If you’re like most agents, you have a pile of leads in your CRM that have gone cold. You know there’s an opportunity there, but you’re just not sure how to bring these leads back to life.What email(s) should you send? Just checking in? A long email that explains why they should work with you? Or set them up on a long drip campaign teaching them about buying a home?Great ideas—in some contexts—but not here. They won’t work.Here’s what you do instead:
Are you still planning to buy a house in [city] this year?
I want my motivation to match your motivation. I scale from 1 to 5, with 1 being “just-looking” to 5 being “get me in the house tomorrow,” how would you rate your motivation?
Send these messages as emails—or even better as texts. They’re fantastic because they get a quick response, and they get the conversation started. That’s what you want. Once the conversation is started, the lead is revitalized, and you can give them the attention they need based on their level of motivation.
“Does anyone know a good Realtor?”
(What to say when recommended in a group)
We have all been there. A buyer or seller goes into a community Facebook group and asks, “Does anyone know a good Realtor?” Hundreds of people respond, you get tagged a few times, and you see all of the top agents in the area get tagged multiple times as well.
What do you do? What do you say? I mean, it’s easy to think: What are the chances they will pick me anyway? Look at all of these options! Right?
Especially if you are a new agent like Brittany Jeanes, an agent from Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, who got her license last October, sold a few houses, and is yet to get her first listing.
Brittany was tagged in a post along with 300 other agents. She writes, “All the top producers in our area, decades of experience, the ones with billboards and commercials….they were all in there. I thought there’s NO way, but I’m going to try anyway.”
She messaged the poster. Of course, she got back the standard questions: “How long have you been a Realtor? How many closings did you have last year, and how many listings?”
She writes, “I thought, Oh here we go…it will be crickets after this.”
She had to be honest: “I got my license in Oct of last year and I’ve had four closings since, zero listings.”
But then Brittany added these magic words: “But please don’t let that fool you! Your home would be my sole focus and no one will work harder than me to get your home sold.”
She continues, “I prepared my entire listing presentation and marketing details, emailed it to her, and kept in constant contact.”
Then it happened—the seller requested a meeting.
Brittany writes, “I was beside myself with excitement. I met with them and just SOLD myself. I was completely myself and genuine. They said they could see this wasn’t a sales pitch and that I was truly excited to help them. They signed everything. After, I sat in my car in my driveway and cried … I was now a LISTING AGENT!”
Don’t fake it until you make it. Instead, ask for an opportunity. This is exactly what Brittany did. She asked them for an opportunity and they wanted to give that opportunity to Brittany. They too were once new at their job.
It’s like when you get a new waiter at a restaurant. You want to give them an opportunity. You are patient with them. You encourage them. You might even tip them a little more. You want to see them do well. If they make a mistake you give them grace. Right? Well, I think it’s the same in this situation.
Trust over experience
But doesn’t the seller want an experienced agent? Yeah some do, but the truth is that consumers crave trust. They want to trust their realtor. They crave trust over experience. And when Brittany was honest about her experience—explaining that she was new and this would be her first listing—the sellers immediately trusted her.
Most agents fake it until they make it. And this is why buyers and sellers don’t trust them.
To connect with Brittany Jeanes on Instagram or Facebook: @BrittanyJeanesRealtor
The real estate market is just as tough today as it was in the middle of the recession. Inventory is tight. Prices are climbing. We survived 2020. But how will we make it through 2021?
If you’re scared, you’re not alone. Old strategies don’t work in this new market. You’ll need to adapt. But if you’re willing to learn some new skills, I believe you’ll not only survive but also thrive in 2021.
Let’s start with the inventory problem…
Inventory
Our biggest challenge in 2021 is inventory. In almost every market across the country, inventory is so short that it has become next to impossible to get your offer accepted. It’s like winning the lottery. One team wrote 23 offers in one week and didn’t get one of them accepted.
This market hasn’t been this challenging since the recession. But the reason for that challenge has flip-flopped. In the recession, we had too many sellers and not enough buyers. Today, as we all know, we have too many buyers and not enough sellers.
Can this problem be solved? Absolutely! But before we get into tactics, let’s pause for perspective. Tight inventory will not last forever. This too shall pass. During the recession, I remember thinking things would never change or get better. We were sitting at 28 months of inventory. This is going to take ten years to fix! I was sure of it! But it didn’t. Two years later, the inventory began to swing the other way. Right now we’re at one end of a pendulum swing. Sooner or later, it’s gotta go the other way.
