Clients are the lifeblood of a real estate business. It’s important to generate enough leads and build your sphere of influence to ensure success. We spoke with experts who shared their best tips on how to get clients in real estate that involve everything from making better uses of open houses to finding new clients online.
The following are top 25 expert tips to get real estate clients:
1. Write Strong Web Content
The internet nowadays is very powerful, and you should take every possible advantage of it in your business. You can either create your own website as a real estate agent or use the website of your agency to write strong web content. Research the keywords which clients use to look online for agents and properties in your location and incorporate them in your web content. One of the easiest ways to create content is through writing blogs. You will be able to generate new leads through their searches on the internet with relatively little effort and at a reasonable cost.
2. Build Your Online Presence
Digital media and online presence is the future of generating clients in real estate. The days of cold calling expired listings are over. Clients nowadays want to do their research and know who you are and what you have to offer before ever contacting you. A strong online presence — so clients can find you — combined with a robust explanation of the services you provide, what sets you apart and client testimonials that prove your worth are all essential.
3. Use Webinars to Generate Leads
Webinars are the open house of our time. They create incredible leverage for your business, allowing you to be on an appointment with a buyer or seller while your webinar is lead generating for you. Another benefit of webinars is that you can have multiple versions running at the same time. Using tools like EverWebinar, a recorded webinar can be created and consumed in multiple neighborhoods and client demographics.
4. Use an IDX Feed on Your Website
One of the most successful ways to get real estate clients is by building a website with an IDX [internet data exchange] feed and a boost from Google AdWords. It has been a great way to meet new clients, and it also allows you to feature your listings. This type of website pulls listings directly from the MLS [multiple listing services] and displays them in a very search-friendly manner. You can track what people are looking at and suggest other similar properties. If you have a listing that meets a lead’s home search parameters, your website provides you the ability to push the listing to the lead.
5. Promote Your Properties Using High-quality Photos
One of the main things you can do to increase your sales is to take a set of attractive property photos which will complement your real estate listing. You can hire a professional photographer or take the pictures yourself, but make sure you have a good DSLR [digital single-lens reflex] camera and a tripod. Also, consider online real estate photo-editing services that will improve your photos and remove all unnecessary things in the background to make them look more enticing to your prospect clients.
6. Work Open Houses
One of the best tips for finding real estate clients is to work open houses. This is by far the absolute best place to find predisposed buyers week after week. Neighbors are always checking to see how the local real estate compares to their home. These neighbors may know someone who is interested to buy properties within the area, so they are a great source of referrals.
7. Volunteer in Local Communities
There is no better way to do that than by volunteering in your local community. This is a win-win, meaningful and organic way to generate clients in real estate. You get to do good for the community and meet people who get to know and trust you. These may be the same people who will also trust you with one of the biggest financial decisions they will make. It is a much more solid and secure source of referrals and one that is usually ongoing.
8. Inform Your Friends & Family That You’re in the Real Estate Industry
When starting out, your friends and family will almost always be your most immediate source of business. Statistically, about 14 percent of the population moves each year. As an example, if you have around 100 to 200 contacts in your cellphone — that means 15 to 30 of them will move this year alone. If you focus on letting your contacts know that you’re in real estate, you’re likely to get that many more leads and successful outcomes — just think, all those times making small talk while waiting to pick up your kids from after-school activities could pay off.
9. Be Involved in Charitable Causes
Real estate is an evolving business, facing numerous disruptors in the marketing and distribution channels. Even with the continued intrusion from technology, real estate is still a people person business. Try to get involved in charitable causes. For instance, donate a portion of the proceeds for each closing to the charity of your client’s choice after closing. This initiative may help you gain new customers as many people have charitable causes they are passionate about.
10. Maintain Contact With Former Clients for Word-of-Mouth Referrals
Leveraging the networks of previous satisfied clients can be a passive way to get new clients. Try using a CRM like Salesforce Essentials, to keep track of former clients’ contact information so you can occasionally reach out to say hello and stay top-of-mind. With its ability to easily integrate with your email, you can automate emails to go out for holidays or special anniversaries, with minimal effort from you.
11. Post Real Estate Updates on Social Media
Work on growing your social media like Instagram and Facebook. Show people that you are constantly doing real estate every day. Show all your wins, promote yourself, share what you’re doing and share posts. Work with videographers and photographers who can produce your social media content. This can grow your following on social media because of consistent posts and highly produced content, and these followers may be converted into clients.
12. Engage in Online Public Relations
Engage in online public relations (PR) and have yourself quoted in various real estate blogs and websites as often as possible. When a prospective client sees your useful comments or contribution to a blog or article, there’s a big chance that this client will contact you.
13. Promote Consistent Niche Branding
Agents usually focus on short-term lead generation, which tends to be “one-and-done” approaches. Instead, if you focus on creating a name for yourself through branding yourself, a particular property type or neighborhood — think “niche branding” or “niche farming” — you will yield ongoing leads from your cumulative efforts. For example, create a neighborhood-specific website, with neighborhood history, local events, key phone numbers, real estate stats, blogs sharing your experiences and, but not necessarily, real estate listings. Send emails and mailers to people who live and are interested in the neighborhood.
