Have you ever felt like you would rather go to the dentist then take the time to make follow up phone calls? Why is that? I hear this a lot from the different people I coach throughout North America. Jim Good was a noted expert in telephone follow up, and he would call this "Black Cord Fever".
The number one reason Realtors avoid their follow up calls is fear of rejection. If you follow the lead generation and conversion systems I teach, however, it’s important to remember that you are not cold calling your prospect with your follow up call. More about this in a bit.
Early in my career, the experts at that time said you had to make 100 cold calls to get one sale. That means you had to be rejected 99 times before you got a yes. No wonder Realtors hated to pick up the phone. Can you imagine getting rejected 99 times? I would develop black cord fever myself.
The beauty of my lead generation system is that you are not cold calling at all with your follow up calls. Every single person you call back has raised their hand by requesting whatever you have offered that would help them with buying or selling real estate. It is in very rare instances that you come across someone that is rude and obnoxious.
Imagine calling back people who are happy to hear from you. What I loved about calling back leads from my lead generation system is that I knew there was a 60 to 70 percent chance that the person I called would agree to meet me for an appointment, or would give me permission to follow up with them in the future (that’s what we call filling the pipeline) -- I like those odds.
Compare that to the old cold calling days of being turned down 99% of the time. There is no comparison between my lead generation system and cold calling.
Let me share some strategies that will help you to pick up the phone and call potential clients for now and future business (assuming you’re following my system).
A) Keep in mind that 60 to 70% of the time you will experience a positive outcome. You will either get an appointment, or you will be given permission to follow up.
B) For the people that turn you down, it only means they have turned down what you have offered, it doesn’t mean that they dislike you.
C) If your average commission check is 3, 4, 6, 8 or 10 thousand dollars, then remember that every call you make is potentially worth that amount.
D) Here’s a technique from Tony Robbins which he calls O.P.A. "O" stands for
your outcome. Your outcome is to make the calls. "P" stands for purpose. This is the most important part of O.P.A. Write down your purpose for making these calls. Get down at a deep emotional level as to why you need to make these calls. Example—I will make these calls because I know for every appointment I make, I will make $6,000, and this will help me pay for my daughter/son’s college tuition. For every call I make, I know I will be putting money away to take my wife/husband on our second honeymoon. For every dollar I make on the phone, I can give a portion of that money to help the homeless and needy. You get the point. Write down the things that inspire you, that will drive you to action. Finally, "A" stands for action. What that means is when are you going to schedule these calls.
When you feel the case of black cord fever coming on, pull out your O.P.A., reread this article and I guarantee you will be on your way to overcoming your fears of calling people back. You are now on your way to becoming an expert on using the phone and enjoying the financial rewards that come along with it
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