I believe that every real estate agent who wants to be the best thing to happen to their clients (thus generating a steady supply of new clients throughout their careers) should invest in and commit to a real estate-specific contact management system. No, not to send out cheesy drip-mails to their nearest and dearest every two weeks, but to maximize the likelihood that everyone they know thinks of them fondly when the subject of real estate comes up in their day-to-day wanderings.
On Tuesday, October 18th, I did a teleseminar show in the SWS Virtual Studio on the subject, and discussed several ways contact management can be used to help a real estate agent enjoy the success they dream of. At the end of the show, I asked attendees to send me at least one thing they learned that would help them achieve that - and below are the results of that poll!
Favorit-est Tip #1
Create checklist (or Action Plan) templates for your transactions, specifically, your Active Listings, your Buyers-Under-Contract and your Listings-Under-Contract. Every time you enter into a transaction, apply the appropriate template and voila! Your transaction-specific to-do list auto-populates into your daily task list so nothing slips through the cracks! (you can see samples of mine in my VIP Lounge here.)
Favorit-est Tip #2
Print out a list of your "Group One's" (your social network) every quarter and work your way through the list, making personal contact with a few each week. Each week, different names will "call out" to you from the list, depending on your mood, and by the end of the quarter, you'll have at least attempted to talk to or meet up with everyone on the list. Once you're through the list, print out a new one and start over.
Favorit-est Tip #3
Use your contact management system to REMIND you to do things, not to do them for you! Don't ask your contact management system to DO your staying-in-touch, particularly with your Group One's and your clients. Just set up tasks that will remind you it's time to send a birthday card or a how-ya-doing email or a market status report - then send the greeting card, write up the email or send the report personally.
Favorit-est Tip #4
Every time you have an encounter with someone you know, think of something from your conversation you can follow-up on, and create a task for yourself to do it. For example, if your friend tells you they're job-hunting, set a reminder to call them in a week or two to see how it's going.
If you'd like to read more of my ramblings on Contact Management (exciting stuff, I know), just go here: www.SellwithSoul.com/contact-management.
Thanks to everyone who attended the show and provided their feedback!
