By Adam Dukes, Published November 4, 2014
Hope your coffee is hot, this should take you about 5 minutes and 30 seconds to read. (According to Forbes, the average adult reads 300 words per minute.)
I was on a call with a client the other day and he was wondering how he can convert more of the leads we’re generating for him into conversations.
This is a common question I get asked. During my strategy sessions with agents from around the country, I have discovered something — a lot of agents are decent at generating leads, typically via Facebook. The problem is — converting those leads into conversations which then lead to commission checks.
Conversions pay the bills.
Most focus on more traffic, but that is the wrong approach. If you’re website is not converting that traffic into conversations, you’re wasting money on ore traffic. Get your conversions dialed it and then send more traffic.
In this blog post, I am going to share with 4 strategies to help you convert more leads into commission checks. These strategies will help you close more deals and become a leader in your marketplace.
How To Convert More Leads Into Commission Checks
Be YOUnique
A solid, clear Unique Selling Proposition (USP) is something not many agents have. This is something that needs to be established before you start marketing. Once you establish a clear USP, put that on all your marketing material – websites, business cards, post cards, letter head, social media profiles, etc. Basically, wherever your name is, your USP should be. You want it everywhere.
A strong USP can literally double or triple your business. It is that important, especially in the real estate industry with all the competition.
Sidenote
I am currently consulting with an agent from San Diego. This is one of the first exercises we do. A few weeks back she shared with me some great ideas she came up with. I shared an idea with her she really liked. I asked why not offer to pay for a moving truck for her clients? She loved the idea. She is now incorporating that into all of her marketing.
From what we can tell, she is the only realtor in San Diego that helps her clients by paying the bill for a moving truck. That is powerful as she can now say something like,
There are 3,400+ Realtors in San Diego County and I am the ONLY one that pays for your moving truck when you move. I understand the stress and costs of moving and I want to do what I can to help.
Tell Your Story
A lot of agents use CRM tools that offer email marketing. A lot brokerages offer something similar and I always ask a couple questions;
Are these email templates?
Are the same emails being sent out by all the agents in your office?
Sadly, the agents answer “yes” to both of these questions.
They are the same boilerplate (boring) emails that everyone in their office sends out. And they wonder why they are not effective? A lot of agents claim Facebook “doesn’t work” or home value tools don’t work.
Facebook works.
The home value tools work.
The follow up sequence is the most important part of an online sales funnel. Assuming you are targeting properly, which is a whole other blog post.
I understand it’s easier to use the templates given, but it’s not going to turn you into a top producer in your marketplace. I assume you’d like to become a top producer, right? Spend the (extra) time to personalize your emails, if you want to close more deals.
You have to put in the work. You have to do something different. Do something no other agent in your marketplace is doing. Truth be told, it’s not that difficult to do.
These leads want to know who you are, why you do what you do, how you are different from the hundreds (sometimes thousands) of agents in your city. They want to know what you are going to do for them.They want to know why they should trust you, why they should hire you.
You have to educate them on all this. Not all at once, of course, but a great place to do this is in your email follow up sequence. Weave these important points into your emails, your blog posts, your videos. Tell your story.
Bolierplate templates are not going to work. I don’t care who provides them.
Be different.
Be bold.
Be YOU!
Welcome Video
This is probably my favorite one as it is so easy and makes a HUGE impact. A great place to use video is on your thank you page (after someone downloads a lead magnet from you, this is the page they are re-directed to).
A quick, 20-30 second welcome/intro video here puts a face to the email messages they are about to receive. It immediately sets you apart from everyone else (most agents are scared to get on camera).
You introduce yourself, let them know how long you’ve been in the industry, how/why you want to help and you’re there if they need anything. This is not a time to sell, but a time to introduce who you are. And how you can help them.
EXAMPLE SCRIPT:
Hi! Thank you for your interest in (what ever they signed up for)! My name is Adam Dukes and I have lived in Las Vegas for 8 years. I have been in the real estate business for 6 years and have some great connections here in town. If you need anything, please reply to any of these emails or call me at xxx-xxxx. I am here to help you buy/sell a home.
This is very simple to do. You shoot the video once (can be done from your phone) and it is always working for you. Film the video once, and every new lead will see it after they download something from you.
You can also go to www.YouTube.com/upload and use your desktop camera, if you have one. This is what I do and it takes 5 minutes as you can instantly upload it to YouTube right form there. It might take a few takes, but it doesn’t have to be perfect.
Here is a screenshot of a video that I use. After an agent downloads an ebook of mine, they are re-directed to a thank you page, of a video of me, offering my book, for free.
This does a couple things….
- It puts a face to the emails they are about to receive, a quick introduction to who I am and how I can help.
- It shows I have a physical book, that costs money, that I am offering for free. (Sidenote: if you have a physical book, this is a great place to offer it and establish yourself as an authority in your marketplace)
You want to differentiate yourself from the the competition? Publish a book. Nowadays, it is not that difficult to do with places like Amazon’s CreateSpace.
Honestly — How many of your competitors have a physical book? My guess would be less than 3%.
Share Helpful Content
If you’ve read this blog or have spoke to me on the phone, you know that I am a HUGE fan of blogging. Every agent should be using a blog to put out helpful content. Helpful content works for you 24/7/365.
According to a recent study by Google/NAR, the average homebuyer spends three weeks researching online before even calling an agent.
You think it would be a good idea to put out content since your prospects are searching online BEFORE contacting an agent?
All those questions you get asked (probably some multiple times), are great pieces for blog post topics. You can also use these blog posts in your automated email sequences (I do). Let’s say you have a sellers funnel, these people would probably enjoy reading how to sell a home faster or for more money or how important curb appeal is for selling their home for top dollar. Why not help them with this valuable information?
You can even send content that is not yours. Dave Ramsey (who I am a BIG fan of) provides some excellent content for home buyers/sellers. He also shares great content about money management, life lessons, family, etc. All content your prospects would enjoy reading.
Here is an example of a recent post on his site: 3 Ways to Keep Your Home Inspection From Killing Your Home Sale
The NAR has some great content that you can share as well. I recommend sharing your content, but if you do not have a blog (please start soon), then you can curate content from Dave, the NAR or agents from other cities. You want to be looked at as a trusted resource. If you do have a blog, it is good to mix in your content and to curate some content as well.
Conclusion
These are just some of the ways that you can become a top producer in your marketplace. These are all great ways to differentiate yourself as well. The real estate industry is so competitive and you need an edge, hence why I listed having a USP first.
As you can see, all these tips are about getting personal with people. It’s about helping people. I don’t talk objection handling or sales skills because the market has changed.
People want to deal with people.
As Jay Baer says,
The difference between “selling” and “helping” is only two letters.
GIF Credit: Giphy
Business Articles | Business 2 Community
(366)
