Selling Soulfully with Jennifer Allan

As the Introverted Real Estate Agent's New Best Friend (I just made that up), I give out a lot of advice on how to make a real estate career work even if you aren't the most outgoing, charismatic social butterfly in town. The other day I was asked about the appropriateness of adding people to your mailing list (either email or snail-mail) without their permission. Spam issues aside (we're talking about people we know, not strangers), many introverts are hesitant to begin any structured communication with a friend or acquaintance for fear of annoying them.

I get that. Oh, how I get that. I agonize over my mailing list every time I send something out, whether it be to my real estate Sphere of Influence or my Sell with Soul readership. I wonder if I'm communicating too much; if I'm wearing out my welcome; or conversely, if I'm not communicating enough and my audience has forgotten who I am. I worry about the appropriateness of including a little promo for my next product or new listing. Conversely, I worry that if I don't, I'm not fulfilling my duty to myself to effectively market my stuff.

It's easy to over-think such things and end up doing nothing. Which is a bad plan. So, if this sounds anything like you, here are a few thoughts to put your mind at ease...

First, ask yourself if what you're getting ready to send out is something you're proud of. If it's something you'd enjoy receiving in your mailbox or inbox. Or, egads, if it's some cheesy newsletter or sales piece that you'd toss without reading if it were sent to you.

If your communication is something you are proud of and would enjoy receiving, then move on down to the next point. If it's not, if you're actually embarrassed by your effort, then you need to honor that gut feeling and return to the drawing board. Because, in my opinion, sending something cheesy or dorky is NOT better than doing nothing at all! But that's a topic for a different day.

If you're pleased with your piece, send it out. To everyone. Here's the thing. A few might be annoyed or feel spammed. That's a fact. But most won't. The vast majority won't. If you're sending out good stuff, most will enjoy it and be impressed by you. Which is good for business.

I'd rather impress 10 people and risk annoying one than take the chance of some other agent getting my SOI's business because I was worried about the one...

Question: "I understand that I won't always get my friends' business, but when I don't, is it reasonable to expect a courtesy call explaining why they hired someone else?"

It's tough when someone you know entrusts their real estate business to another agent, isn't it? When you're new, the disappointment can take days to get over, but even for Old Fogies like me, it'll still sting for an hour or two.

I believe that it's best to give your friend the benefit of the doubt and assume that she had a perfectly good reason for her decision not to bring you in on her real estate transaction. Trust in that, swallow your hurt and move on. Don't risk the friendship (or future business!) by demanding an explanation, complaining to mutual friends or sulking the next time you see her.

It might help you to behave properly if you look at the situation from a purely mercenary perspective. Your friend might become disillusioned with her chosen real estate agent - either during the transaction or afterwards. If it happens "during" and you've been pleasantly professional (as opposed to accusingly indignant), you might just find your friend back on your doorstep begging for your help. But even if this doesn't happen, the agent she chose might have been a major disappointment and you can actually cement your position as your friend's go-to guy or gal for her future referrals. But I guarantee neither will happen if you pout, whine or fuss about her decision.

I don't think the general public realizes how hurtful it is when our friends hire someone else - I doubt they even give it much thought. In most cases, it's not AT ALL personal, so they don't even think to feel bad about it, or feel they owe you any explanation.

So, does your friend owe you a courtesy call? No. If you get one, dandy (and please don't make her regret her decision to do so). But if you don't, please don't fret. More than an hour, anyway.

RELATED BLOGS

• Thanks, SOI, but I don't need your loyalty!
• Obligation: A Dirty Word When You SOI!

The Summer of Soul Begins Saturday... Get Your Ticket here! 

COMING SOON! The Sequel to Sell with Soul -
"If You're Not Having Fun Selling Real Estate, You're Not Doing it Right!"

"Hi, this is John and you've reached my voicemail. Your call is important to me and I return my calls between 1:00 and 2:00 and 5:00 and 6:00. Please leave a message and I'll call you back during those hours."

The first time I heard this outgoing voicemail message I didn't realize it was a script from a program; I just knew I didn't like it. Why? I'm not sure, really (maybe others who feel the same way can shed some light) - the closest I can come is that I almost felt scolded, as if I called at an inopportune time and should have known better. Or like it was a power play or something.

Okay, yeah, I'm a bit sensitive.

Anyway, I suddenly started hearing this outgoing message all over the place and figured out that it was part of a program that apparently lots of people had signed up for.

Fair enough. Whatever works.

I never warmed up to it. Oh, I know what the point is - it gives your callers an expectation of when you'll call back, provides structure for your day and demonstrates that you're a busy person. All good things, I suppose.

But what if you stated your "I return phone calls" message and then strived to return your calls earlier, thus making your callers feel special! One of my lenders does this and it actually does the trick - instead of feeling relegated to the to-do-at-4pm pile, I feel as if MY phone call was actually important to him!

