It not only reminds them of my name and gives them a nice meal out, it also is a motivating factor the next time someone mentions that it's time to move. It's not important to me in remembering them after a deal closes, it's important to me that they remembered to share my name in the first place.
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