Meanwhile … How do we handle this? How can we navigate tight inventory?
Off-market deals
We need to put more off-market deals together. I know working with a FSBO can sometimes be less than fun. We need to negotiate for our commission. It’s twice as much work. On top of that, it usually means navigating through the transaction as the only agent involved trying to explain things to both parties. It can be difficult. No doubt about it.
But let me ask you a question: Would you rather be one of twelve offers on a property? Would you rather write offer after offer for a buyer only to see them give up and renew their lease? Or would you rather work with a FSBO?
Personally, I would work with the FSBO. Wouldn’t you?
How do we put more off-market deals together?
How do you find the FSBOs you’ll want to work with? You can start with an online search including Zillow.com, Realtor.com, Redfin.com. But don’t forget Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, Nextdoor, and any other local sites for FSBO’s.
Next, I would include a section in your monthly newsletter that reads, “If you see a “for sale by owner” sign in your neighborhood or as you’re driving in the ____ area, could you please let me know the address? With so few houses on the market, we have buyers who can’t find the home they need. We are doing everything we can to help our buyers find the right homes. Some people just put a sign in their yard and never make a mention online.”
Here’s another idea: Mail letters to expired listings from 2014-2017. In the letter explain that you see their home was on the market but didn’t sell; you have a buyer who may be interested. “Would you like to sell?” (Note: Agent Rise Members: We have a letter template that has yielded great results. It’s in the file section of the members-only site.)
A final idea for now: Send an “I have a buyer” letter to the homes in the neighborhoods where your buyer wants to live. This tried and true method has worked for years, and it will continue to work in 2021.
What will turn the inventory around?
Earlier I wrote, “This too shall pass.” I know what you’re thinking: Oh yeah, and how is that going to happen, Neil!?
Here are three things that COULD happen in 2021;
Banks could ease restrictions making it easier to obtain bridge loans. I’m also hearing of some real estate brokerages coming out with plans as well. This will help many homeowners buy their new home before they sell their current home. This will help get many would-be sellers “unstuck” by getting them over the challenge of selling before they buy. Many are not moving because they fear they won’t be able to buy before they sell, and they don’t want to move twice, live in a rental, or move in with family. They want to move, but they can’t risk being homeless. So they are just stuck. This continues to shrink our inventory, but better bridge loan programs would help fix that problem.
10 million Americans are unemployed. Of course, that affects the real estate market. When the aid is lifted, it’s going to hurt some homeowners, and unfortunately, it’s going to force some to list their homes, increasing the inventory.
During Covid, we printed a lot of money. Inflation drives up interest rates. That prices some buyers out of the market. As buyers leave the market, we may get to a place where we have three offers on a property instead of 15.
Those are just three things that could change market conditions by driving inventory up or changing supply vs. demand.
Other changes I see happening in 2021
Facebook Advertising for real estate agents could be affected by changes coming to Apple phones in 2021. Something that is coming soon to iOS 14 – and with that Apple will now prompt users to allow tracking or not allow tracking for Facebook applications. In a recent article from Lyfe Marketing explains, if users opt-out (and most will, because who wants to be tracked), advertisers won’t be able to track the events and conversions of those users, limiting the data we have to optimize appropriately on Facebook. This of course is all speculation and things could change before the update rolls out. We shall see.
Open houses will make a return. In 2020, Covid halted our ability to do open houses. As states begin to open, open houses will make a return. With the short inventory, they are not necessary to sell the house, but they remain a great way to get as many people through the house as possible. Of course, they remain an excellent way for an agent to build their business. I’m excited to see them come back in 2021.
Demand for home buyer webinars will continue to surge in 2021. During quarantine, many things went virtual. One of the best developments I saw take place was virtual first-time home buyer webinars and Facebook groups. Many agents tried this for the first time in 2020, and I see many sticking with it and more joining them in 2021.
Email drip campaigns will continue to lose steam forcing us to match make with buyers. NAR reports that a buyer comes in contact, on average, with seven agents before they buy their house. Which agent would you work with? (1) The agent who sends you an email with all his/her new listings? Or (2) the agent who studies what you’re looking for and calls with specific matches?
