Rule #6 in writing real estate prospecting letters:
Keep writing!
The gurus who test direct mail tell us that you should expect less than a 1% response from a single mailing.
Their studies show that another 18% of the responses will come with the 2nd through 4th contacts, and
that a full 80% come from the 5th to 12th contact. Thus, most recommend that 5 “touches” are a minimum.
What is a “touch?” It could be a letter, a postcard, an email, a phone call, or even an in-person visit. I recommend using every method you can because your prospects are not all alike. One may respond well to a postal letter or postcard while another will only respond to a phone call or email.
Next, the touches need to be spaced fairly close together. If you mail a letter in July and don’t write again until September, most “cold contacts” won’t even recall having seen your name before.
Depending upon the type of prospect, the correct timing might be once a week, twice each month, or once a month. In some cases, such as a pending foreclosure, it would be wise to send the first few letters only 3 or 4 days apart.
Keep in mind that only a small percentage of people will be ready to act when you begin mailing to them. That means that if you've written a set of 5 or 6 letters, or if you're using my niche-specific pre-written prospecting letters, you'll come to the end of the set before every possible lead on your list contacts you.
What should you do then?
Choose from several things you can send to keep their attention from wandering.
One is your personal newsletter, if you write one. Another is a monthly market report. And don’t forget about just listed/under contract/just closed cards. People do like to know what’s going on in the neighborhood.
Even if you don’t write a regular newsletter, you can send information that affects people in your niche or your community. For instance, you can share news about new commercial or residential developments in the area, changes in zoning or in local services, celebrations, or events promoting a local non-profit.
If it's interesting to you, it will probably be interesting to other residents as well.
Why do people who actually are interested in listing fail to respond to your first contact?
For several reasons.
The most obvious is that they don’t know you and don’t yet have a reason to trust you. You’re a stranger reaching out to solicit business. (How do YOU react to those messages?) Your consistency helps them know and like you.
Not only that, it could be that your letter is all about you or that it asks for business before offering proof that you have something good to offer. Too many agents send “Hi, I’m wonderful, choose me” letters.
Other reasons relate to the timing.
On the day your letter arrives, they might be:
- Swamped with work, with no time to read your message
- Ill – or awaiting medical test results that have them worried
- Caring for a sick child
- In the middle of a personal crisis of some other kind
- In the middle of planning some kind of event
- Entertaining house guests
- Packing for a trip
- Out of town
- Depressed and discouraged about the chance of selling
- Inundated with similar letters (But that’s unlikely. Most agents don’t really prospect.)
In other words, they might be interested, but today is not the day.
That's one reason why you must keep on keeping on.
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