IMO, it's a terrible business strategy to intentionally do something that might make your clients or prospects feel anything less than your Number One priority. Are they? Of course not, but every person on the planet longs to feel special, longs to feel important and if you can make that happen for them, there might be a future referral in it for ya (and you won't even have to beg for it)!

www.SellwithSoul.com

I'm pretty darn good at SOI'ing - that is - staying in touch with the people I know so that they remember who the heck I am and why they might want to think of my name when the topic of real estate comes up. My SOI enthusiastically supported me in my rookie year and throughout my real estate career... and I have no reason to doubt that they will continue to do so.

But, alas, even I'm not perfect. Sigh.

I just did an annual review of my mailing list to see if anyone hired someone other than me to sell their Denver home in the last year. The Denver MLS allows me to input an address and it tells me if there has been any activity on it in the last three years. It's always a bit of a rush when the address pulls up NO ACTIVITY, but then such a crashing disappointment when I see a SOLD ON date (or even worse, an ACTIVE SINCE date which means I JUST missed them!).

So, since I'm getting ready to launch a big SOI Reconnection campaign, it seemed like a good time to go through the list.

So, how'd I do?

Not bad, actually! Out of 156 contacts who own a home in Denver, only FOUR, yes FOUR of them hired someone else to sell their home! A few more did list elsewhere, but the homes never sold, so they're fair game.

The best news is that the people who "strayed" weren't people I'd made much effort with, so I can't feel too bad. In fact, none of them were anyone I'd actually had a conversation with since the closing - I'd just sent them stuff on a semi-regular basis.

And that's the thing about SOI. There's only so much you can do and you'll go crazy if you try to be perfect. If you could have a personal, non-salesy conversation with every single person you know twice a year, you'd probably bat 1000 with your SOI, but no one can do that! Well, maybe you can, but I can't.

So, I'll just quietly celebrate my 3% shrinkage and commit to making some new friends tonight at the neighborhood Super Bowl party!

*SOI = Sphere of Influence = People Who Know You

I'll bet you're thinking this is going to be a looooong blog, full of sappiness, self-serving propaganda and holier-than-thou pronouncements.

Nope. Not in the mood to be sappy, self-serving or even holier than y'all today.

So, I'll cut to the chase.

SOI might be right for you if: 

1. You are willing to put the needs of your clients first. This means that you have the TIME and DESIRE to go above and beyond what's expected, not just provide "good customer service."

2. Your real estate career is your priority career (see above).

3. You know your stuff. You aren't just a friendly and responsive party-animal, you are an excellent real estate agent.

4. You know people and are willing to make an effort to meet more (and yes, we introverts can excel at this too. In fact, we're a step ahead of the social butterflies in that we're good at keeping track of the people we know and meet!)

I'm sure I'll think of more and please feel free to add to this list.

So, is SOI right for YOU?

http://www.sellwithsoul.com/

copyright Jennifer Allan 2007

Welcome to Part Two of SOI and the Single Gal (read Part One here)

Ten Ways SOI is like Dating:

1. When you leave the house, you never know who you might meet. So put on lipstick, comb your hair and put on some sexy jeans. If you feel good about you, others can't help but notice and be drawn to you. Conversely, if you're slouching around Wal-Mart in your baggy sweats, bed-head hair and morning breath, people will most certainly keep their distance!
   
   
2. Be nice to everyone you meet. You never know if their brother or sister or aunt or uncle or mother or father needs someone just like you, right now!
   
   
3. Be nice to everyone you meet, Part II. Even though this person may not appear to be Your Type at first glance, you never know where it might lead if you give it a chance.
   
   
4.  Be nice to everyone you meet, Part III. Get in the habit of being pleasant to everyone who crosses your path and you'll be READY when you come face to face with THE ONE.
   
   
5. Get out of the house. Sure, online prospects are low-risk and plentiful, but nothing beats that rush of physical chemistry and intellectual rapport.
   
   
6. Go where other people are. Preferably to places where people talk to each other and feel good. The dog park, concerts in the park, happy hour, Water World, high school football games...
   
   
7. Play it cool. Don't put all your (business) cards on the table until the other person asks to see them.
   
   
8. Don't put your friends on the spot asking them to match them up. Okay, maybe ask ONCE if you must, but never mention it again. Feel free, however, to discuss your life (in a positive, upbeat, confident voice) with your friends, including all the great fun you're having meeting new people!
   
   
9. Be ready for the roller coaster. Euphoria and despair will be your companions on a daily basis. It's part of the fun!
   
   
10. Strive for that elusive balance between overly eager and underly responsive. Playing a little hard to get can make you appear more desirable, as long as you're WORTH waiting for!

The Savvy Prospector: 8 Weeks to a Full Pipeline for Life

Subscribe to
The Daily Seduction
Tips & Inspirations to Generate Business from the Very Important People Who Know You!

copyright Jennifer Allan 2007

Yesterday, I got a call from a former client of mine. She was one of my biggest investor clients during the Denver real estate boom in the late 1990's, but has since left town and no longer invests in the Denver market. We stay in touch and she sends referrals my way when she can.

Anyway, she called asking for my help in appealing a low appraisal her brother received on his home he's trying to refinance.