14. Use Facebook Advertising to Generate Real Estate Clients
Use Facebook advertising to dial in your target market for either buyers or sellers. Facebook makes it easy and cost-effective. Make use of videos to discuss many topics along with places of interest in town. Also, post real estate and nonreal estate-related content on your Facebook business page. Be consistent in posting contents to build a following as this is an effective way to bring in new clients.
15. Put Yourself Out There & Network
The more people you meet, the more potential clients you will have. Everyone you meet should know you’re a real estate agent, and you should always have business cards and an “elevator pitch” ready about the brokerage you work for, your experience and expertise. Attend industry and community events. Join investing groups and other organizations you’re interested in. Network with other business owners and cross promote each other. Once you’re active in your community, you get to know it better. You’ll then be considered an expert and residents will trust you to sell their homes.
16. Put a Sign in Your Yard
If you are an agent who lives in a neighborhood that allows yard signs, you can put one of your own real estate signs that you would normally use in a client’s yard, but attach a rider that says “I’m an agent. Got Questions?” Then, attach the box for open house flyers but make it smaller and private with a pad and pen so your neighbors can get in touch with you as soon as they see the sign. People walk by your home every day. You can do marketing by offering to help someone with no strings attached — people don’t appreciate the push, but they always respect the approach when it comes with a hand in, not out.
17. Build Your Brand Around the Customer
There are many agents in the market, and it can be hard for customers to differentiate between them. You should be able to communicate with the consumers and know their needs. Understand what is important to the customers you want to do business with. In the end, a consumer chooses to work with a real estate agent who can help them with their needs. For example, if you’re dealing with a first-time buyer, lay out the basic steps of the process. Discuss when and how the customer would like to communicate and set expectations about what the borrower will need to do to be successful. This can establish credibility and build confidence.
18. Give Seminars & Workshops to Meet Potential Clients
Give seminars and workshops for buyers, renters, and sellers to meet potential clients from different organizations. For example, you can travel to schools and do seminars about renting. This can lead to a few deals each year and a chance for a long-term investment as some renters tend to buy after their rent expires.
19. Get Real Estate Clients Through Farming Method
Farming involves mapping a specific neighborhood or area, calculating the marketability of the farm zone. According to the National Association of Home Builders, the average homeowner plans to move every 13 years, with younger, first-time homebuyers relocating slightly more frequently. From there, you can use data on the neighborhood and specific properties found in the Realtors Property Platform to start conversations with homeowners in the area. Marketing pieces, such as postcards, can be valuable, but our greatest reward comes from establishing relationships in neighborhoods, by meeting people on their sidewalks and in their living rooms.
20. Host Events for Clients
One way to network and get to know potential clients is to host client events. This could be a shredding party in which clients and neighbors could come shred their documents and kids could play in the bouncy house. It would be a great opportunity to connect with people and provide value.
21. Automate Listing Promotion on Social Media
Maintaining a consistent, relevant presence on social media is vital to reach potential clients. But for some, being consistent with social media posting and engagement can be challenging. Adding automation to your marketing toolbox can help simplify tedious processes and free you up to create a real connection with clients. Automation can help with everything from creating a listing property site, to following up with inquiries via text messages or email.
22. Be Yourself
There’s a ton of pressure in real estate to be a “shark” or a “tiger” (or some other kind of ferocious animal metaphor) in order to get as much business possible. But we don’t buy it. At Follow Up Boss, we’ve watched our clients soar to #1 status in their markets simply by doing things with a hefty dose of authenticity, for example: hosting local charity events, sending relevant and personalized emails, and refusing to talk lending over the phone. None of these approaches are the magic bullet for getting more clients. These methods work because they accurately reflect the team leader, the values that person lives day to day and the way they’ll actually behave when come face-to-face with a client. Think about the things that make you unique as an agent, then choose the marketing tools that match those characteristics as closely as possible.
23. Stay in Touch with Your Former Clients
Your former clients are one great source of referrals, so make sure to stay in touch with them. Vegas One Realty suggests sending them occasional emails to see how they’re doing, just to continue to nurture your relationship. This way, you’ll be the first person they think of when they will need to buy or sell a property or when someone asks them for a recommendation.
24. Get 5 New People a Day in Your Database
Prospecting is an old and tested way to find new clients. According to Marketing Artfully, the first job of real estate agents is to build their client database by including at least five new people every day. This database will serve as your list of leads to contact and will help you get started.
25. Pass Out Business Cards
One way to let people know that you’re doing real estate is by giving them your business cards. As advised by Homeside, don’t wait for business to come to you. Be proactive and move out of your comfort zone. It may be awkward to give business cards to strangers at first, but you will reap the benefits from this practice if you’re just consistent in doing it. Try to make a goal of passing out at least five business cards a day wherever you may be.
BONUS: Give Free Advice on Internet Forums
Home buyers and sellers use internet forums like Reddit, City Data and StreetEasy for advice. Check out these forums and offer free advice if you know how to help solve their problems. This can help you expand your network, and these people also might inquire about your services later on.
The Bottom Line
Customers are the lifeblood of every business. As a real estate investor, you should never run out of prospective clients, even if your listings are selling fast. Real estate investors should know how to generate enough leads as this is an essential key to their success. If you’re struggling to find prospects, the above expert tips will certainly help you get clients in real estate.
Source: Benilyn Formosa-Suralta - Fit Small Business
As usual, should you be interested in buying or selling a home, or for any further information regarding your home, please contact me, Karen Borden, your North Alabama Real Estate Professional!
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