The Referral System Only The Most Successful Agents Use (And You Should Too)

Let’s say you got a referral today. What's your next step?

You should have a series of steps you follow every time. When you systemize how you approach referrals, sure enough, more referrals come your way.

Let’s start with what NOT to do: We’re not just going to send a silly little gift card or a coffee card as a thank-you. That would be ridiculous. We should do way more than that.

Think about it—this is the apex point. Everything you do with your SOI (sphere of influence) is leading up to getting a referral. And when you finally get that payoff, when someone actually sends you a referral, wouldn’t it be crazy to just send them a $5 or $10 gift card?

That’s why we're going way bigger than that.

So here’s a list of things to consider:

First, call them and thank them. If you haven’t already, send them a handwritten note: “Hey, thank you so much. I appreciate the referral.”

Then praise them publicly on social media. Make a post thanking them. This encourages others in your SOI to think, “Hey, I want a gift. I want to be recognized. I want to be invited to special things.”

That motivation can lead to more referrals.

Which leads me to the VIP group.

If you don’t already have one, I recommend you create one. Let your people know: “Anyone who sends me a referral gets invited to a special event we’re doing quarterly or twice a year.”

Maybe you buy concert or game tickets in your local market. Take pictures and post them on social media: “We had this amazing event—here are all the people who sent me a referral or did business with me in the last 12 months.”

Make it a big deal. People love this.

Now let’s talk about tiered gifts. What’s your personal gift going to be?

It needs to be bigger than what you've been spending. If you’ve been spending $20, triple it—go to $60. If you’ve been spending $25, go to $75.

This is just the initial gift. It’s a thank-you for the act of the referral—whether it closes or not doesn’t matter. You're rewarding the act of sending the referral.

Ideally, send the gift to their place of work, especially if they’re a business owner. That way they get public recognition.

People will ask, “Where’d that come from?” And they’ll respond, “From my REALTOR. I sent them a referral.”

That’s great publicity for you.

Then, when the deal does close, send an even bigger gift. Go big. And no, it’s not tied to the transaction amount. Whether it’s a $50,000 mobile home or a $500,000 house, you’re still sending a big gift.

Legally, you usually can’t tie gifts to commission amounts or deal size. It has to be consistent. But more importantly—you’re playing the long game.

You’re not just looking at this one referral. You’re conditioning them to send the next referral. And the one after that. Go big.

Throughout the process, keep them updated:

• “Hey, just wanted to let you know—your referral is going great. I’m working with them now. We’re looking at homes.”
• “We’re in escrow!”
• “We’re pending!”

Let them know what’s happening.

If you’ve listed their referral’s property, send them the link and say, “Thanks so much—here’s the listing. Feel free to share with your friends and family.”

This keeps people involved and engaged. And they love it.

These are some of the processes I want you to think about implementing to seriously ramp up referrals over the next 12 months.
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When we're talking to our sellers and giving them feedback each week about what's happening in the market, it's really important that we educate them on a few things that often get missed.

One of those is the power of virtual showings.

So what’s a virtual showing? A virtual showing is when someone visits your listing online. They may or may not come see it in person, but that initial view online is still a strong signal. It means your marketing is working—it's attracting people to look at the listing on Zillow, Realtor.com, your own website, or the MLS.

From there, the buyer decides: Is the listing priced right? Does it look like it’s in great condition? Is it staged properly? A number of other factors come into play once they arrive at the listing page—but your job is to get them there.

And when you’re talking to our sellers every week—and this is how we earn price adjustments, by the way—you need to bring up virtual showings.

Right now, price adjustments are on the rise. About 36% of listings across the U.S. have had some form of price change, which is the highest it’s been in two years. There’s more competition now than we’ve seen recently, so price adjustments are key. And during our seller conversations, one thing we should be saying is:

“Mr. and Mrs. Seller, just a quick update on what's happening. In the last week, we had 52 virtual showings—meaning 52 people viewed your listing online. That converted into 5 actual, in-person showings. I followed up with all five buyers’ agents. Two got back to me. We’re waiting on a response from the third.

“Here’s what both of those agents said: The buyers felt the home was priced a bit high. They ended up purchasing other properties. Both also mentioned that the flooring might need to be updated or that there should be an allowance for new flooring.”

Whatever your specific feedback is, anchor the conversation in virtual showings first. That shows the marketing is working. Then, we use that insight to guide price adjustments or condition improvements. It’s a very powerful concept. I want you all to start using it.

And if you want more ideas like this, join us at eRealEstateCoach.com. Check out the Path Performance Coaching program. It's an incredible system that gives you tons of lead generation tools and helps you become a strong, listing-driven agent.

The first month is only $1—most affordable coaching in the country. Hope to see you over there soon. Have a great day, and good selling.

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Why do Brokerage Owners, Office Leaders, Team Leaders, and Solo Agents choose Jim to be their coach?

+ 32 Years of Real Estate Sales, Management, and Coaching Experience
+ Top 1% REALTOR Himself (he has been in the trenches)
+ Opened his First Real Estate Company at 23
+ Grew his Real Estate Company to 17 Offices (largest in Oregon)
+ His Current Team Closed $1.4 Billion in Sales in One Year
+ He is a Current Real Trends Top 500 Broker

When your office or team joins our brokerage coaching platform, every agent at your firm will tap into our training and coaching resources.

These benefits include:

20 Weeks of On-Demand Lead Generation Coaching: Empower your agents with proven lead generation strategies.

Extensive Downloads Library: Gain access to a vast collection of resources, including scripts, texts, emails, drip campaigns, checklists, systems, forms, and more, all designed to enhance your agents' productivity and success.

Marketing Assets: Stay at the forefront of real estate marketing with new social media and digital assets delivered to your team on a weekly basis, ensuring you have the latest tools and strategies to effectively reach your target audience.

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At eRealEstateCoach.com, we are committed to helping you and your team thrive. Productive agents become raving fans helping you attract the top talent in the industry.

Visit https://www.erealestatecoach2.com/explorecoaching to learn more.