Quick question for youâsince the beginning of the year, how much time have you invested in lead generation? Whether it's with your sphere of influence, open houses, FSBOs, expired listings, absentee owners, or geographic farming, where have you focused your efforts?
To maintain a consistent income without the ups and downs, you should be dedicating at least an hour a day to lead generation. But remember, we donât do what we donât schedule. If itâs not on your calendar, itâs unlikely youâll actually do it. There will always be distractions pulling you away from this essential task.
Let me give you a simple strategy to ramp back up into regular lead generation. Because if youâve been doing little to none for the past three to six months, jumping straight into an hour a day can feel overwhelming.
The solution? The Plus One Strategy.
Itâs simpleâjust do one of these activities today:
If you really wan...
Hey guys, I want to give you a strategy as we head into the busiest season of the year for listingsâFebruary, March, April, and May. This is when the most homes hit the market, so itâs the perfect time to ramp up your efforts.
Iâve got two strategies that can help.
1. Create a Real Estate Resume
A real estate resume highlights your background, skills, education, and successes. Keep it simpleâjust a one-page document. You can use Canva, where you'll find plenty of great resume templates. Pick one, customize it, and build out your real estate resume.
Once it's ready, send it out to your entire database with a cover letter. The letter should say something like:
"As we enter the busiest season of the year, I wanted to share my real estate resume in case you know any buyers or sellers looking for an agent. Iâd love to interview for the job of helping them buy or sell their home."
This positions you as a professional and keeps you top of mind with potential clients.
2. Build & Share Y...
Other than your direct sphere of influence, whatâs the second-best source of business for REALTORS? Let me share my perspective and see if it aligns with yours.
We know 70â80% of our business comes from our sphere. So, what should we focus on to generate the remaining 20â30%? In my 35 years of coaching, I believe the biggest opportunity lies in your buyer pool.
Buyers are the ultimate magnet for sellers. The question is, are you using your buyers effectively as a lure? I call this strategy In Search Of (ISO) ads. Hereâs how it works:
Think of yourself as a fisherman. The lure on the end of your line could be a free CMA or tips on getting top dollar for a home. But the best lure is a live buyer ready to purchase.
For example, if I have a buyer interested in a specific neighborhood, Iâll let the neighborhood know:
Hey guys, have you had a chance to talk to your social and sphere audiences about the importance of flood insurance?
This should be a priority, especially with what's happened with Helene and Miltonâitâs on the top of everyone's mind.
Here's something interesting: typical homeownerâs insurance doesnât cover flooding. Since 1996, 99% of counties in the U.S. have experienced some kind of flooding event. Whatâs more, 20% of all flood claims come from homes not in traditional flood zones. And just one inch of flooding in your house can cause at least $25,000 in damage.
Thatâs a huge reason to encourage your clients to get flood insurance.
To help with this, there are a couple of things we can do:
First, partner with a local insurance agent who specializes in flood insurance. We could record a webinar or have them join a live stream to discuss the importance of flood insurance.
Another option is to direct people to the government website, FloodSmart.gov, which has a ton of information...
Hey guys, you know what everyoneâs starting to get right now?
Their property tax statements.
When people get those statements, they rush to open them and think, "My homeâs worth more than that," or "My propertyâs worth less than that," or something in between.
Hereâs an opportunity for us. Why not reach out to all of your clients, your sphere of influence, and your social audiences with this message:
âHey guys, youâre probably getting your property tax statements around now. If you look at that assessed value and disagree with it, or just want an updated value of your property, give me a quick call or text. I do this as a free service for all my friends and family, just to keep you in touch with your finances and your equity position.â
Thatâs it! Thatâs the messaging. People will absolutely take advantage of this, and it opens the door to conversations.
You might wonder, "Jim, why would I do this if theyâre not interested in selling?" Youâre doing it because friends refer friends...