No problem, I tell her. I pull the comps, confirm that the appraisal is ridiculously low and email her the information, which she forwards to the lender handling the refinance. The lender calls me, asks for a little more information, including a copy of the tax assessor's record, which I immediately fax to him. He emails me the low appraisal and asks for my input which I provide. I explain in detail why the comps the appraiser used are inappropriate.

He thanks me profusely and tells me I'm awesome. I smile.

From the time my client called me to the point I evaluated the appraisal for the lender, about 90 minutes passed. All in all, I spent maybe 25 minutes of my time. Piece o' cake to do.

The moral of the story... this is pure SOI in action. Do you think I'll need to constantly remind my former client that I LOVE Referrals? Uh, no. I'm her real estate resource in Denver, no question about it. Because I dropped everything and helped her out right away, she knows she's a high priority for me. She knows she's special. I don't have to tell her, I showed her. And I won't have to remind her.

This is pretty simple stuff. But what if I followed my buddy Dirk Zeller's advice and put her off until later in the day (or even tomorrow) so I could finish up my prospecting or other more critical work? I mean, isn't it way more effective to pester ten strangers than to take care of one person who has already proven to be a source of business for me?

What do you think?

www.sellwithsoul.com

copyright Jennifer Allan 2007

In response to Loreena Yeo's blog, Do You SOI?...

Nine Reasons to "SOI"

1. Generating business from your Sphere of Influence is fun. A good SOI business model includes lunch dates, housewarming parties, afternoon BBQs, friendly email exchanges, cocktails and football games. Conversely, mass marketing to strangers involves stuffing envelopes, paying for postcards, licking stamps, disturbing day-sleepers, shaking off rejection and designing newspaper ads.

2. Generating business from your Sphere of Influence is relatively cheap. Getting your SOI campaign up and running will cost you a few pennies, but no where near what you'll spend promoting yourself to strangers. You'll probably need to design, print and mail a newsletter or two, which might run you around $500 depending on the size of your SOI. You'll probably do Christmas cards and send out some cute "Spring Forward!"-type postcards a few times a year. You might create some high quality magnets and implement a strategy to encourage referrals. You might want to send birthday and anniversary cards, and to invest in a good website and email stationary.

But otherwise, all the money you spend marketing to your SOI will be used on entertainment! Hot wings and beer on Sunday afternoon! All-you-can-eat jumbo shrimp at your house on Friday night! Sushi and sake after work with your best friend!

3. Implementing an SOI business model encourages good habits. When you commit to developing and maintaining a contact database, you're always aware of the new people that you meet. You remember to ask for and write down their contact information, and to input it into your management system. Because the success of your business depends on keeping your SOI current, you tend to be more vigilant with updates (even if you aren't perfect).

You don't forget about the nice lady you met last week at your friend's pool party who said she'd like to talk to you about buying an investment property. You can even find her phone number!

4. An SOI business model minimizes rejection. I don't think anyone, even the most outgoing, charismatic sales dynamo enjoys rejection. Sure, maybe you can develop a knack for shaking it off, but rejection hurts, even if only for a moment. And when you market yourself to strangers, you encounter rejection all the time. Even if it's nothing more than a lack of response to your expensive advertising, it's disappointing and discouraging.

When your business is made up mostly of people who know you, or who were referred to you, you are rarely rejected. You may not get every piece of business that crosses your path, but when you don't, it's usually for a reason other than a lack of salesmanship.

5. An SOI business model increases your accountability. When you are working with friends or referrals, you want to do a GREAT job! Contrary to what some might believe, you won't be tempted to let things slide just because you have a personal relationship with this person. You will want to impress them and even show off a little. This is good. When you do an exceptional job for one client, you've raised your own bar a little and will feel the need to do as good a job for the next... and even better for the next. Before you know it, you're an extraordinary real estate agent!

6. Business generated from your SOI is easy business to get. If your friends and your friends' friends think you're a competent real estate agent (or even just a generally competent person), "interviews" will be a slam-dunk. You'll rarely have to compete for listings and buyers; they're already predisposed to hire you.

7. Business generated by your SOI tends to be better business. Assuming that the people you know are people you respect and would like to do business with, it just makes sense that the business generated by them will also be business you'll enjoy. On the other hand, people who wander into a real estate office, visit an open house, or answer a newspaper ad may not be as qualified, motivated or loyal as you would like. Agents who depend on such marketing venues often find themselves working with buyers and sellers who aren't ready to move, or who are working with several different agents around town.

8. Once your SOI is "built," you can coast through the rest of your real estate career. Sure, your SOI will need ongoing maintenance, but you'll never have to do another day of prospecting. If you spend your first 4 years building a truly great SOI, it will take care of you the rest of your days. In the last five years of my career, I relied solely on business generated by my SOI. Thus, my personal promotion expenses were next to nothing and all my working hours were devoted to my (many) clients. I was able to make a six figure income working less than 30 hours a week. It was a beautiful thing.

9. And finally... and most importantly.... An SOI business model WORKS. It just does. The people who know you and care about you really want to help you. Truly, they do. They are much more likely to remember your name when the topic of real estate comes up in conversation and they are certainly more likely to put in a good word for you.

http://www.sellwithsoul.com/

copyright Jennifer Allan 2007