Are you looking to build your business by turning your real estate clients into raving fans? You are tired of chasing online leads, doing open houses, or door knocking. Instead, you would love the business you did yesterday to turn into the business you do tomorrow. You want raving fans, but how do you build that?
There is no one doing this better than Shannon Milligan in Richmond Virginia. Last week Shannon shared exactly how she is wowing her clients. If you missed the episode listen here. This week I want to help you make the right steps in implementing what Shannon shared.
Resources and Links mentioned in this episode
I’ve just launched a free resource called Secrets to Winning Listing Appointments, and it’s available now on my website: agentrisecoaching.com/listingsecrets
Right around the time we were planning our recent 17-day road trip, we heard a message from Robby Dawkins. In the message, he said, “the door at the grocery store only opens if you walk into it. You can’t open the door by standing in the parking lot. Walk into the door and it will open.” (Unless the store is closed 🤦♂️😂)
We kept that “step into the door” mindset the entire trip. Many times we felt we were at the end and then we took one more step. And every time we did, the door opened. Every single time.
We saw the Agent Rise community truly rise up to support and encourage us. Providing us with places to stay, meals, speaking engagements, and countless gifts – including 2 days at Disney, beachside resorts and so much more! Seriously the love we felt was overwhelming and gave us confirmation that we are on the right track.
Coupled with a prompting before the trip to go full time with Agent Rise, it became a no brainer once I got out of Wisconsin. I realize just how much I have let fear stand in the way of going all in.
In addition, we felt, without a doubt, that we need to go full time RVing right NOW. No more someday, we need to do it now! And if we do that now the only way is to sell everything we own. As crazy as that sounds, we believe it’s the sacrifice we need to make to live out the dream we have. 😳😬🤷♂️
While on the trip my concern remained with, “how do I continue to provide real estate services for my clients if I was to go full time with coaching and go full time RVing?” It’s so hard to let this go and put it in someone else’s hands, but we knew we needed to step into the next door.
The week we returned from the trip we were presented with an opportunity to partner with agents in their real estate business here in Madison along with agents across the country. So that I can not only coach agents, but I can partner with them in building their business. In addition, these partnerships would benefit my clients to be assured they are working with someone aligned with my beliefs.
Sooo….with all of that said, we are excited to say we have THREE big announcements….
First, I’m so excited to announce that I have decided to go full time as a real estate agent coach! The time has come for me to overcome the fear and go all-in on Agent Rise Coaching!!
Second, I have decided to join eXp Realty to build a nationwide cloud-based brokerage firm, that will include a local team here in Madison, along with additional teams throughout the country. My goal is to have a team in every major city.
And the third announcement is that we are going to sell everything we own to go full-time RVing! We are going to travel the country, build teams in cities coast to coast, host Agent Rise Workshops and Summits, give talks, and pour into as many agents and brokers across the country that we can. Of course, we have a lot to do before we set sail and we’ll need to wait until the shelter in place is over. (But if you see a hundred posts in FB Marketplace from me selling stuff, now you know why.)
With all of the change I am of course fighting fear, I’m sad, and super excited all at once.
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t freaking out about selling everything and jumping into a new world.
I’m sad to leave Realty Executives Cooper Spransy. It’s a super special place filled with so many loving, caring, and fun people. Some of whom have become some of my best friends. I will miss them dearly, and will always be rooting for them.
And, I’m super excited to help even more agents build businesses they love and to focus on growing Agent Rise and my new brokerage at eXp Realty.
Are you building your business by hosting open houses and you’re always wondering what open houses you should do and what ones you should pass on? Stick around as we uncover the best and worse open houses to do…
Disclosure: You’re there to sell the house for the seller. After that follow your laws to how you can help the buyer with their needs.
Best
– No Showings Until Open House
– One that has been on the market with a recent price correction
– Priced a little above the median so they have a house to sell.
– High Turnover neighborhood
– should I do one that is out of my area?
Worse
– New construction
– Rural
– Unique properties
Right around the time we were planning our recent 17-day road trip, we heard a message from Robby Dawkins. In the message, he said, “the door at the grocery store only opens if you walk into it. You can’t open the door by standing in the parking lot. Walk into the door and it will open.” (Unless the store is closed 🤦♂️😂)