Hey guys, did you know that only 5% of REALTORS reach out on the one-year home anniversary after selling someone a house?
Isnât that crazy? Just 5%! And even fewer do it for the second, third, fourth, or fifth year.
But if youâre one of the 95% who havenât done this, hereâs your opportunity. Go back â not just this year, but 2, 3, 4, or even 5 years â and load up the contacts youâve forgotten about. Give them a quick call today and say, âHey, I just wanted to wish you a happy belated one-year (or two, three, five-year) anniversary on your home purchase.â
And by the way, take a couple of minutes to run an updated equity analysis for them. Say, âHereâs how much money youâve made on your house in the past few years. Iâm sending you the report so you can check it out.â
If you start doing this every year with all your past clients, your business will boom. This simple gesture can unlock so much potential.
At the end of that conversation, after delivering the home equity update, say thi...
Hey guys, are you afraid of ghosts? A lot of us are, but letâs put aside the spooky ghosts and talk about your business ghosts.
What are business ghosts?
If you dive into your CRM, your phone, or even your social media and see people you donât recognize, you might think, âMaybe I should delete them.â
These are the ghosts in your machineâpeople youâve forgotten. Donât delete them!
Instead, I want you to rekindle that relationship. Hereâs how: reach out via text, phone call, or direct message. Say, âHey, Iâm cleaning up my records and came across your name. Iâm just trying to remember how we connected.â
Theyâll respond with something like, âOh, Jim, we met at an open house,â or âWe met here or there.â Then you can say, âThatâs right! I remember now. How are you guys doing?â
From there, youâll rekindle the relationship. This could lead to a sale, a referral, or even a valuable connection that you would have deleted otherwise.
So, make sure you seek out these ghosts. If you spent on...
Here's an interesting question to put out on social media to your audiences:
Would you move from your current market because of climate change?
I've been in the business for 35 years, and we never really talked about climate change as a motivator for people to move. But it's becoming more and more of a reason for people to relocate. In fact, 30% of Americans today, especially young people, say they would move because of climate change or make a decision about where to live based on it.
Thatâs why this is an interesting question to ask on social media.
Climate change can take many different forms. In my market area, for example, it's fires.
We had a fire come through our neighborhoods that burned down 2,700 homes. It was one of the biggest fires in the nation for destroying homes. Absolutely devastating for our community. We went through several summers of fire, and a lot of people moved because they couldn't deal with the smoke and terrible air quality.
On the flip side, you migh...
Here's a massive opportunity for you when you're looking at your sphere of influence. If you've got a list of people in your sphere that own businesses or are entrepreneurs with locations, weâre in a unique position with the commercial market right now. In many areas, the commercial market is really struggling.
The script for reaching out to these business owners in your sphere of influence is straightforward. Start by asking, âDo you rent or own your current location?â
Most will be renters, some will be owners.
If they say they are renters, you can respond with this:
âIf you'd like to own, this is one of the best times in the last 10 years to buy commercial property. There are several factors at play:
Thereâs a real opportunity to get a bargain in todayâs market.â
Or if they already own their property, ask, "Have you ever thought of adding a ...
Heading into the new year, here's a game-changing strategy for you:
Open up your CRM, scan your sphere of influence, and pinpoint all the business owners. Start by reaching out to them. Call and ask, "Hey, Jim, how's the new year looking for you? How did last year finish off?"
Share your plan, "I want to start endorsing a local business every week on my social media, and I'd love to feature yours. I just want to promote local businesses I admire. No strings attached. Are you cool with that?"
They'll likely say yes, appreciating the gesture.
Be the Go-Giver. Lead with their needs. Within a week, make a post about their business on social media. Include photos, share your personal experience, and publicly endorse them. Tag them in the post. They might even share it with their audience. It's a win-win, a feel-good moment for both parties.
Even if they don't reciprocate immediately, the spirit of giving will work its magic for your business.
Now, measure your efforts. If your goal is...
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